Ryder Cup stars Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood experienced what is becoming a familiar routine on the eve of the BMW PGA Championship by being presented with two of the PGA’s most prestigious awards.
McIlroy, who will be a member of the European team that will attempt to win back the Ryder Cup in Rome later this month, was presented with the Braid Taylor Memorial Medal by PGA Captain Tim Rouse. The medal, named after two of the PGA’s co-founders, was first awarded in 1966 and is presented annually to the PGA Member, born in the United Kingdom or Ireland, who finishes the year’s Open Championship as the Association’s highest placed Member.
McIlroy claimed the medal for a sixth time due to finishing tied-sixth at Royal Liverpool in July, but he has some way to go to overtake Sir Nick Faldo who has won it on nine occasions.
Meanwhile Fleetwood, who is also a member of Luke Donald’s team that will take on the USA at Marco Simone Golf & Country Club, was presented with the Tooting Bec Cup for the second year in succession. The award, which is one of the Association’s oldest, is presented annually to the PGA Member, born in the United Kingdom or Ireland, who posts the lowest score for 18-holes in that year’s Open championship.
Fleetwood, who finished tied 10th at Royal Liverpool, earned the award for the five-under-par 66 he posted on the Championship’s first day. The Tooting Bec Cup was first played for at Tooting Bec Golf Club in south London on October 15, 1901, as a 36-hole tournament. The inaugural event was won by JH Taylor, a five times Open Champion and one of the PGA’s three founders.
Taylor was presented with the cup which bears the venue’s name, but the club’s subsequent demise resulted in the format changing to the current arrangement in 1924 and the winner presented with a medal. The original trophy, however, is housed at the PGA’s Belfry headquarters.