Rory McIlroy needed police escort to Ryder Cup in mad morning before vital win
Team Europe once nearly lost the Ryder Cup because Rory McIlroy overslept - with a police escort needed to spare his blushes.
The Europeans will try to regain the Ryder Cup in Rome this weekend after suffering a humbling 19-9 defeat at Whistling Straights two years ago. Four-time winner McIlroy is one Team Europe's biggest stars and will make his seventh Ryder Cup appearance.
Although the 34-year-old is now an experienced golfer, his timekeeping almost cost Team Europe dearly 11 years ago. Jose Maria Olazabal's men were trailing 10-6 to Team USA heading into the final day of the 2012 Ryder Cup and needed a miracle to win.
Olazabal wanted his best players up first on the Sunday to try to gain some momentum, giving McIlroy an early start. The four-time major winner's tee time was at 11:25am, but he checked the America's Eastern Time Zone rather than the Central Time Zone.
That left McIlroy an hour behind schedule and panicking when he received a phone call asking where he was. The star had just 25 minutes to get from his hotel room to the tee, which seemed a difficult task due to huge traffic around Medinah Country Club.
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McIlroy's tardiness could've been disastrous, as he would've forfeited his match with Keegan Bradley had he been five minutes later. Thankfully, Lombard Police Department's deputy chief Pat Rollins was on hand to provide an escort to the course.
"How's your hangover?" asked amused American fans as McIlroy rushed onto the course. Yet the remarkable saga didn't cost Team Europe in the end, as McIlroy produced a superb performance to beat Bradley 2&1 and get his team off to a great start.
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Then something remarkable happened. Team Europe picked up eight-and-a-half points from a possible 12 on the final day to secure an overall victory and complete one of the greatest comebacks in sporting history, with fans calling it the 'Miracle at Medinah'.
"I thought I was off at 12.25pm instead of 11.25am and was casually making my way out of the hotel room door, and I got a call saying you have 25 minutes till tee off," McIlroy told reporters after his win. "I was a bit worried then.
"But as soon as I got to the course I was fine and settled into the match and obviously delighted to win. I read the tee times on my phone, and they are obviously on Eastern Time and it's Central Time here. So an hour back, so (it's just) one of those things.
"It's my own fault, but if I let down these 11 other boys and vice-captains and captains this week I would never forgive myself. I was with a policeman, getting through traffic. I got here with about 10 minutes to spare, put my shoes on, a couple of putts, just your average sort of warm-up back at the course."
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