Rory McIlroy, the baseball superstar and the inside story behind this moment
By Iain Payten
It will go down as one of the most iconic images in Masters history. An emotional Rory McIlroy on his knees at the 18th, sobbing with relief after winning a playoff and ending the torment of decades of near-misses and despair.
But this photograph also has a hidden layer of sporting fame. It was taken by a Hall of Fame baseballer.
Rory McIlroy on the 18th green after winning the Masters.Credit: Augusta National/Ken Griffey Jr/Getty Images
Ken Griffey Jr. is a former American outfielder who played in Major League Baseball for over two decades, and he was no slouch. Playing for the Seattle Mariners, Cincinnati Reds and Chicago White Sox, Griffey was a 13-time All-Star and sits at seventh on the list of most home runs, with 630.
But since retiring in 2010, Griffey has also become an enthusiastic sports photographer and he was invited to shoot the Masters last week, for the tournament website Masters.com.
His photographs were also distributed by leading global photo agency Getty Images.
It was a star shooting stars and what is even more remarkable, it was Griffey’s first time photographing golf.
Ken Griffey Jr. stands with a camera at the Masters.Credit: PGA TOUR
Griffey, who was known as “the Kid” in the US due to the fact his father Ken Griffey Sr. was also a baseball superstar, only took up photography at the age of 35. He began by taking photos at his children’s sporting events, partly motivated by a desire to escape a wave of well-intentioned parents keen to talk about his career.
“People would think if I’m sitting in the stands smiling, they can come up and talk to me,” Griffey told AP. “So if I got a camera, they didn’t really know what I was doing. It was a way for me to really focus in and watch the kids, and not critique what they were doing, but just be in the moment with them.”
He quickly discovered he loved the art – and the challenge – of sports photography, and via contacts, was able to shoot at professional events in car racing, soccer, and baseball.
Ahead of this year’s Masters, a friend with a connection to the Masters reached out to Augusta National, who offered Griffey a spot in their team shooting the tournament for the website.
In interviews last week, Griffey said he accepted but insisted he should not treated differently from the other members in the photo pen. But given the best of the best photographers are sent to cover the Masters, Griffey told Golf.com he felt like an amateur.
Masters champion Bernhard Langer of Germany is greeted by family.Credit: Augusta National/Ken Griffey Jr./Getty Images
“It doesn’t matter your status in life, if it’s something you don’t do professionally and everybody here is a professional, you’re still nervous to walk in the room,” Griffey said. “How would these guys feel if we all got into a batting cage, and I was sitting there critiquing them? It’s the same thing.”
Griffey was given a locker and sent on assignments each day, including being sent to capture Bernhard Langer’s round, or to shoot from certain positions and holes on the course. His photo editor offered genuine appraisals and criticisms to Griffey about his photos.
“The one thing I learned about is backgrounds,” Griffey told Golf.com. “Your backgrounds are crucial. If you have a great background and your subject is in there, you’re gonna have a great picture. If you have a great photo in the foreground but your background is blown out, you don’t have a great picture.”
Ken Griffey Jr. (right), in his playing days for Seattle.Credit: AP
Griffey has all of his own photography equipment, including the long telephoto lenses.
“You know, I’m getting better at it because I’m starting to understand and know what they expect from me,” Griffey said of his time working for Masters.com.
“I mean, I can go out there and rattle off 30,000 pictures — anybody can — but it’s about so much more than that. The lighting is a big thing, the background, so many things.
“You can have a good picture of someone but if the background isn’t right it can turn out terrible.”
Like everyone on course, Griffey found himself around the 18th green as McIlroy and Justin Rose played out the first hole a tense playoff.
And as he did so many times in Major League Baseball, he smashed another home run.
with AP