What I'll Remember about 2011: McIlroy's maturity

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As Rory McIlroy walked off the 18th green at the 2011 Masters, he still smiled at his fans.

PGATOUR.COM asked its staffers and freelancers what they will remember about the 2011 season. For the archived list of essays, click here.

For three days Rory McIlroy looked poised, the kind of poised that befits a major champion. Whether it was his play (he'd staked a four-stroke lead) or his demeanor (he was focused in his interviews but relaxed enough that he'd spent every night tossing a football with friends) he was, excuse the pun, on par to become the youngest Masters champion since Tiger Woods more than a decade ago.

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Instead, the heat of Sunday, literally and figuratively, choked McIlroy. He looked uncomfortable as he putted on the practice green alongside playing partner Angel Cabrera as the warm Augusta sun grew stifling.

How McIlroy played, shooting an abysmal 80 that day that included a tee shot so far to the left on the 10th hole that it was nearly off the property, wasn't what I remembered most that day, however. How he handled the collapse was.

McIlroy stopped three times to talk to the various press afterward, including in the locker room, where he talked about the day being a "character building" day and that he'd "come out stronger" because of it.

As McIlroy made his way out of the Augusta National clubhouse, through the parking lot and to his car, there weren't any tears shed. He quietly talked to his manager, former European Tour player Stuart Cage, about how and why things went wrong.

For a 21-year-old who just endured the biggest collapse since Greg Norman in 1996, it was an incredible sign of maturity. Even in his darkest moment on the golf course, he was able to see through the storm and realize there would be other opportunities.

As it turned out, he didn't have to wait long for that next opportunity. McIlroy won the next major, the U.S. Open, in record fashion.

I don't know how many majors McIlroy will win in his career -- and I don't know if he would have won at Congressional had he not lost the way he did at Augusta -- but the first one is usually the toughest.

Now that that's out of the way, there's no telling how many more will follow.