It was a fleeting moment but so special that Tiger Woods referred to it repeatedly in his tearful press conference.
Rory McIlroy’s tip of the cap as Woods walked up St Andrews’ 18th fairway for the final time.
And in the context of this particular Championship, it felt like a passing-of-the-torch moment.
From one crowd favourite to another, farewell Tiger, now over to you Rory.
And that is the burden of pressure McIlroy has to shoulder, the rarefied level of expectation he has to deal with.
There is no-one the vast majority of these galleries or the wider sport-watching world would rather see win this 150th Open than the Northern Irishman.
Why? Because in the wake of the LIV Golf rebellion, McIlroy has become a spokesman for the integrity of the game.
Because eight years without a Major is agonisingly too long for one of the most stunning talents the sport has seen.
Because, quite simply, Rory is one of the good guys - there is no more popular golfer on either side of the Atlantic.
But the will for him to collect a second Open is twinned with the belief that McIlroy always has one of those days in him, a day that will cost him the chance of winning a fifth Major.
And for a while, this was shaping up to be one of THOSE days.
He was not playing badly, far from it.
But as Cameron Smith was putting St Andrews to the sword, McIlroy was struggling to make a telling thrust.
Looking at the leaderboard, it would have been easy to panic but this version of McIlroy is one that seems a little more composed.
And in the middle section of the round, the famous swagger was back in full swing, the driver was in demolition mode and the wedges were dialled in.
Dare you say it, there was stuff that vintage Tiger would have been proud of.
Five birdies in the space of eight holes - and then another at the notorious Road Hole - saw him card a 68, ten under for his two rounds, three behind Smith, the pacesetting Australian, one behind Cameron Young, of the United States, and tied with Viktor Hovland in third place.
And McIlroy is quietly bullish, saying: “It felt like it was a good day. I've put together two solid rounds.
"The round definitely could have been better but I'm in a good position - I'm right where I want to be and I just need to keep hitting good golf shots.
"You needed to go out there and make birdies. I got off to a quiet start on the front nine but came to life in the middle. I know I've got the game (to win), I just need to play it over the next two days."
Unsurprisingly, this is a leaderboard of the highest quality and that pressure and that expectation will all be on McIlroy.
He might fail again, he might have one of those days and the wait for another Major might stretch into 2023.
But one thing is for sure … with a certain GOAT out of town, Rory is the man the golfing world will be watching.
