Rory McIlroy had to look on yesterday as good friend Tommy Fleetwood picked up an Olympic silver medal in Paris.
Fleetwood’s excellent final round of five-under par ensured he came second in Paris and while he was beaten by Scottie Scheffler in the end, it was still a remarkable achievement.
Of course, Scheffler’s performance itself of nine-under was truly remarkable, or ‘a joke’ as Jon Rahm called it.
But nevertheless, Fleetwood can be proud of his efforts in taking home a medal.
In fairness as well, Irish star McIlory wasn’t far off either. He produced a stunning run on the back nine to card five birdies in a row before a short wedge shot on 15 all but ended his hopes.
Still, it was good to see McIlroy back in some sort of form and for the Europeans in general, the week in Paris was a good one overall in terms of performance.
And McIlroy, as ever, was more than happy to see his good pal Fleetwood excel.
Rory McIlroy’s reaction to Tommy Fleetwood winning silver in Paris
Speaking during his post-round interview with Fleetwood still out on course at the time, McIlroy admitted he was delighted to see his good friend do the business.
“Yeah, amazing — I think he did, hopefully,” McIlroy said at the time.
“Yeah, look, great fight and again, Tommy loves the game, loves traditions, history. Yeah, and you know, I think this obviously means a lot to him and it’s good to see him play well this week.
With a Ryder Cup to come in 2025, it’s good to see the likes of Fleetwood competing in the top tournaments.
Fleetwood, of course, scored the winning point for Team Europe in Rome in 2023 and he’ll be hoping to be part of Luke Donald’s selection once again at Bethpage Black.
McIlroy – who very much enjoyed the Olympics – seems to be inconsistent but still finds himself in the mix in tournaments.
But for one errant shot here, he could have been walking away with a medal as well.
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