Rory McIlroy's exuberant victory in the US Open has been greeted exuberantly across Ireland – all across Ireland.

Golf is one of the most open and integrated of sports in that island, and so the exploits of the 22-year-old from the Belfast suburb of Holywood have been celebrated north and south of the border, as were those of that other Ulsterman and US Open winner from last year, Graeme McDowell.

McIlroy's sport is a uniting force in Ireland. But this fresh-faced young champion will face an awkward divide a little way down the road when he comes to choose who to represent at the 2016 Rio Games, at which golf will be a part of the Olympics for the first time since 1904.

Under the terms of the Olympic Charter, any sportsmen or women living in Northern Ireland have the choice of competing at the Games for either Great Britain and Northern Ireland, or for Ireland - just as they have the choice of holding a British or an Irish passport, or both.

If McIlroy builds on his first major win in the way most observers fervently hope and believe, he will be among the world's top 15 golfers promised automatic entry into the Rio Olympics, where the field will be extended to 60 for both men and women with players from different nations who do not already have two representatives.

"Rory McIlroy, of Great Britain and Northern Ireland....Rory McIlroy, of Ireland..."

Which will it be?

As you might imagine, both the British Olympic Association (BOA) and the Olympic Council of Ireland (OCI) are eager to claim the Boy Wonder for Rio.

"While golf's exciting re-introduction to the Olympic Games is still five years away, we would of course be delighted for Rory to make himself available for selection to Team GB to represent Great Britain and Northern Ireland at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games," a BOA spokesman told insidethegames today.

Meanwhile the view from Ireland is equally hopeful.

"It will be a very interesting selection if Rory is planning to compete when the 2016 Games come around," an OCI. spokesman told insidethegames. "Obviously we would very much hope that Rory chooses to compete for us.

"We would love him to be in Brazil representing Ireland, but it will be his personal choice and nobody will be putting him under any pressure over it."


Canvassed on the topic in September 2009, shortly before golf was voted back into the Games by the International Olympic Committee, McIlroy commented: "It's a bit of an awkward question still, but I have a British passport and it would be Great Britain for me."

But will he still feel the same way when Rio's sporting carnival begins to get itself in motion?

The man from the OCI laid much store by the way in which the Golfing Union of Ireland (GUI) have guided and supported McIlroy since he began playing tournaments as an amateur at the age of 16.

As amateurs, all golfers compete for Ireland whether they are from the north or south of the border.

And since turning professional in 2007 McIlroy has also represented Ireland in the World Cup because, while England, Scotland and Wales compete separately, there is no Northern Ireland team in the event.

The Irish camp will have drawn much encouragement from McIlroy's graciously offered thanks in the course of his post-victory press conference: "And a big help to me growing up was the Golfing Union of Ireland and the help that they gave me throughout my junior career and amateur career, enabling me to go and play in different places in the world, learn about different conditions, different cultures, which really prepared me for coming out on tour."

Eugene Fayne, President of the GUI, who was at Congressional to see McIlroy's win, commented: "Our coaching systems and our elite programme has been a huge factor in Rory's development and that of many other young Irish players. I think it's reasonable for us to take pride and enormous satisfaction from that."

The OCI spokesman added: "There are other things in our favour, too. For instance, Rory's caddy, JP Fitzgerald, is from Dublin."

What is not likely to be a factor in McIlroy's decision is religion.

"I wouldn't like to comment on Rory's religion," said the OCI spokesman. "Holywood is a very nice, mixed area of Belfast, and the golf club is too. Once you mention religion, people start putting you into political boxes. Everybody in Ireland – north, south, east and west - was thrilled for Rory about his win. And the same was true for Graeme last year."

While some of Britain's finest Olympians are from Northern Ireland - Mary Peters, the 1972 pentathlon champion, Alan Campbell, single sculler extraordinaire from Coleraine – McIlroy would be very far from isolated should he choose to represent Ireland.

Over the last 30-odd years, around 25 per cent of the Irish team have come from Northern Ireland.

Thus, at the 2008 Beijing Games, Britain took the silver medal in the 3km cycling pursuit through Wendy Houvenaghel, originally from Londonderry. But Ireland fielded their first triathlete at the Olympics in Emma Davis - who came from Bangor.

What is not open to any doubt is the glorious and growing wealth of golfing talent with the island of Ireland right now.

"It's very early days yet," mused the man from the OCI. "But if we were able to field Rory, along with Graeme and Padraig Harrington – well, I think we'd do OK!"

Mike Rowbottom, one of Britain's most talented sportswriters, has covered the last five Summer and four Winter Olympics for The Independent. Previously he has worked for the Daily Mail, The Times, The Observer, the Sunday Correspondent and The Guardian. He is now chief feature writer for insidethegames. Rowbottom's Twitter feed can be accessed here.