Inside golf’s big coup: Why Rory McIlroy is coming to play the Australian Open

When Rory McIlroy won the US Masters a month ago, most of those who follow golf were caught up in the excitement as the Northern Irishman and world No.2 completed a career grand slam of major titles.

Not Golf Australia CEO James Sutherland.

He had been involved in months of discussions between his organisation, the Victorian government and McIlroy, himself, to land the biggest coup for Australian golf in 16 years.

On Wednesday, after the announcement that McIlroy would headline the field at this year’s Australian Open at the Royal Melbourne Golf Club in December, and next year’s tournament at Kingston Heath Golf Club in Melbourne’s south-east, Sutherland jokingly admitted he had found himself in the fetal position after McIlroy’s play-off win at Augusta.

Sutherland’s attack of nerves came because he had recognised immediately how much the Masters win would increase McIlroy’s appeal as a box office attraction.

Would that increased demand for McIlroy’s services from other golf tournaments mean their offer was blown out of the water?

The worry was ill-founded. Money wasn’t ever going to be the deciding factor for McIlroy.

He had expressed a desire to play tournaments on Melbourne’s famed sandbelt courses, and if the Australian Open was to be played there, he remained a chance to be on a plane down under.

“Obviously, we did have discussions with Rory,” Sutherland told 3AW. “They’ve been ongoing for a few months now, and when you can offer the Australian Open with Rory McIlroy and a whole lot of other champion players, Australian players, it’s pretty attractive.

“We’re absolutely delighted that the Victorian government’s come to the party to support it.”

Rory McIlroy poses with the Masters trophy.Credit: Getty Images

Golf Australia had heard the Northern Irishman mention the courses in the odd interview and now had a person on their team, event organiser Antonia Beggs, who had worked on the European Tour for more than a decade. Beggs was connected to McIlroy through relationships established during that time.

She set up conversations between golfing officials – who had already decided to revert to a men’s only tournament in 2025 after flirting with a dual-gender format for three years – and McIlroy’s people, including his manager Sean O’Flaherty.

With McIlroy not using his Masters win to change the course of the negotiations and the sandbelt courses remaining the major appeal, the main cog to lock into place was the Victorian government, and more particularly, its use of the major events budget.

Contrary to Sutherland’s initial fear, McIlroy’s Masters win was actually a boon.

“Fortunately, nothing changed when he won the Masters. It just became an even more compelling proposition,” Sutherland said.

The win got the political wheels grinding more quickly as Premier Jacinta Allan knew there was no time to dither if the state wanted to secure the event and arguably the most popular golfer in the world at the top of his game.

Nor did a potential bid from NSW to steal the event materialise. A Destination NSW spokesperson said there was no official bid lodged for Sydney to host.

Victorian Sports Minister Steven Dimopoulos was happy to spruik the $1.3 billion golf tourism brings to the Victorian economy, but claimed commercial-in-confidence to keep the cost to taxpayers a secret.

A spokesperson for the premier’s office refused to comment on any of the machinations when contacted.

While no one would divulge what the offer was, one golf source said it was less than the $3 million Tiger Woods had received to appear in the Australian Masters in 2009.

Whatever the cost, the sense from Golf Australia was that McIlroy’s price was more than reasonable. His attraction to playing at the sandbelt was a deciding factor in luring him here and therefore ensuring Victoria would host the tournament for the next two years.

“He has for a long time expressed a desire to come here and play tournament golf on the sandbelt,” Sutherland said.

McIlroy backed up Sutherland’s comments.

“I’m proud to be committing to the Australian Open for the next two years, especially with it being played on the world-class Melbourne sandbelt, somewhere I’ve always wanted to play professionally,” he said.

“Melbourne is known for being one of the world’s great sporting cities and I can’t wait to be part of that atmosphere and soak in everything it has to offer, both on and off the course.”

Tiger Woods played at Royal Melbourne Golf Club in 2019, during the Presidents Cup.Credit: Getty

Sutherland is confident Australian stars such as Adam Scott, Cam Davis, Jason Day and Min Woo Lee, who play on the PGA Tour in the US, will be motivated by McIlroy’s presence. LIV stars Cam Smith, Lucas Herbert and Marc Leishman and the emerging Elvis Smylie are likely to play too.

Golf Australia expects 100,000 people to attend – ticket sales in the first two hours blew away targets, already exceeding 50 per cent of the total ticket sales for last year’s tournament.

The governing body is also in the throes of securing a naming rights sponsor.

Golf Australia have their man and McIlroy gets to have a hit on the courses he has long looked at with envy.

Though it will be his first competition on the sandbelt course, McIlroy has competed in the Australian Open before. He won the Stonehaven Cup in 2013 in a thrilling duel with Adam Scott at Royal Sydney and returned to try and defend it in 2014.

This year, he will compete across the composite course of Royal Melbourne from December 4-7, which comprises holes from both the west and east courses and is rated among the top golf courses in the world.

With Cassandra Morgan and Iain Payten

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