Rory McIlroy Voted 2012's PGA Tour Player of the Year

Just call him the new “Celtic Tiger.” On Tuesday, Rory McIlroy was announced as this year’s PGA Tour Player of the Year. The issue was never in doubt as the 23-year-old from Holywood in County Down, Northern Ireland won four times on the Tour in 2012, including a memorable and dominant victory at the PGA Championship by a record eight strokes.

McIlroy is in good company. He is the third European-born player to be honoured with the title in the past five years — following Irishman Padraig Harrington in 2008 and Luke Donald of England last year — and is the youngest since Tiger Woods won the accolade at the age of 22 in 1998. This also snaps a streak of three straight years where a golfer was named Tour Player of the Year without winning a major.

The title befits McIlroy’s position as the top player in the Official World Golf Ranking. He also won the overall money title ($11.9 million, which breaks Tiger’s record of $10.8 million set in 2007) and the Vardon Trophy for the lowest adjusted scoring average.

He cited his girlfriend as his inspiration for the success he’s had — and she is no slouch when it comes to sporting endeavours, either. She is Danish tennis player Caroline Wozniacki, who had been the top player in the WTA Tour singles ranking and was still No. 10 on that list at the end of 2012.

Voted for the award by his peers — those with a PGA Tour card — he beat out four other golfers for the title: Jason Dufner, Brandt Snedeker, Bubba Watson, and Woods himself, who had been named 10 times previously. In much the same way Woods dominated this award, McIlroy looks set to do the same for the next few years, so it’s no surprise that his goal is to continue improving and keep the wins coming.

“What would be a success next season compared to this one? I guess it’s just trying to become a better golfer, maybe add more variety to my game,” he said in an interview. “But you know, we’re judged on wins, ultimately. … I won my first major in ‘11, I backed it up this season with another one, and I’d love to go into ‘13 with that same goal of trying to win another major.”

Getting better is only the beginning for McIlroy, who starts his season Jan. 17 in Abu Dhabi. He will have to adjust to different clubs and equipment, as he’s changing from Titleist to Nike. He will also have to deal with the pressure of being the guy that all other golfers want to be… and beat.