Rory McIlroy is a player not short on confidence, that's an absolute given. The 20-year-old is targeting Major success and world domination in 2010 and beyond, but it could be wise for the Ulsterman to adhere to the adage of 'don't run before you can walk'.
"At the moment there are eight better players than me in the world and hopefully by the time that I finish I can say that I held the No.1 spot in the world at some point in my career," McIlroy said. "There's still a lot of hard work to do but hopefully I'm on the right road. Definitely a Major is a target this season. I put myself in position at the US PGA last year to win and finished third and had another top ten at the US Open."
Ben Curtis' success in the 2003 Open was his maiden win on Tour, while Trevor Immelmen claimed his second Tour win in the Masters, but these are the exceptions. The players mopping up the majority of Major titles are those who have worked their way to the top by learning how to win regularly. This is what McIlroy has to do before talking about world domination.
Tongues were wagging about this boy from Holywood for some time before he turned pro. He won the Junior Ryder Cup in 2004, the Walker Cup in 2007 and grabbed the Silver Medal at the 2007 Open. The form was in the book and McIlroy turned professional in a blaze of publicity on the back of his efforts at Carnoustie.
Unlike Justin Rose who fell off the radar after his stunning efforts at the Open during his days as an amateur, McIlroy finished third in the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship. Steady progress continued and in 2009 he secured his maiden Tour victory in the Dubai Desert Classic.
McIlroy became embroiled in a shootout with Lee Westwood for the Race to Dubai crown at the end of the 2009 and made bullish noises about coming out on top, but his more experienced rival took the prize and the plaudits. Westwood could have been forgiven for aiming a quip or two the way of the young upstart in the post-event press conference, but the man from Worksop adopted a far more mature stance.
"This is definitely the biggest moment of my career today," Westwood, who is 36 and a winner of 20 European Tour titles, said. "Rory is only 20, I can't even remember what it was like to be 20, and he will have many more chances ahead of him to win the money list. But this is my moment."
There is no doubting McIlroy's talent and he has the confidence to match: "I had a lot of good experiences at the Majors last year and hopefully with Tiger out for a while I can seize the opportunity and take one before he gets back."
McIlroy tees up for the new season at the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship on Thursday and he will head to the Emirate having scooped a prize this week: the Belfast Telegraph Sports Star of the Year for 2009.
Not quite the Major title he is seeking. Walk before you can run are wise words to heed.
Alex Livie is editor of ESPN.co.uk
© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
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