Rory McIlroy paid a touching tribute to his often-maligned caddie, Harry Diamond, after

going level with the great Seve Ballesteros on an emotional day at the Earth Course. In a tense final round, he had the edge over rising star Rasmus Hojgaard, winning by two shots thanks to Irish Open and BMW PGA Championship near misses earlier in the year.

Throughout that run, in the biggest moments. But McIlroy showed on Sunday with a message of support as he was presented with his Tour Championship and Race To Dubai trophies.

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"He gets his fair share of stick and it's not warranted. He's an amazing caddie and the best friend I could ever ask for," an emotional McIlroy told the crowd as he stood on the 18th green.

Tiger Woods' former coach Hank Haney and former PGA Tour player Smylie Kauffman – a prominent pundit for Channel – were among the most prominent critics in the aftermath of McIlroy's collapse at the US Open, which prolonged a 10-year wait for his fifth major title.

The 35-year-old held a two-shot lead over Bryson DeChambeau down the stretch at Pinehurst No. 2 in June, but he blew his advantage with a series of blunders off the tee and on the greens. Diamond became an easy target

Haney said: "If [Woods' former looper] Steve Williams was Rory’s caddie I can promise you he would have never hit a perfect flighted 7 iron that rolled over the green on 15 into a terrible lie because he would have hit an 8 iron and sent it straight up in the air and held the green. Wrong club, wrong shot, bad plan."

Kauffman expressed a similar view, and McIlroy responded bluntly to the criticism of his friend. “It’s certainly unfair,” he said at the time. “Hank Haney has never been in that position. Smylie has been in that position once. Just because Harry is not as vocal or loud with his words as other caddies, it doesn’t mean that he doesn’t say anything and that he doesn’t do anything.

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“Someone said to me once if you would never take advice from these people, you would never take their criticisms, either. Certainly wouldn’t go to Hank Haney for advice. I love Smylie, but I think I know what I’m doing, and so does Harry.”

McIlroy's faith in his caddie has been vindicated. He held his nerve and made smart decisions over the closing holes in Dubai to claim his fourth win of the season. And with his golf swing looking in fine shape after a recent break, McIlroy will be fancying his chances of finally getting his hands on a fifth major in 2025.