Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
When Pranavi Urs was in a spot of bother during her hunt for the Asian Games gold, her eyes turned towards Rory Mcllroy for inspiration. Her three-stroke cushion at the start of the final round of the Asian Games 2026 vanished when she carded a triple bogey on the third hole.
She drew inspiration from McIlroy’s comeback at the 2025 Masters, recalling how he overcame an early stumble to claim the title. Although she slightly misremembered the details, with McIlroy having made a double bogey rather than a triple, the episode gave Pranavi the encouragement she needed.
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“I was like, it’s fine,” Pranavi said referring to her triple bogey moment, as quoted by Olympics.com.
“I remembered what Rory did the first time he won the Masters. He started with a triple, I think, a double or a triple.”
“And I was like, if he can go and win the Masters, so can you win the Asian Games. So I think that kind of got me back into my lane.”
Well, on Wednesday, October 14, she probably got to share that story in person to her idol as she met the golf icon in Delhi. McIlroy arrived in India for his second visit ahead of Thursday’s DP World India Championship and met Pranavi soon after reaching the country.
Both of them were seen having a chat, spent some time on the putting green before walking over to a couple of holes.
“Rory has been my idol for as long as I can remember. I grew up watching him more than I watched Tiger (Woods). I like Tiger as well, but Rory is my ultimate hero,” Pranavi told Sportstar.
“I told him about what I felt when I made the triple bogey in the final round, and he told me about what happened to him at one of the Tour Championships. We spoke about how he felt playing his first Masters. It was quite motivating,” Pranavi said.
MCLLROY IMPRESSED BY PRANAVI
The golf icon was impressed by the resilience shown by the Indian prodigy to overcome adversity and win the Asian Games gold.
“Winning the Asian Games is an amazing achievement. To recover from an early triple bogey and go on to win shows tremendous resilience and character. It was a delight to meet her,” the 37-year-old Irish superstar said after meeting the young player from Mysuru.
“She’s a wonderful young woman. She said she was nervous, but she didn’t seem it, and it was great to spend some time with her. She told me she’s playing the Women’s Indian Open at DLF next week.”
“She walked a few holes with us, but then said she needed to go and practice. It’s an amazing accomplishment, and I’m glad I had the chance to meet her,” added the former world number one, according to PTI.
Pranavi created history with her Asian Games gold as she became the first Indian golfer to claim the top spot at the games. She also helped Indian women’s team secure silver in the team event.
– Ends
SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
