THE INNOCENCE of youth? Hardly. When Rory McIlroy, the wunderkind of golf that he is, suggests that the Ryder Cup is “an exhibition” and “not a huge goal of mine” and “in the big scheme of things, not that important an event for me”, the remarks should be put into some context.

Think Tiger Woods. Think majors. Think Irish Opens. Think individual. Think honesty.

For, at this juncture in his exciting career, McIlroy is – and should be – more concerned with himself.

In explaining his laissez-faire attitude to the Ryder Cup, McIlroy expanded: “You know, golf is an individual sport at the end of the day . . . and my individual goals are to win tournaments for myself. And, if I do that, then I know that I’ll have played good enough to get on to the team. If you take care of your own results, basically if you play well enough, you’ll get on.”

Colin Montgomerie, who will captain the European team at Celtic Manor in Wales next year as they seek to wrest the trophy back from American hands, and who has been grouped with McIlroy for the first two rounds of the Irish Open here, allowed himself a fatherly smile and a “he’ll learn” glint when asked what he thought of the young Irishman’s comments.

“The Ryder Cup is not an exhibition . . . please don’t start a war against Rory McIlroy. He’s a very exciting young player and he’s one of Europe’s best young talents that we’ve had for many, many a year. Right? All I can say to you is, the Ryder Cup is not an exhibition, all right? Please don’t say Monty and Rory are having a war here . . . all I’ve said is the Ryder Cup is not an exhibition and it never will be.”

For Monty, the Ryder Cup has provided his career-defining moments. He loves it with a passion. On Tuesday night, he fought – successfully – for an additional wild card pick, bringing the number from two to three.

“Rory will understand when, and it’s not an if, but when (he plays),” remarked Montgomerie, his head nodding and a toothy grin embellishing just what a wise old sage he has become.

“Whether it’s this time (in 2010) or next time or wherever it might be, and he will be a Ryder Cup player, he will understand the pressures involved and the whole scenario of the Ryder Cup will hit him very hard. Yes. He will understand what it is all about when he’s part of that . . . It’s great to be able to say that I’m sure that Rory will be a Ryder Cup player in the future.”

As the Scot explained of his own involvement in the biannual match between Europe and the United States, “When I started playing in 1991, there was no way I would have missed out on playing in that tournament again. It’s a very unique occasion and a very exciting occasion . . . There’s much more (pressure than in a major) because you are playing for your team-mates, for the other 11 on your team. That’s the hardest thing. When you are playing for someone else, it’s more nerve-racking than having to play on your own.”

Unfortunately for Montgomerie, his form this season has been disappointing. Was there a sense that the captaincy was consuming him to the point where his game was suffering?

“No, I just haven’t actually played well. That’s nothing to do with the fact that with this particular job I’m busier than I have been. I just haven’t been able to hit enough fairways. If I hit the fairways, I’ll score. I just haven’t managed to do that.”