Backspin: Three major cheers for Northern Ireland

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Northern Irish eyes were still smiling Monday morning. Or were at least bloodshot.

In the last 13 months, a country with the population of Nebraska and with the square mileage of Connecticut has produced three major champions.

"I don't know," Darren Clarke said when asked if he could explain the success of the tiny nation. "We're blessed to have obviously two fantastic players in Rory and G-Mac, and I've just come along -- the old guy coming along behind them.

"We've just been lucky. We have fantastic golf courses, we have fantastic facilities, but to have three major champions from a little small place in a short period of time, it's just incredible."

Clarke, of course, was the least expected of that Northern Irish trio with Rory McIlroy having bounced back from his Masters collapse with a record-setting win at the U.S. Open, and Graeme McDowell the winner of the U.S. Open the year before at Pebble Beach.

All three were linked before by their origin -- Clarke was in fact instrumental in McIlroy's upbringing on the golf course when McIlroy was a young teenager, and McIlroy and McDowell are close friends -- and now they'll be linked by history.

When McIlroy won at Congressional, Clarke withdrew from the tournament he was scheduled to play in Germany so he could be back in Northern Ireland for the celebration.

After Clarke won on Sunday, McDowell tweeted, "What a story. Very emotional for him. There will be tears."

And certainly a lot of libations. "Early night for me. Got to conserve energy until the Open Champion gets home," McDowell continued. "I'm figuring we may be doing a little celebrating."

So will the rest of Northern Ireland.

"I think it starts with the people," McIlroy said last month when asked where this renaissance has come from for Northern Ireland. "I think golf is very accessible back home.

"Irish golf is obviously in a very healthy state at the moment."

And a very happy one this week.

Stock up

Dustin Johnson: I'll get into that second shot on the par-5 14th later, but you can't ignore Johnson's results in majors the last couple of years. Going back to the 2009 PGA Championship, Johnson has four top-10s in the last eight majors, including Sunday's tie for second. FedExCup rank: 14 (25 last week) Rickie Fowler: He could never get anything going Sunday when 13 straight pars would normally be a very good thing. Still, Fowler had his best career finish in a major with his T5. Remember, he's still just 19 months into his career. He'll win. And soon the way he keeps putting himself in position. FedExCup rank: 41 (52 last week). Sergio Garcia: You had to go all the way back to 2006 to find the last time that Garcia posted back-to-back top-10s in majors. But that's what he did Sunday with his tie for ninth at Royal St. George's, which came a month after Garcia tied for seventh at Congressional. A happy Garcia is a focused and good Garcia. FedExCup rank: 59 (74 last week)

Stock down

Padraig Harrington: It wasn't that long ago that Harrington was celebrating his second straight British Open victory. In the three years since, Harrington has one top-10 in 11 major championships -- and that came in 2009. The last two years? Harrington has missed the cut in 5 of 7 majors. FedExCup rank: 123 (120 last week). Graeme McDowell: Since winning the 2010 U.S. Open, majors haven't exactly been kind to McDowell, who admitted that he got away from doing the things that won him the trophy at Pebble Beach. McDowell has now missed the cut in three of his last four majors and has shown some real inconsistency from one round to the next. FedExCup rank: 74 (71 last week). Martin Laird: After a very good run through the earlier part of the season in which Laird had four finishes in the top 10 in five starts, including a win, Laird has struggled of late with three missed cuts in his last four starts. He also has just one top-10 in his last seven starts. FedExCup rank: 16 (13 last week)

THE BACK NINE: 9 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW

1. If there's one thing Rory McIlroy is, it's honest. "I'm not a fan of golf tournaments that the outcome is predicted so much by the weather," McIlroy said after a 3-over 73 to finish his week at the British Open 7-over and in a tie for 25th. "It's not my sort of golf. I mean my game is suited for basically every golf course and most conditions, but these conditions, I just don't enjoy playing in, really. That's the bottom line. I'd rather play when it's 80 degrees and sunny and not much wind." Maybe so, but he'll need to learn to like it if he ever wants to win the British Open. McIlroy should look no further than Phil Mickelson, who took a fresh attitude to this year's tournament and basically approached it like it was his first one. The result? His best-ever finish with a tie for second. McIlroy will learn.

2. Dustin Johnson learned another lesson the hard way Sunday. "If I had it to do over again, I'd hit 3-wood instead of 2-iron," Johnson said of his second shot at the par-5 14th Sunday, which sailed out of bounds and took Johnson's hopes of winning his first major right along with it. He double bogeyed the hole and lost by three. "The more I put myself in this situation, the better," Johnson said. "The more I learn, the more I understand my game and what happens in this situation."

3. Given his enormous popularity, there's little doubt that Clarke -- who, by the way, sent champagne to the media after the win -- will someday be a Ryder Cup captain for Europe. He's not quite ready to ride off into the sunset just yet, though. "To win another couple of these," Clarke said when asked what his next goal is. "What can I do? Can I say that's it, I'm going to retire now? I can't. I've got to keep on playing. I've got to go back now, reassess and set some more goals. I still feel as if I can compete with the best players in the world, and that's what I want to do."

4. Will Northern Ireland's domination result in the country hosting a British Open in the future? It's been 60 years since the British Open was held outside Britain. Royal Portrush was the venue in 1951, and the club now counts Clarke, Harrington and McDowell as members. But Clarke said the R&A hasn't been able to figure out the logistics. "I wish there was some way around it and I hope at some stage in the future they will find a way around it," Clarke said, "because the golf course is every bit as good as any of The Open venues and is good enough to be in the Open rota."

5. I don't know that Anthony Kim is suddenly back, but his tie for fifth at the British Open was at least a sign of life that Kim, who hasn't been the same since hand surgery last year, is working his way back to where he once was. He certainly has the talent to win a major.

6. Royal St. George's took an awful lot of heat for its "quirkiness" going into this year's British Open, but there wasn't much complaining from players the last few days about the course or its setup.

7. The American drought in majors is now six straight. But the six Americans inside the top 10 finishers Sunday is the most since the 2010 U.S. Open. Americans had combined for just five top-10 finishes in this year's first two majors.

8. Stat of the Week (and Year): Last 12 majors, 12 different winners. I think we're in a new era of golf.

9. Speaking of a new era in golf, Chris Kirk became the fifth rookie to win on TOUR this year when he won the Viking Classic on Sunday. Since 1970, there has only been one season, 2004, when five or more rookies have won on TOUR.

Forward Spin

Those who played the British Open had an awfully long flight to get to the RBC Canadian Open, which has a new home this year in Shaughnessy G&CC in Vancouver after being played in Toronto last year. Carl Pettersson is the defending champion -- he flirted with 59 last year before shooting a third-round 60 -- but don't be surprised if Luke Donald fares well. He missed the cut at Royal St. George's, so he should be relatively fresh, and he finished third a year ago.

Next Kodak Challenge hole

THIS WEEK: RBC Canadian Open HOLE: The par-4 14th at Shaughnessy G&CC ABOUT THE HOLE: This is a short, deceptive par-4 requiring sound judgment and accuracy. Long hitters may gamble with the driver, but the percentage play is to accurately place the tee shot in the center of the fairway. Players should avoid underplaying the second shot to this long narrow, sloping green. Kodak Challenge standings