Can A 3-Handicap Golfer Break Par If Rory McIlroy Hits The Tee Shots?

As a 3-handicap golfer, I'm relatively competent in all areas of the game but playing with the likes of colleague Sam De'Ath, who has a handicap of +4, I realise the gulf in skill between myself and an elite player. Then there's the next chasm in technique from elite level amateur to PGA Tour player, making my golfing ability feel especially ordinary relatively speaking.

Driving has always been one of my weaker areas too. But what if I could swap out my shambolic tee shots and sub in one of the best drivers of our generation? How would my short game hold up and could I shoot under par around a ‘normal’ parkland course?

That’s what I wanted to find out, so I headed to Peterborough Milton Golf Club where on every hole I dropped my ball at the exact average distance where Rory McIlroy’s tee shot would typically finish, according to his 2026 PGA Tour statistics. The goal was to shoot under par, so record a score of 70 or better.

Based on the above stats and to make the experiment more accurate, I had to randomise where the tee shots would finish (McIlroy doesn’t know, I presume, when he’s going to miss a fairway) so I used a random spinning wheel selector on each tee with 14 possible results, eliminating one each time. I then used the Shot Scope GPS app to mark where I needed to drop the ball each time.

On par threes, I used his greens in regulation stats combined with his average proximity to the hole from three distance ranges to give myself a birdie putt based on McIlroy’s typical approach shot to the green. I also randomised the miss on the one par three green he typically misses on average out of four for the round.

The experience was mind blowing. I won’t giveaway the result (you can watch it in full on the video above) but to be playing from a typical McIlroy drive was a colossal advantage and highly unfamiliar territory on a course I've played many times.

On the first hole, a par five over water and out of bounds left that typically has the nerves jangling, I was hitting a 7-iron into the green for my second shot. Whilst I didn’t make the birdie, it was one of the easiest pars I’ve ever made on that hole.

I found myself reaching for a wedge on pretty much every approach shot on par fours and I was often left with just a 50- or 60-yard pitch at most. This sounds simple but for many amateur golfers, myself included, a mid-length pitch off a tight lie is not a shot I practice much or am particularly comfortable with. So while from this distance McIlroy would no doubt be knocking his ball stiff most of the time, I found myself with frustratingly long birdie putts.

Over the course of the round I only made four birdies, two of which came on par fives where I had a mid-iron for my second shot. Which goes to show, you don’t need to have a razor sharp short game to shoot under par IF you can drive the ball especially long.

While on a PGA Tour course McIlroy’s mid and long iron approach play would come under scrutiny, on a 'normal' course like this one he’d probably only need a driver and his wedges in the bag along with his putter!

So while I felt like I experienced a lot of wasted opportunities from close range, shooting under par never felt so easy. I was surprised at how much of an advantage McIlroy’s distance was when it came to scoring, and consequently how poor my wedge play was.

If anything, it has made me want to embark on an intense speed training program to get somewhere close to McIlroy’s distance output, as the benefits are there for all to see. Oh, and practice my short game.