RORY McILROY has lived up to his ‘nice guy’ image by penning a thoughtful letter to a young fan who was in attendance during his biggest win of the year.
A boy named Brady caught a golf ball McIlroy lobbed into the crowd in jubilation after bagging an Eagle – a golf term for when a player finishes a hole two under par – on his way to winning the Tour Championship in September.
That win earned him an incredible $11.5m by securing both the Tour Championships and FedEx Cup in a sublime finish in Atlanta, and it all became possible with that Eagle on the 16th hole.
Brady and his family got in touch with McIlroy following that incident and the Holywood native responded with a lovely letter, thanking Brady for his support and advising him to follow his own dreams and to always give his best.
It read: "I hope the ball and this short letter remind you that I have always wanted young people to do well in life. It may be at school, playing sport or even just being with your family, but doing your best is really what's most important."
A picture of the full letter surfaced on Twitter after ESPN golf journalist Jason Sobel – who is friends with Brady’s uncle – posted it online, receiving over 1,000 likes on the social media site within a day of uploading it.
A buddy's nephew received this letter from Rory McIlroy today and it's all kinds of awesome. pic.twitter.com/17xq6VKEIb
— Jason Sobel (@JasonSobelESPN) November 22, 2016