Michael Warner: Allan government’s bold plan to lure Rory McIlroy to Melbourne would be a shot in the arm for the city
It’ll cost a small fortune and may not even come off, but if the Victorian can secure Rory McIlroy to, it will go some way to rebuild the state’s damaged major events reputation, writes Michael Warner
Victoria
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Not since Tiger Woods came to town to light up the 2009 Australian Masters at Kingston Heath has local golf sought to bag a bigger elephant.
Rory McIlroy’s signing as the face of a revamped Australian Open at Royal Melbourne – fresh off his grand slam-clinching victory at last month’s Masters at Augusta – would be a stroke of genius for a city keen to repair the damage to its status as Australia’s major events capital after the Commonwealth Games debacle.
McIlroy, the world No.2, is the hottest player on the planet with three wins already this season on the PGA Tour.
He’s in sight of a fourth at this week’s PGA event in Philadelphia and joint favourite for the year’s second major, the PGA Championship, in North Carolina next week.
The big four Australians – Min Woo Lee, Adam Scott, Cam Smith and Jason Day – are also expected to tee it up in pursuit of the Stonehaven Cup at Royal Melbourne in late November/early December if the deal can be done.
The Presidents Cup will be staged at Kingston Heath in 2028, so Royal Melbourne in Black Rock is the obvious choice, a world-renowned course that hasn’t hosted an Open in 34 years.
It’s also a track that’s long been on McIlroy’s global bucket list.
The NSW Government is fighting hard to secure the rights to the Australian Open, but Golf Australia knows it simply can’t look past the pulling power of a McIlroy-Royal Melbourne double.
Talks to lure McIlroy to Melbourne go back more than two years.
Meetings between Australian golf chiefs and agents for some of the world’s top players also took place at last month’s Masters at Augusta National.
Visit Victoria, the state’s major events body, PGA of Australia chairman Ian Baker-Finch and former senior European Tour official Antonia Beggs (now at Golf Australia) have also played crucial roles behind the scenes.
The cost to taxpayers will be large (Woods cost a cool $3m 16 years ago) but the economic benefits and shot in the arm to the Australian golf scene would far outweigh the expense.
BOLD PLAN TO LURE GOLF STAR RORY MCILROY TO MELBOURNE
The Victorian government has launched an audacious bid to lure golfing superstar Rory McIlroy to Melbourne.
The Herald Sun can reveal McIlroy is the primary target of a plan to stage a revamped Australian Open at Royal Melbourne.
The world’s No. 2 golfer, fresh off a grand slam-clinching Masters victory at Augusta National, would headline a star-studded field expected to include the big four Australians – Min Woo Lee, Cameron Smith, Jason Day and Adam Scott.
Stars from the breakaway Saudi-backed LIV tour are also being courted.
McIlroy’s asking price is unknown, but Tiger Woods cost taxpayers $3m when he agreed to play the Australian Masters at Kingston Heath in 2009.
The Northern Irishman has made no secret of his desire to play a tournament on the famed Alister MacKenzie-designed Royal Melbourne sandbelt course.
“The market down there is huge with potential. They love golf. They love sport,” McIlroy said last year.
“They have been starved of top-level golf. And the courses are so good.”
Victoria is locked in a bidding war with the NSW government for the rights to the 2025 Australian Open, controlled by Golf Australia.
Attempts to secure McIlroy’s signature are being led by the Victorian government’s major events body, Visit Victoria.
If Victoria wins the race, the Open would likely be played on Royal Melbourne’s composite course in late November or December.
As part of his bumper sign-on fee, McIlroy would be required to help promote Victoria’s golfing and tourism sector with the expectation that the tournament would also attract overseas golf fans to the state.
The deal is expected to generate millions in economic benefits to the state.
A state government spokesman said: “as Australia’s major events capital, we are always working to secure major events that boost tourism and support jobs.’’
Royal Melbourne, in Black Rock, hasn’t hosted an Australian Open since 1991.
Golf Australia has returned the Open to a men’s only event after three years of a mixed format.
McIlroy, 36, survived a near-catastrophe – and a playoff against Englishman Justin Rose – to finally salute at Augusta National last month, sealing his place as the greatest player of his generation.
The victory elevated McIlroy into golf’s pantheon as a member of its most exclusive group – the career grand slam club as a winner of all four majors.
Only Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Ben Hogan, Gary Player and Gene Sarazen had ever achieved the feat.
McIlroy won the Australian Open at Royal Sydney twelve years ago, one of his 47 worldwide victories.
He has three wins already on the PGA Tour this season and is a joint favourite with world No.1 Scottie Scheffler at this week’s USPGA Championship in North Carolina.
Victoria has already secured the President’s Club for 2028.
Originally published as Michael Warner: Allan government’s bold plan to lure Rory McIlroy to Melbourne would be a shot in the arm for the city
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