Rory McIlroy gives emotional interview after season ends in Dubai

Rory McIlroy's birdie putt fell into the hole, and for a moment, his body was filled with excitement.

But when he birdied the DP World Tour Championship on the 18th to win his fourth and final global title in 2024, his mood was not the usual mix of joy and achievement. It seemed like a deeper, more primal emotion—one that overcame him in an instant, but built inside him for months. That emotion looks like comfort.

The events of the past few hours had pushed him to the brink of collapse. He once again found himself charging through the back nine in a championship, clinging to the lead while the forces of fate seemed to be conspiring against him again. He gave up four shots between the seventh and 14th holes, had two bogeys and missed a pair of birdies on the par-5s. But then came a crucial birdie on No. 16, and as he strode to the 18th green, even a three-putt was enough to secure victory over Rasmus Hojgaard. victory.

McIlroy two-putted for birdie as the wave washed over him. He won the final event of 2024 and equaled Seve Ballesteros' record by winning the Dubai Championship – the DP World Tour's season-long prize money – for the sixth time. A few minutes later, he was reminded of that fact as he stood up to be interviewed by the DP World Tour broadcast team, and Rory began to cry as he tried to find words to describe the depth and breadth of the draw with Ballesteros. .

“Yeah, that's really cool,” he finally said, choking up. “I think everyone knows what Sevey means to European golf and the Ryder Cup players. In the European Ryder Cup dressing room, all we see is Seve's quote. We have Seve 95 in our dressing room “That was his last Ryder Cup. He meant so much to European golf and I'm so proud to be mentioned in the same breath.”

“I think what I learned is that it doesn't necessarily matter to everyone else,” McIlroy said. “I think what I did today was very meaningful to me personally. I think from an outsider's perspective, if people just looked at it from an outsider's perspective and looked at what other accomplishments I've had in the game and what I haven't accomplished this year “

“Look, yeah, I know how people are going to look at my year and I look at my year the same way,” he said. “But at the same time, I still have to remember that I won four times and won the second Dubai race. I accumulated a lot of great results and great performances, and two guys who had better years than me also had Career years. Sander won two Grand Slams, Scotty won the Players and the Masters and the Olympic gold. They are the only two guys who I think have had a better year than me.”

For McIlroy's critics, Sunday's game could easily be seen as a continuation of a life that has suffered in recent times. Hell, he saw the overlap, too. The victory wasn't as historically significant as the one at Pinehurst, and his competition wasn't as formidable. Still, he winked in the same way on Sunday. This one didn't burn him to death, but did he defeat his inner demons or just push them aside?

Regardless, McIlroy won't be forced to answer those questions on Sunday. He ends 2024 with a four-win season, a fact he knows will always be remembered because it wasn't five wins, but he leaves Dubai with one win – a win historic Victory – that's enough to drown out the bitter taste.

There will be an offseason soon. Soon, a brand new year will begin, full of possibilities. But what now? Now there is a reason to keep going.

What a relief.