PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. — There are many features to the PGA National Spa and Resort, which hosts the Honda Classic annually.
There are three 18-hole golf courses, including the championship course on which the tournament is played. There is an expansive pool area. There are bars and restaurants everywhere, including a raucous lobby bar that reverberates relentlessly into the night during tournament week. There also is a tennis center, a croquet lawn, a gym and a spa.
There is, however, no roller coaster on property — except, seemingly, when Rory McIlroy plays the Honda Classic.
Two years ago, McIlroy won the tournament and rose to the No. 1 world ranking for the first time in his career.
Last year, so exasperated with his game, his new Nike equipment and his damaged psyche, McIlroy quit the tournament on his 27th hole, marching off the course and directly to his car on his ninth hole (No. 18) of the second round.
This year?
There are still three rounds to play after he shot an electric 7-under-par 63 Thursday to take a one-shot lead into Friday’s second round, but suffice it to say that, for the third consecutive year, there will be drama associated with McIlroy.
The scene following his opening round was in stark contrast to the goings on a year ago, when after hitting his approach shot into the lake on the 18th hole, he abruptly shook the hands of his two playing partners, Ernie Els and Mark Wilson, and stormed to his car like a petulant teenager.
On Thursday, McIlroy birdied that same 18th hole he never completed in last year’s second round and walked off the green to thunderous cheers and a warm welcome from his tennis-star fiancee, Caroline Wozniacki.
It left you wondering how far removed from this moment McIlroy must have felt when he walked off the course a year ago, whether he ever thought he’d regain that mojo that elevated him to world No. 1 and, if so, how long it might take to get back there.
“Golf’s a very, very fickle game, because when you’re on and you’re playing the way I’m playing right now and feeling very comfortable with everything, you wonder how it ever felt so uncomfortable,’’ McIlroy said. “And then when it feels so uncomfortable, you wonder how it ever felt so comfortable. It’s just a tiny thing that needs to click.’’
His round clicked in a big way around the turn, beginning with an 11-foot par-save putt he made on No. 9, which catapulted him to three consecutive birdies on Nos. 10, 11 (where he buried a 45-foot bomb) and 12. That stretch was the catalyst to his back-nine 5-under-par 30, leaving playing partner Adam Scott impressed.
“He looked pretty sharp,’’ Scott said. “All of a sudden a couple putts went in and he was in gear, and when you’re a player like Rory once it’s in gear you just know to go. That’s what he did and it was pretty to watch. He’s in a good place with his golf, that’s for sure.’’
McIlroy, in fact, is in a good place with everything, freshly engaged and playing well again.
“I’m in a great place; I couldn’t be happier,’’ he said. “We’ve got a home here in Palm Beach, personal life is great, looking forward to getting married at some point in the future. I feel like if everything’s settled off the course, then it helps me perform better on it. Yeah, I couldn’t be in a better place right now.’’
If you’re searching for omens, McIlroy’s 63 was three shots better than any of the four rounds he carded in 2012, when he won at 12-under par with rounds of 66-67-66-69.
Where will the roller coaster take him next? Strap in and stay tuned. The ride has only just begun.