Rory McIlroy will once again take on the challenge of the DP World India Championship without a driver...or even 3-wood.

The World No.2 headlines the field at Delhi Golf Club in the $4m tournament's second edition, where players get to tackle one of the most unique courses on the tour.

The old school Delhi GC, founded in the 1930s and redesigned by the legendary Peter Thomson in 1977 and then Gary Player Design in 2019, is one of the shortest layouts on the circuit at just 6,912 yards.

Its tight, treelined fairways and doglegs mean a number of players take driver out of the bag, with 58 of last year's 138 players not carrying one.

Patrick Reed told the DP World Tour the course feels 'claustraphobic' and has the 'narrowest fairways' he has ever played, while Open champion Ryan Fox is playing without a driver for the first time in his career.

McIlroy confirmed he will go with the same strategy as last year, with 5-wood and 2-iron as his longest clubs.

"It is in the locker, maybe not even in the locker, in the hotel room so I'm not even tempted to go and get it," McIlroy said in conversation with Sir Nick Faldo on the DP World Tour's 'The Locker Room' program.

"Yeah, absolutely [on whether he could win with just irons]. 5-wood might be necessary for maybe a couple of second shots into par 5s or there's a couple of doglegs on the front nine where you can maybe get a bit of height with 5-wood and hit it over the corners.

"I'll probably go 5-wood, 2-iron, which go about the same distance but just different trajectories, and then 3-iron through [to the end of the bag]."

"Just as tight as I remember from last year. It's definitely a different golf course than what we're used to playing. It doesn't offer you a lot of room off the tee. A lot of irons and strategic play with your tee shots," McIlroy told the DP World Tour.

Rory McIlroy's bag at last year's DP World India Championship:

Ryan Fox is another of the big names in the field this week, and he is one of many players opting to take the driver out of the bag as the risk of wayward tee shots is too high.

"It's a fun golf course to play, it's very different than what we play week-in, week-out. Like I don't have a driver in the bag this week and I can't say I've had that in any tournament," Fox told the DP World Tour.

"I heard so much last year that guys had done it and you're like 'maybe there's one or two holes.'

"I played nine holes a day Monday and Tuesday and I played the pro-am today and I think on Monday there was a couple of holes you get on the tee and 'maybe I can get one down there' and you walk down the fairway and you're like 'nope, it's not worth the risk.'

"It's one of those ones where if you get it in play off the tee, you can kind of be aggressive into the greens on a lot of holes and you've got some short clubs in.

"I like being aggressive, I've just got to temper that off the tee a little bit and just pick and choose the right iron shots to be aggressive with. It's very different and it's a fun test in that regard."

Race to Dubai leader Patrick Reed is also in the field this week as he looks to stay on top of the pack, having won twice earlier this season.

The American says he has never played fairways so narrow in his career but is keeping the driver in the bag and will be ready to "send it" if an opportunity arises.

"The golf course is really interesting. It's not what I expected. You don't really ever hit driver, and I'd have to say it's probably the most narrow fairways I've probably played ever," he said.

"I'll always have a driver in the golf bag. It'd feel weird for me play a round of golf without the driver.

"For me it'd be two clubs, you have a 7-wood or a 2-iron that are interchangeable, but they go the same distance. For me I think it's pointless having two clubs that go the exact same distance in the bag.

"So yeah for me it's kind of just the normal setup, go out there and play and if I feel comfortable and there's a hole or two I feel like I can hit the driver then I'll obviously send it and if not it's just gonna be sitting there looking pretty in the golf bag and not coming out."

"I played two par fives so far this week backwards. I hit 2-iron off the tee and then 3-wood into the green," Reed later said to illustrate just how unique Delhi GC is.

The DP World India Championship gets underway on Thursday. It's set to be very fun viewing once again.

• Read more: DP World India Championship tee times
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The battle to win the Race To Dubai on the DP World Tour looks set to go down to the wire as Rory McIlroy needs to overhaul Patrick Reed to claim a record-equalling eighth title.

Reed will look to increase his lead of 308 points at this week's Open de Espana with McIlroy not playing in Madrid, but there's plenty of points on offer down the closing stretch of the season.

After neither man played in the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship it left just five events remaining on the DP World Tour schedule for the No.1 to be crowned.

McIlroy has won the last four Race To Dubai titles in a row and seven overall - with one more drawing him level with Colin Montgomerie on a magnificent eight.

Collin Morikawa was the last man to stop McIlroy topping the standings, and after a fast start to the season Reed is now looking to become just the second American to claim the title on this side of the Atlantic.

Reed will play one more tournament than McIlroy down the stretch, at the Open de Espana, with the two of them scheduled to face-off at the DP World India Championship before heading into the play-offs.

So where will McIlroy and Reed be playing? How many points are up for grabs and is it just a two-horse race or are there any other contenders? Let's take a look...

Reed v McIlroy - story of the season

Patrick Reed left LIV Golf in January and took up full-time DP World Tour membership - wasting no time in kick-starting his bid to play his way into a PGA Tour return while he served out his suspension.

Reed won the Hero Dubai Desert Classic in January and the Qatar Masters in February either side of a playoff defeat at the Bahrain Championship to deny him a rare hat-trick of tournament wins.

A T12 at The Masters and T10 at the PGA Championship followed in the Majors before his form cooled off in the summer, aside from a T13 at the Genesis Scottish Open.

He hit back with a T11 at the Omega European Masters before that T2 at the Amgen Irish Open showing he was back in form before injury struck just at the wrong time at Wentworth.

McIlroy's season obviously has all been about going back-to-back at The Masters - but he also finished T7 at the PGA Championship just a month later.

He's played a light schedule but finished strong on the PGA Tour when coming third at the BMW Championship then T4 at the Tour Championship.

A runner-up spot at the BMW PGA Championship gave McIlroy a big boost in points to cut the gap on Reed ensuring that the race to be European No.1 will go down to the wire.

Race To Dubai current standings

What are McIlroy & Reed's schedules?

Reed is playing at the Open de Espana this week where he'll look to increase his lead, but he's not far enough ahead to relax and it looks like the Race To Dubai battle will come down to three head-to-head meetings.

Both McIlroy and Reed are in the field for the DP World India Championship when they'll get to spar once more to try and get the upper hand before heading to the DP World Tour Play-Offs in the Middle East.

There had been some worries over player safety due to the ongoing war in Iran, but both the events in Abu Dhabi and Dubai now look set to go ahead as planned and both men are in the fields.

And looking at the bumper Race To Dubai points up for grabs in those two events then everything could change in heartbeat - so this race really does look like going to the final event.

Can anyone else win the Race To Dubai?

It's far from a two-horse race of course with some bumper Race To Dubai points on offer in the two DP World Tour Play-Off events in Abu Dhabi and Dubai that finish off the season.

Eugenio Chacarra is around 300 points behind McIlroy so around 600 off the leader - that's quite a gap he has to close up on, but as we've said the bumper points allocations on offer in the last two events mean big things are possible with big finishes.

There's 1,500 points for the winner in Abu Dhabi and 2,000 for the Dubai champion so winning one of those with the current gap would see him go very close if Reed or McIlroy finish down the field.

Chacarra will also play one more event, as he's in the field for both Spain and India but also the Genesis Championship in Korea - where if he keeps the current gap similar a top-two finish there could make things very interesting heading to the Middle East.

It would take something seriously special for the likes of Aaron Rai or Ryan Fox to make a late bid but they are Major champions so winning one of the big ones would be no surprise.

Race To Dubai points allocations for remaining events

Rory McIlroy has committed to playing in the Abu Dhabi Championship despite some players voicing their concerns about playing in the Middle East, while Patrick Reed being announced for the DP World Tour Championship points to the season finale going ahead as planned.

The DP World Tour season concludes with the two final play-off events in Abu Dhabi and Dubai the following week - and both look likely to go ahead despite the political climate in the area with the ongoing war in Iran.

Players such as Matt Fitzpatrick have spoken of their concern about playing in the Middle East with the current uncertainty, although he's softened that stance somewhat, while there have been reports of the DP World Tour lining up alternative venues in Spain and Portugal to host the season finale.

But McIlroy, who is challenging American Reed for the Race To Dubai title, remains unconcerned as it seems the DP World Tour is sticking to the original schedule.

McIlroy said as much at the BMW PGA Championship when backing Abu Dhabi and Dubai to be safe for travel, and he's followed that up by confirming his presence at Yas Links as he looks to win a record-equalling eighth Race To Dubai title.

"I really enjoy finishing my season in the UAE, and hopefully I can have a strong week and put myself in a position to win another Race to Dubai title," said McIlroy.

"The Abu Dhabi Championship is always one of the tournaments I look forward to. I’ve finished runner-up here four times, so I’d obviously love to go one better and finally win it."

McIlroy's committment came as the DP World Tour announced that the tournament, running from 5-8 November, will now be known as the Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship after the local real estate developer signed up as title sponsor.

The Northern Irishman can join Colin Montgomerie as record eight-time European No.1s if he can overhaul Reed's lead of 308 points following a T2 at Wentworth, while the American had to pull out with a wrist injury.

Reed confirmed for Dubai finale

McIlroy has won the Race To Dubai four times in a row, with Collin Morikawa the last person to finish the DP World Tour season ahead of the six-time Major champion.

Reed is looking to follow Morikawa as just the second American to win the Race To Dubai, but after taking a healthy lead following the Amgen Irish Open he suffered a big blow at Wentworth.

Reed hit a treet root during round two and had to pull out with a wrist injury. He's also missing the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship after playing in the event the last two seasons.

But Reed will return to action at the Open De Espana next week and has also been confirmed for the DP World Tour Championship - in another sign that the play-offs are proceeding as usual.

Reed joins the likes of home hero Jon Rahm and also Tyrrell Hatton, Shane Lowry, Justin Rose, Ludvig Aberg and defending champion Marco Penge at Club de Campo in yet another top field in a National Open on the DP World Tour.

And a good finish will see the American open up another gap at the top of the standings as his battle with McIlroy looks to go down to the wire.

Race To Dubai rankings

Rory McIlroy has no concerns about heading out to the Middle East for the DP World Tour Play-Offs if local government says it's safe to travel.

McIlroy started his BMW PGA Championship campaign with a 69 at Wentworth as the DP World Tour enters the closing stretch of the season.

Finishing off the season will be the two events in the Middle East - the Abu Dhabi Championship followed by the DP World Tour Championship.

Matt Fitzpatrick raised a few concerns about those two events given the poximity to the war in Iran, but McIlroy doesn't share those worries about traveling to the area.

"Not for me," McIlroy said about any Middle East concerns, after his opening round at Wentworth. "If the local governments feel like it's safe to put on these events, they are not going to put their citizens or people visiting in harm's way, I imagine.

"I love the Middle East. I have a lot of friends there, and I'm looking forward to going back for sure."

Open champion Ryan Fox was another play to have some reservations about the Middle East in the current situation.

"Obviously there are some concerns," said Fox. "I'm obviously of the opinion that the Tour is doing their due diligence. If they feel like it's safe for us to go, I'm willing to support that.

"But I can understand, also, why guys have some reservations. I'll keep monitoring it. If I feel like it's not the right decision, I might not go but at this point I trust the Tour's decision in that regard."

McIlroy will head to the Middle East chasing a record-equalling eighth Race To Dubai title, but has Patrick Reed currently standing in his way.

The American increased his lead at the top of the standings by finishing runner-up behind Shane Lowry at the Amgen Irish Open while McIlroy faded back into 41st.

McIlroy insists there are good signs in his game though, as highlighted by him shooting 60 in the BMW PGA Championship Pro-Am on Wednesday.

"I wish it was on a Thursday and not on a Wednesday," McIlroy said of that round. "But yeah, look, I played well.

"I think any time you play like that, whether it's in practice or a competitive round, you have to take some confidence from it. I saw some putts going in. I felt better with the putter than I did last week.

"I brought that feeling for the most part into today and a bit disappointed with the way I finished. But still a good score to build on and some very good signs in the game."

McIlroy made a flying start to his first round at Wentworth going five under in 10 holes, but two late bogeys saw him finish what he thinks is a couple of shots short of what his play deserved.

"Good way to put it, a stumble home," he said. "There was a lot of good stuff in there, 5-under through 10.

"I wish I was standing here a couple of shots better. That's what I will I feel should be, but overall, I saw some good signs in my game and saw some putts go in which was encouraging compared to last week. Definitely a score to build on as the week goes on."

Rory McIlroy has offered an encouraging assessment of the state of his game, despite not being able to contend at the Amgen Irish Open in his title defence.

The six-time Major winner salvaged something from a generally subdued week at Trump International Doonbeg with a three-under-par 67 to return to the clubhouse one under par for the tournament.

That still left him 15 shots behind overnight leader Shane Lowry, who had yet to tee off in the final round as McIlroy completed his.

Even though McIlroy didn't get close to replicating his heroics of a year ago, when he beat Joakim Lagergren in a playoff for his second title at the event, he refused to be downhearted about the state of his game.

McIlroy, who will play in next week's BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, said: "I think overall, I've seen enough good stuff this week to give me encouragement going into next week, a golf course that I know well and a golf course that I've had success on.

"Yeah, obviously wasn't the week that I wanted but at the same time, I don't feel too far away, and I feel good about going into Wentworth next week.

McIlroy also offered his perspective on what he feels is working with his game... and what isn't.

He added: "I thought I hit the ball pretty well for the most part. A couple of bad decisions off the tees yesterday, but overall, iron play was a lot better. That's getting there.

"Wedge play was pretty good for the most part this week."

He was less enthused about his putting, adding: "Obviously, it was a struggle on the greens. That was the difficult thing and why I wasn't able to get myself into contention.

"A little bit of time on the putting green the next couple days and get familiar with the greens at Wentworth again."

McIlroy's final round was his best of the week and included seven birdies. However, he also made two bogeys and a double bogey, and admitted it had been a mixed bag.

He said: "Yeah, a few big numbers in there but enough good stuff. Enough positives to take encouragement from that and head into next week, I feel like I'm not too far away."

While McIlroy couldn't make it back-to-back Amgen Irish Open titles, he is rooting for his friend Lowry to get over the line.

He said: "It would be absolutely incredible. He had a couple of chances - he had a big chance earlier this year at the Honda, the Cognizant.

"I felt like he never got going with his season after that. Knocked him back a little bit. To see him in contention out there, obviously the whole country would love to see him get it done, me included."

He won't be there to see it if he does, though. He explained: "No. I'm going to see my girls in London. I'm going to get out of here quickly. They just got into London this morning, so I'll head over there and get back and get ready to next week."

Rory McIlroy predicts some players will leave LIV Golf following the team tour filing for bankruptcy, adding that the move could be good news for the DP World Tour in particular.

Ahead of the Amgen Irish Open, McIlroy was asked about a number of big topics, including LIV Golf, US President Donald Trump and whether future winners of this national open could earn a place in The Masters.

In order to get LIV Golf 2.0 off the ground, CEO Scott O'Neil and his company has entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings in order to restructure and create a player-owned tour in 2027.

There's still plenty of work to be done on clearing current debts, while the likes of Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton are still owed big money on contracts that are now seemingly void.

So players are free to decide on their next move - sign up with LIV Golf 2.0 or focus on returning to one of the main tours, and McIlroy knows which one now looks more appealing.

"I'm not in their shoes but LIV at the start looked a lot more attractive than what LIV 2.0 might be from a financial standpoint," McIlroy said at Trump International Doonbeg.

"I'm not trying to predict the future but I would predict that you'll see some guys leave, as they are free to now as, I guess, contracts have been breached by them filing for bankruptcy."

LIV Golf responded to McIlroy's comments by clarifying to Golf Monthly that "as the player contracts are currently in the hands of the court they are not in breach".

DP World Tour in 'really good spot'

PGA Tour boss Brian Rolapp doesn't seem willing to roll out the red carpet even for the likes of Rahm or Bryson DeChambeau to return, but the DP World Tour is offering up places for LIV golfers to play.

And as the stellar field at the Irish Open shows, including nine LIV Golf stars teeing it up, this period of flux could provide Europe's main tour with a huge boost in star power.

"I think that means other tours have decisions to make," said McIlroy. "And obviously there's a lot of players on LIV that can strengthen golf tournaments and make them more competitive. So I would see that as a good thing for the DP World Tour.

"And I think the health of the DP World Tour is in a really good spot. They have a wonderful alliance with the PGA Tour. I think that alliance is only going to get stronger, especially with the PGA Tour committing to working with the DP World Tour for some of these international events at this time of the year going forward.

"So you have PGA Tour players really with nothing to do for five months in this period. If they are incorporated or whoever else is incorporated into these tournaments, that makes them more competitive.

"Overall, you know, I think with the way things are working out, it's a very good thing for the golf ecosystem. I think it only makes these tournaments stronger with more competitive players in them."

McIlroy welcomes Trump to Ireland

McIlroy revealed that he played a part in bringing the Irish Open to Doonbeg, a tiny village on the west coast of Ireland that now welcomes some of golf's biggest names.

It will also welcome US President and resort owner Donald Trump, who is set to attend and may even hand over the trophy on Sunday.

"The President of the United States wants to come watch a little bit of golf. I think we are all happy to be here, grateful to be here," said McIlroy, who doesn't mind if Trump's appearance causes some extra security issues.

"His presence at the Irish Open makes it a truly international event. That brings more attention and eyeballs to The Irish Open, and it can only be a good thing."

And with the Irish Open now becoming such a high-profile event, McIlroy says he will step-up his campaigning to Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley about the winner getting a spot in the Masters.

"I spoke to chairman Ridley about this a lot and I really applaud their dedication to international golf and getting behind some of the international opens," said McIlroy.

"Obviously the Asia-Pacific Amateur, the Latin America Amateur Championship, they have done great jobs with them and to give these exemptions to these larger National Opens, I would certainly sit there and argue the Irish Open's case with Fred, all day.

"I think, hopefully, at some point, it's inevitable that that would become a reality."

Tiger Woods has become very used to sitting at the top of all-time lists through the years.

Among the records he holds either outright or shares are the highest number of PGA Tour victories, the number of consecutive cuts made, total weeks as World No.1 and consecutive weeks at the top of the world rankings.

Another list Woods sits proudly at the top of is the PGA Tour career money list, which tallies the total money he has earned on the circuit since his first professional start at the 1996 Greater Milwaukee Open.

In fact, Woods has held the top spot for more than a quarter of a century - or February 13, 2000, to be precise, after he won $264,000 for his T2 finish at the Buick Invitational. However, he is in serious danger of losing that position in just a few days.

Woods’s overall PGA Tour career earnings stand at $120,999,166. His nearest rival is Scottie Scheffler, who is now just $608,505 away from Woods’s total, with career earnings of $120,390,661.

The World No.1 even had a chance to surpass the 15-time Major winner at the BMW Championship.

At the Bellerive event, Scheffler would have overtaken Woods had he finished third to collect prize money of $1,300,000.

Not that he will be too worried about eventually catching the living legend. Indeed, he would do that if he finishes solo 13th or better at the Tour Championship, although it may not be enough to go top of the career money list.

The reason finishing that high up the East Lake leaderboard may stop him from taking the top spot is that another player also has the chance to surpass Woods at the event.

Rory McIlroy is third on the PGA Tour career money list with overall earnings of $117,848,372.

That was boosted by $1,360,000 for his finish of third at the BMW Championship, leaving him $3,150,794 short of Woods’s total.

With a purse of $40m at the Tour Championship, it leaves plenty of scope for McIlroy to climb to the top of the money list, depending on Scheffler’s performance.

To have a chance, he’ll need to finish no worse than solo fourth, which would earn him prize money of $3,200,000.

If we assume McIlroy finishes in that position, it won’t be enough to reach the top of the career money list if Scheffler places solo 11th or better.

However, there is one way for McIlroy to guarantee becoming the first player to knock Woods off the top spot for over 26 years - winning the Tour Championship.

Should McIlroy achieve that, and claim his fourth FedExCup title in the process, he'll earn $10,000,000, meaning even if Scheffler places solo second to earn $5,000,000, it won't be enough to catch the six-time Major winner.

Whatever the permutations at East Lake, it is surely only a matter of time until both Scheffler and McIlroy overtake Woods, with the only debate over which one will reach the top first.

That’s because in recent years, Woods's PGA Tour schedule has become increasingly limited due to a succession of injuries.

Meanwhile, he hasn’t played at all in 2026 following a spell in rehab after being involved in a car accident in March.

PGA Tour Career Money List Top 10

Rory McIlroy has given his reaction to the new-look Tour Championship, with the changes coming in 2028.

Details of the revamp were announced ahead of this week’s event at East Lake, with the new-look event to take place in a match play format over two weeks and at different venues.

He said: "I think the PGA Tour and the Future Competition Committee and Brian [Rolapp] and everyone involved have really taken on board what the fans have been calling for and have wanted, which is match play.

"Brian took me through the plan last week for the first time. I didn't really know anything about it.

“It's certainly different. Two weeks, two different venues. But it's cool. I think they've taken a big swing, and conceptually, I think I really like it.”

In total, 32 players will qualify for the Tour Championship via the season-long points list, with half progressing to week two.

McIlroy added: “The first week will be great trying to get into that top 16, and then the second week, I think for me, one thing I said to Brian is you really want to win a few matches in that second week.

“It's going to be hard for some guys to be playing match play and playing for 14th position or whatever it is.”

Under a wider PGA Tour revamp, which will see tiers introduced with the top-level Championship Series and the Challenger Series, the season-long winner will be recognized at the event before the Tour Championship.

That will be at the PGA Tour Championship Series Finale, which McIlroy also likes the sound of.

He added: “I think all the incentives are there, and the regular season champion is going to be adequately rewarded after that final stroke-play event, and then the Tour Championship match play is going to be completely different.

“But I think it's sort of a departure from what we've had the last few years, but I do think it'll be a great thing.”

The new-look PGA Tour schedule is likely to have knock-on effects for other circuits, not least the DP World Tour, and McIlroy believes it offers an opportunity to help incentivize players to compete on the Europe-based circuit.

He explained: “I think if the PGA Tour are going to play from February through to August, the DP World Tour have five months where, with the help of the PGA Tour and maybe some others, can really shine and really shine a spotlight on international golf and put on some of the biggest sort of international events in golf.”

Later, he went into more detail, adding: “I think with what the PGA Tour has been through with changing its competitive model and its structure, I think if the DP World Tour could do something similar, where you host all of your best events in that five-month time frame.

“It would allow guys to take up membership, to then have something to play for at the end of the DP World Tour season, if they choose to do that.

“Because this Tour is not starting until February it looks like in 2028, that means you could put the final events of the DP World Tour season in January.

“So people could actually go over, whether it's to the Middle East or elsewhere, to play those final two events, if that was something that was interesting to them, and then also could be at their first couple of events of the season to make sure they're ready to go for the Championship Series in 2028.”

Of course, McIlroy has a foot in both camps, which has limited his PGA Tour involvement in 2026, something he doesn’t envisage changing.

He said: “I think the thing is I play at least 22 times around the world in a calendar year, which is as much if not more than some of the other top players in the world.

“It's just that I limit my schedule in the US because I have a heavy schedule in the fall internationally.

“I would like to keep that number around that same mark, like 20 to 22 events. That seems to be a good number for me.

“If I'm committed to playing that sort of heavier schedule in the fall to go over to the DP World Tour and support that, then yeah, my schedule on the PGA Tour is going to be quite light compared to some others.”

‘Leave Amateurs Alone. Bifurcate. I’m All For Bifurcation’

McIlroy also touched on a subject never top far from rearing its head: the golf ball rollback.

Initially, plans were in place to ensure elite-level golfers used conforming balls by January 2028, shortly before the new-look PGA Tour is scheduled to begin.

However, in June it was confirmed a rollback will not be introduced at any level of the game before January 2030.

Regardless, McIlroy believes regulation of the equipment is needed, in whatever form that may take.

He said: “Yes, it may take a couple extra years to figure out what the need is, but I think everyone agrees that the equipment needs to be regulated. It needs to be regulated. It just can't keep carrying on at the rate it's going. Not at the elite level.

“Leave amateurs alone. Bifurcate. I'm all for bifurcation.

"But I think at this level, to keep some of those golf courses relevant that we want to go to and we're talking about, I think equipment, whether that's ball, whether that's club, whatever that means, I think it has to be regulated to a higher degree than it is at the minute.”

Lee Westwood says Rory McIlroy's latest comment on LIV Golf "wasn't well thought out" and was "typical of Rory" in the latest disagreement between the two.

The subject of LIV Golf, fines and suspensions from the DP World Tour and other issues have been a source of tension between McIlroy and Westwood on a few occasions.

McIlroy spoke about the value LIV players held in response to a question about possible returns to the PGA Tour, and as usual it stirred up emotions on both sides.

Scottie Scheffler disagreed with the sentiment, while Bryson DeChambeau seemed to aim a retort while discussing LIV's future in Indianapolis - where Westwood also had his say.

"I heard Rory's comments yesterday," Westwood told TNT Sports at LIV Golf Indianapolis.

"I thought Scottie [Scheffler] answered the question well and Rory's answer was just typical of Rory really, it wasn't well thought out."

Westwood and LIV teammate Ian Poulter have been given invites to the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship as they make their DP World Tour return after over three years away.

LIV players have been taking up spots in DP World Tour events with doubts remaining over the team tour, and Westwood points to the Alfred Dunhil and the plethora of LIV golfers getting invites as an example of their quality.

"I really don't care what people think to be perfectly honest," Westwood added. "I think it illustrates the fact that people like LIV players playing in their events. Promoters and sponsors, no matter which tour they're on, they bring quality to tournaments.

"There's a lot of players on this tour that bring a lot of value to tournaments and the Alfred Dunhill is a point in question where I think Johann Rupert's got something like 26, 27 invites and he's given them to, I think, 25 people off LIV have got invites so that just shows you that LIV players do bring value to tournaments."

Westwood still upset with 'ridiculous fines'

Westwood and Poulter both paid their DP World Tour fines, reported to be over $1m, and could rejoin the DP World Tour in November after each resigned their memberships in 2023 and previously said they had no desire to return.

Both still disagree with the fines, but decided to pay them now while they're still indemnified by the Saudi PIF.

The DP World Tour is expected to resume fines and suspensions for members playing in LIV Golf events next year, so there could be more trouble if LIV 2.0 goes ahead.

For now, though, Westwood - who has also confirmed he'll make his Legends Tour debut at August's Staysure English Legends tournament at Chart Hills - is happy to return to the Alfred Dunhill.

"I've won that tournament and I supported it, I played practically every one until I was forced to give up my membership on the European Tour because of the ridiculous fines," said Westwood, who hasn't played on the DP World Tour since January 2023 and last played in the Alfred Dunhill back in 2019.

The popular Englishman will no doubt be a big draw up at St Andrews, Carnoustie and Kingsbarns for the Alfred Dunhill, and time will tell if it's the first step back towards a DP World Tour return or not.

Rory McIlroy has questioned what value returning LIV Golfers would bring back to the PGA Tour and warned Jon Rahm and others they may face a "tough, tough road" back to the US circuit.

The six-time Major winner was speaking to media ahead of the BMW Championship following a busy stretch of LIV Golf news, following the league's new 'lead investor' and uncertainty over Jon Rahm's future.

McIlroy, who has arguably been LIV's biggest critic since the rival league was formed in 2022, had lots to say on its immediate future and the possibility of some of its star players making their way back to the PGA Tour.

"I would argue, have they brought value to LIV? You know? I think the PGA Tour's in a really good spot," he responded when asked whether returning LIV players would bring value to the Tour.

It was a contrast to what Scottie Scheffler had previously told media just before him on Wednesday afternoon, with the World No.1 sounding excited about potentially competing against some of LIV's best players again.

"Yeah, I think, like, when we talk about the best players, you know, LIV has a few players that are really good. I think the depth that we have on our Tour is bit unmatched, but I think when you look at the higher levels of LIV Golf there's definitely some players that would provide a lot of value to the Tour, and guys that I love competing against as well," Scheffler said.

"So I think going forward there obviously has to be, I think, some sort of penalties. What those are, I'll let Rolapp and all those guys figure it out. We have great leadership within the Tour now.

"But I think having those guys come back and competing with whatever happens with LIV, whether those guys want to leave, I mean, you got to ask them.

"But I think for me being able to compete against the best players in the world there's certainly some guys on that tour that can compete out here and I look forward to the chance to compete with them more often."

LIV's future remains uncertain despite the new investor, as Jon Rahm leaving and others like Tyrrell Hatton and Joaquin Niemann following him out of the door could be tough to recover from.

McIlroy, who has previously stated he 'hates' LIV, admits he would take no satisfaction in the tour folding.

"It's a hard one. Like, I think I feel like I've kept my position consistent that LIV has never been a good thing for the game," he said.

"So, and whatever [LIV] 2.0 looks like, if it even happens, you know, they say they're trying to be more collaborative and all that. But this is the best platform for the top professional golfers in the world.

"Yeah, were there some things at the start of LIV that the PGA Tour could have done better? Sure.

"But I think that, you know, the guys that went, or you think back to the start with, like, say, Phil was unhappy with some stuff or whatever it was. Like, surely that just warranted a conversation instead of blowing the entire professional game up and doing something else.

"So I don't take any personal satisfaction of people like losing jobs. Like that doesn't seem right.

"I've always felt like this is the best place to play professional golf. And I'm pretty sure if the PGA Tour were handed $6 billion it would have done a better job with it."

'It's going to be a tough, tough road back'

Despite admitting there was a genuine possibility of LIV 2.0 not coming to fruition, the World No.2 also warned its top stars they could face a "tough, tough road" back to the US circuit.

"Eventually, yeah, maybe. I mean, look, eventually they will," he responded when asked on the possibility of Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau someday returning.

"I'm not part of these discussions, but I'm pretty sure they're not going to be welcomed back straight away.

"If they were offered this returning member program back in February, the one that Brooks took, then, yeah, maybe. But that has sort of come and gone.

"And I think it was said at the time that the deal that they might get going forward, if they do decide to come back, isn't going to be as good as the one that Brooks got.

"So, yeah, I would say it's going to be a tough, tough road back."

Rory McIlroy will return to action at the FedEx St Jude Championship next week, returning to the event he skipped last year.

McIlroy hasn't played since The Open at Royal Birkdale but will tee it up again at TPC Southwind in Memphis in the opening FedEx Cup Playoff event on the PGA Tour.

The Northern Irishman is 12th in the current FedEx Cup standings and with his lighter schedule this year some expected him to again miss the tournament, as he did 12 months ago when he was guaranteed of his place in the Tour Championship.

McIlroy's played in just 11 counting events this year, and even though he's playing in Memphis he'll still fall just short of the PGA Tour minimum 15 that's usually required.

The 37-year-old has already stated though that the PGA Tour has always been aware of his plans, with Brian Rolapp and his executives giving him a pass this year and citing an "extenuating circumstances" clause in the rulebook.

The World No.2 has had an injury this season, and after winning back-to-back Masters titles he's played just once in between each Major while also moving into a new home in Wentworth.

McIlroy will now take aim at a fourth FedEx Cup triumph though after being confirmed in the 70-man field at TPC Southwind - where if nothing else he can shake off any rust ahead of the BMW Championship at Bellerive Country Club in St. Louis and the Tour Championship at East Lake in Atlanta.

We're not quite sure whether McIlroy would've played the St Jude Championship had he been on course to play his PGA Tour minimum events or if the plan would always have been to play all three playoff tournaments.

Another possible reason for McIlroy's lighter year so far could be him always planning to have a busy late summer and autumn, starting with the FedEx Cup Playoffs.

McIlroy will then return to the DP World Tour as he goes in search of a fifth consecutive European No.1 title and eighth overall. He's currently second on the Race To Dubai behind Patrick Reed.

McIlroy will play in the Amgen Irish Open ahead of the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth before the closing DP World Tour events in the Middle East take center stage.

He'll also play in the DP World India Championship and the Australian Open, along with the Cathedral Invitational after that, as he continues to build a more global aspect to his schedule.

Rory McIlroy has added the Cathedral Invitational to his schedule following the Australian Open in December, it has been revealed.

The World No.2 will make his second consecutive appearance Down Under later this year after also playing in the 2025 Australian Open at Royal Melbourne.

This year's event takes place at Kingston Heath, and the six-time Major winner will then take the two-hour drive northeast of Melbourne to the exclusive Cathedral Lodge and Golf Club for the Cathedral Invitational.

The news was confirmed by former tour pros Nick O'Hern and Mark Allen on the Talk Birdie To Me podcast.

O'Hern, who is a member of the club, revealed it sent out an email to members last week confirming McIlroy's attendance and he had the all-clear from the general manager to share it to the wider golf world.

Cathedral Lodge and Golf Club's course was designed by Greg Norman and is said to have fewer than 200 members.

The mixed event was founded in 2022 and is a 36-hole tournament featuring a pro-am format on day one before a professionals-only final round.

It benefits Adam Scott's foundation and the 2013 Masters champion will defend his title this year after beating the likes of Marc Leishman and Lucas Herbert to the title in 2025.

Geoff Ogilvy, Elvis Smylie, Cameron John, Karl Vilips and Wade Ormsby were among some of the other well-known tour pros to tee it up last time out.

O'Hern revealed on the podcast that it was Scott who asked McIlroy to play the event, asking the Northern Irishman for a rare favor. McIlroy reportedly said it would be 'no problem at all' to add the tournament to his schedule.

McIlroy is said to have committed to playing just 18 holes, which raises the question as to whether the event's format will be tweaked to just an 18-hole shootout.

It's set to be a bumper summer of golf Down Under, with reports stating Bryson DeChambeau could add his name to the Australian PGA Championship, which returns to Sydney for the first time since 1998. The Lakes Golf Club will host the event from Nov 26-29, with the Australian Open taking place the following week.

It's more positive momentum for golf in Australia after the PGA Tour confirmed earlier this year that it had partnered with the DP World Tour and to elevate the Australian Open, for 2027, 2028 and 2029.

The deal promises to continue "the tournament's momentum", boost the prize money, give the event a "distinct window in the global golf calendar" and "optimise the opportunity to attract the world’s best players."

World No.2 Rory McIlroy has accused Bryson DeChambeau of 'holding The Open Championship hostage' following a rules controversy which exploded into life on Friday evening.

DeChambeau was found guilty of improving his swing path on the fifth hole of Friday's second round - although The R&A stressed it was accidental - and the American was docked two strokes.

During the discussions which took place at the time, it was thought DeChambeau threatened to pull out of the final men's Major completely in protest.

Then, due to a long discussion with rules officials late on Friday evening and a range session involving DeChambeau which lasted well after the sun had set in Birkdale, tee times were not available until close to 11pm local time - by which time many players were beginning to air their frustration on social media.

DeChambeau ultimately opted to remain in the championship and began the third round three strokes back of leader Lucas Herbert.

Nevertheless, the sequence of events did not sit well with McIlroy, who aired his brutally honest thoughts on DeChambeau's actions after completing his own third round.

McIlroy said: "Yeah, look, I won't pretend to be up here and defend Bryson. I'm not particularly fond of him. I think a lot of it's performative. I think a lot of it's for attention.

"To hold the tournament hostage like that, and to have all of us, players, volunteers, everyone waiting on him to depart, I didn't feel like it was a great look."

While DeChambeau was predictably disappointed at the outcome of his rules controversy - saying he was "disappointed" and "doesn't agree with it" on social media - McIlroy felt The R&A had no other option having witnessed the footage live in the players' lounge.

He continued: "I was watching it live. I was up in the players lounge watching it with a few other players, and as soon as he made the step into the ball, we all sort of looked at each other, and we were like, that didn't seem right.

"Then when I heard that he was called in by the rules officials, I think we all -- it was pretty obvious for why.

"Yeah, I think there's no doubt that he improved the line of his backswing. Again, it's like, whether it was careless or whether it was intentional, I don't think it matters. Hopefully it was careless, but I think the two-shot penalty was justified for sure."

Both players certainly have a history of not seeing eye to eye, with McIlroy famously not speaking to DeChambeau en route to his first Masters triumph.

That occurred less than 12 months on from DeChambeau's second US Open victory - at which he took advantage of a late slip from the Northern Irishman.

DeChambeau is almost certain to respond to McIlroy's comments via some medium following the third round today, with the American never short on an opinion or slow to defend himself.

However, just how he does that remains something of a mystery with the American currently on a long break from speaking with independent media outlets.

Meanwhile, other players have also weighed in on DeChambeau's controversial moment this week, with many defending the LIV golfer.

Xander Schauffele felt the Californian could have been given the benefit of the doubt and felt sympathy for the situation DeChambeau found himself in.

The 2024 Open champion said: "It's a tough one... I haven't spoken to him or heard what he said, but he's just stepping in how you'd normally step in to hit a golf shot.

"I think The R&A said something along the lines of whether it's intentional or not, it's still a penalty.

“It's a tough spot to be, obviously, when you're in high brush, kind of having to dance around to get to your golf ball is a tricky thing. It's not something we're used to doing that often.

"You imagine you give him the benefit of the doubt; he said he didn't do it intentionally, and it's unfortunate that he got penalized because he was playing incredibly well and obviously he's still playing incredibly well, so he's obviously going to have something to prove these next two days.”

Max Homa went one step further, claiming he didn't agree with the ruling and argued that DeChambeau "would never cheat the game of golf."

He said: "I only saw one angle, and in my opinion I didn't agree with the ruling. I know there's another angle that -- side on, it's always hard to tell if it improves anything.

“All I know is I've known Bryson for a very long time, and he's an interesting human at times, but I know he would never cheat the game of golf.

"I don't really love how it happened. It's not that The R&A said that he did it intentionally, but that rule as a professional golfer feels like it's written inherently to protect against people trying to improve their lie.

"So I just hope that doesn't create a narrative because I don't believe that of him."

World No.1 Scottie Scheffler’s comments ahead of last year’s Open at Royal Portrush questioning what the point was of achieving greatness in golf reared their head on Tuesday in the build-up to the 2026 edition of golf’s oldest championship.

The American raised eyebrows in Country Antrim in Northern Ireland when he admitted he didn’t get much in the way of meaningful fulfillment from his career before, ironically, going on to win the Claret Jug for the first time just a few days later.

At Royal Birkdale, those remarks from 12 months ago were put to the World No. 1, and although he was more careful about how he conveyed his message, the subject drew laughs from the press in attendance when a reporter inadvertently created another Scheffler soundbite we could well be looking back on in another year’s time.

“You mentioned history; we're all going to die someday and all that kind of stuff,” the question began.

“Sorry,” a shocked Scheffler replied. “Is that going to be a quote after last year's ‘what's the point?’ This year we're all going to die.”

Once the laughter subsided, there was a poignant question about legacy and if it truly doesn’t matter how Scheffler the golfer is remembered when all is said and done.

“I think it matters more to me just in terms of the competition,” Scheffler began. “There's things I would like to accomplish in the game, but at the end of the day, I have never once thought about how I'm going to be remembered. To me, it truly doesn't matter from a sense of like accomplishment.

“Like when I die, hey, Scottie won four majors and 20 tournaments and he won this much money. That has zero effect on me.

“It's more just the things that I can try to achieve in the game. That's something just for me just trying to get the most out of myself, like do you want to be able to win tournaments, you want to be able to put yourself in those positions. That's what I love about the game.

“History, to me, I guess maybe just isn't that important. I don't necessarily want to be remembered for winning the tournaments that I won. I'd much rather be remembered for the way I did it than the tournaments that I won.

“So if I'm doing things the right way, treating people the right way. A successful week for me is when I approach things the right way, when I'm committed to what I'm doing.

“I love being able to go out and compete, but over time I've gotten much better at just being able to take your hat off and shake hands. I've met some great people in the game of golf. Some of my best friends in the world I met through playing golf.

“History for me has never been the most important thing.”

The same question was later put to six-time Major winner Rory McIlroy, and his response struck a very similar chord.

“I think it would be a pretty unfulfilling pursuit if you're just chasing records and chasing results,” the Northern Irishman said. “You have to enjoy the process. You have to enjoy the journey to get there. I've learned that the hard way at times by chasing results and chasing records too much.

“You start to focus on your craft and your practice and doing the things you need to do to try to become a better golfer, and then if you do that, the results and the winning almost take care of themselves, or at least you put yourself in position enough to at least step through the door a few times.

“You're obviously trying to win, but winning is such a… like it's not a real tangible goal, right? So the real goal is I want to do this with my swing or I want to hit this sort of shot or I want to feel good when I'm over the ball, whatever it is. If you do that stuff enough times, hopefully you get yourself in a position to win.

“Then from there, you can start to think about winning the tournament. But if all you're thinking about is winning and results, you're playing the wrong game.”

While they might not be bothered, both McIlroy and Scheffler’s legacies are almost certain to stand the test of time.

McIlroy became just the sixth male player in history to complete the career Grand Slam with his 2025 Masters win and, just a US Open victory shy, few would bet against Scheffler following in his footsteps.

As ever, all eyes will be on Rory McIlroy as he begins his quest for a second Open win and a seventh Major title at Royal Birkdale this week.

The Northern Irishman has enjoyed another stellar campaign so far, with his second successive Masters victory in April the obvious highlight. And he has a chance to cap off another superb men’s Major season in Southport in the coming days.

McIlroy’s sole Open win came all the way back in 2014 at a rather green and damp Royal Liverpool. He has come close to claiming a second Claret Jug since, but he has yet to make it happen.

Time is still on his side to further enhance his legacy in the game’s oldest championship, so how is he feeling ahead of the challenge that awaits at Birkdale? And what are his thoughts on other hot topics in the game at the moment?

Here are five things we learned from his Open press conference...

He's Not 'So Bad At Golf'

McIlroy went viral on Sunday at the Scottish Open after he was caught on camera scolding himself for an errant iron shot.

“I'm so bad at golf,” McIlroy said to himself.

He later explained how practising in left-to-right winds on the range at the Renaissance Club had put his swing out of sync, so, two days on, has he managed to address the gremlins?

“Depends what hour of the day you get me,” McIlroy said. “It's funny, I felt really good the first two days in Scotland and then felt like my game just sort of deteriorated as the week went on. Even though I shot a good score on Sunday, it didn't feel very good.

“I've done a good bit of work the past couple days getting the TrackMan out, seeing what my numbers are, and just trying to match up the feels of my swing with what I'm seeing.

“Also, I played 30 holes on Sunday. I felt a little bit tired yesterday, so I didn't make it on the course, but that allowed me a bit more time to hit some balls and dig into the swing a little bit. Felt good on the range. Felt good out on the course today. Definitely trending in the right direction.”

Has Weather Lessened Challenge?

Much has been made of the Open weather forecast in the build-up this week. Birkdale is baked out, ready to present the best players in the world with the type of firm and fast challenge that has become such a modern-day rarity.

But has it actually made the course easier?

“I think it's a double-edged sword,” McIlroy continued.

“I think all this dry weather and sun and a little bit of wind is obviously great for the course in one way, but when I was here a couple weeks ago, the rough was a lot more penal than it's going to be this week. It's definitely burnt out a lot.

“The big thing, especially off the tee here, is the fairway bunkers and avoiding those. You might see some guys being more aggressive off the tee, taking driver, trying to take the fairway bunkers out of play.

"Okay, it might be in the rough, but it's not that penal, so you get a wedge in your hand and you can figure it out from there.”

McIlroy Has Say On Fan Behaviour

Ahead of this year’s tournament, and amid a growing trend of unruly fan behavior, The R&A has put a new spectator code of conduct into play for the crowds this week.

It involves respecting the players, the course and enjoying the championship responsibly.

Gambling has been blamed for most of the abuse that players receive online and on-site - with Matt Fitzpatrick speaking out on fan behavior in regards to gambling - but McIlroy thinks the issue is being blown out of proportion.

“We've had gambling over here for forever, and I would say the crowd behaviour has been pretty good for the most part. Obviously it's a newer thing in the United States. Yeah, you could see how people that have a bet could… it's a very easy game to influence. The crowd aren't far away from you.

“I feel like certain things have happened to me over the years where it's definitely been because of that, but it's very rare, I would say.

"But certainly it's a thing that we've definitely talked about when I was on the board of the PGA Tour, like whenever gambling or sports betting in the United States was coming into golf in a big way, it was something we talked about and how do we place it to make sure the integrity of the competition isn't jeopardized by letting this stuff happen.

“I feel like it's policed pretty well. In every crowd of thousands of people, you're going to have your few bad eggs here and there, but for the most part, I think golf crowds are pretty respectful.”

Course Changes An Overall Positive

Many holes at Birkdale have been revamped for this year’s Open. (For those who haven’t yet seen them, the flyover video comparing it in 2017 to now is well worth a watch.)

Some of them are quite extreme, with greens raised to create dramatic run-offs and a brutish new 241-yard par 3 15th sure to cause some chaos. But McIlroy thinks they will provide a brilliant experience for those watching at home and at the venue.

“I think most of the changes are very good,” McIlroy added. “I really like the 5th hole. I like the change to the 7th. Some of the greens are maybe a little unnatural with the run-offs and sort of what they've tried to do with the mounding.

“But it creates a good challenge, and it creates options for if you do miss the green, whether it's a putter, a bump-and-run, some guys might choose lob wedge, and I think what we all know, even going back to Shinnecock a few weeks ago, when you give professional golfers options and you can create a little bit of doubt in their minds in terms of what shot to play, that's when things start to get fun, especially for the viewer.

“Not so much for us but... that to me is the sign of a good championship test.”

The Major Season Is Too Short

Blink and you’ll miss it.

That’s how the men’s Major season feels. Not long ago McIlroy was slipping on the Green Jacket for the second year in a row and now we’re just days away from The Open.

On Sunday evening, we will have to wait almost nine months for the next men’s Major, and McIlroy thinks it has become too condensed.

He said: “I guess I see pros and cons in both. I'd like to see the Major season spread out a little bit longer. The Masters is always going to have the build-up, but I think then the PGA [Championship] into the US Open, US Open into here, it just seems like it's very, very quick.

“From a player perspective, if you get on a bit of a run, it's nice to be sort of playing well and go from one straight into the next.

“But for the sport as a whole and for, I guess, the general interest in the game, obviously I can see the positives in that Major season being stretched out a little bit longer.”

Rory McIlroy insists his new lighter schedule works best for him, and it certainly seemed that way as he returned to action with a round of 65 at the Genesis Scottish Open.

McIlroy took another two weeks off after the US Open and teed it up at the Renaissance Club on Thursday for just his 12th start of the year, and his 10th PGA Tour sanctioned event.

He's continuing his Major plan by playing just once in between golf's big four, preferring instead to prep for those big ones - for example he skipped the PGA Tour events recently to instead practice at Royal Birkdale ahead of The Open.

And it seems to be working just fine for McIlroy, who carded an eagle and five birdies in his five-under round of 65 in his first outing since Shinnecock Hills - to take an early share of the clubhouse lead when he finished up his 18 holes.

McIlroy said after his opening round in Scotland that his new schedule leaves him "feeling like I have a bit more balance in my life" as this looks like being his new long-term plan for his career.

And it doesn't seem to have any negative impact on his game, as despite playing just four events in 12 weeks he sees no sign of rust.

"I mean, I feel like even though I have played pretty sparsely over the last few months, the starts of my tournaments have all been really good so it's not like I'm coming in and starting slow," McIlroy told Sky Sports after his 13th straight round in the 60s at the Scottish Open - where he's 47 under par during that span.

"The little bit of extra practice I think actually helps in some ways.

"And one of the other benefits for me, I'm nearly 20 years into this and I need to do everything I can to keep my enthusiasm as high as possible, and playing a lighter schedule definitely does that."

Will McIlroy focus in Europe more in the future?

McIlroy says it feels "liberating" to have achieved his Grand Slam last year, and now after defending his Masters title he needed to adjust his mindset and set new goals for the future.

"I can't get complacent," he added. "I still need to set goals. To me, I've said this a few times this year, I felt like the Grand Slam last year was the destination, and I realised it wasn't. It a continuous journey.

"It's a journey until you decide one day that you want to step off and do something else, but as long as I'm on this journey, there will always be goals to achieve."

McIlroy's journey could well include playing more tournaments on the DP World Tour, as he's enjoyed moving to a new house in London and finds he's keener now to play more around Europe.

"I would say I've ebbed and flowed over the course of my career between wanting to play more in Europe and maybe wanting to play less at times," McIlroy admitted.

"But I think now at this stage of my career, I really enjoy coming back here to play. It reminds me of why I started to play the game in the first place; links golf courses and the crowds are incredible, and the crowds next week at The Open will be amazing, as well.

"I think all of that, I don't want to say reminiscent of when I was growing up, but it's a comfortable environment for me to play in."

A lot has been made of Rory McIlroy's schedule of late, and on Wednesday his non-golfer calendar contained a European Ryder Cup day out at Wimbledon to take in some tennis

McIlroy was sporting his Masters Green Jacket after successfully defending his title at Augusta National, and took the acclaim of the Centre Court crowd as he was joined by several team mates and captain Luke Donald.

Tommy Fleetwood and Justin Rose were also at SW19 along with Thomas Bjorn and both Molinari brothers, Francesco and Edoardo, as Team Europe had a day out in Wimbledon's exclusive Royal Box to celebrate their victory at Bethpage last year.

McIlroy's brilliant second successive Masters victory in April meant that he has another year of donning his Green Jacket out in public - as long as he gets permission from Augusta National as is the protocol.

McIlroy has recently moved back to the UK with a new home set up in the exclusive Wentworth estate, and he's spent time settling in with his family in between rare PGA Tour appearances and playing in the Majors.

The Northern Irishman has regularly skipped PGA Tour events in order to prepare for the Majors and enjoy life outside of golf, something which he's determined to carry on doing.

He'll likely fall short of playing the minimum tournament requirement to retain PGA Tour membership, but the Tour recently said that as a life member for hitting 20 wins he'd have a lower threshold to meet so would have no problems for 2027.

The six-time Major champion is a well-known tennis fan and has been to various big events before, including Wimbledon, and he was joined at the All England Club by wife Erica and his Ryder Cup teammates.

Justin Rose and wife Kate were also pictured at Wimbledon along with Tommy Fleetwood and two-time winning captain Luke Donald and wife Diane.

After a crushing victory in Rome followed by historic success in New York, Donald is looking to win three in a row next year when the Ryder Cup returns to Ireland at Adare Manor.

Jim Furyk is having his second spell as Team USA captain in 2027 hoping to thwart Donald's three-peat and also end the long wait for an American win in Europe that now stretches back 33 years.

Donald had his backroom boys with him too, as Thomas Bjorn, a victorious captain in Paris back in 2018, attended with Italian brothers Francesco and Edoardo Molinari.

Francesco is tipped as a future captain after Donald, while Edoardo is the statistical brains behind the operation with his analysis on pairings and course management often cited as a crucial difference in Ryder Cups.

Whether the conversation drifts off to potential pairings for Ireland or course setup at Adare Manor during breaks in play we won't find out - as the European Ryder Cup stars enjoy watching the likes of Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic among other big hitters of the tennis world.

Inside The Ropes' is the chance for Golf Monthly's expert team to share its honest thoughts on the biggest subjects in the game. This time, it's all about Rory McIlroy.

Rory McIlroy may only play a maximum of 14 PGA Tour events this season. The minimum-event threshold for a regular PGA Tour member is 15. Yet, the Northern Irishman won't face any punishment, nor will his status be affected for 2027.

That's because of a loophole of sorts in the PGA Tour's regulations which protects the historic US circuit and its assets from situations such as this.

“Notwithstanding the above, the commissioner, upon application by a foreign member and for medical reasons or other extraordinary circumstances that the commissioner, at his discretion, determines to be a valid reason for not playing in at least 15 PGA Tour cosponsored or approved tournaments, may reduce the 15-minimum (or 12-minimum as the case may be) tournament requirement.”

All of that is to say, Brian Rolapp can make adjustments to the rules if he feels it isn't in the PGA Tour's best interest.

In addition, a deeper look at the PGA Tour's regulations in relation to the event minimum further absolves McIlroy - who is listed as both a foreign PGA Tour member and a life PGA Tour member.

The regulations say "a foreign PGA Tour member shall be eligible for a “home circuit” exception to provisions of the release regulations with regard to conflicting tournaments provided he has played, or committed to play, in a minimum of 15 PGA Tour co-sponsored or approved tournaments in the season..."

The guidelines go on to say: "... or in the case of a regular member or life member who is age 45 or more and has made 150 cuts or more in tournaments awarding official prize money in his career, in a minimum of 12 PGA Tour co-sponsored or approved tournaments in the season."

There is an important caveat to note at this point. The PGA Tour removed the age (or number of seasons as a member) requirement from the life member regulations a way back.

Therefore, now, once a player reaches 20 wins he will be immediately eligible for life membership - McIlroy became a life member on the PGA Tour ahead of the 2022-23 campaign.

But are these added rules and regulations fair on the rest of the membership? Very few are in the position McIlroy finds himself and are unlikely to be let off the hook in similar circumstances.

So is it right McIlroy can do as he pleases? Please let us know your thoughts in the comments box below. Meanwhile, some of our tour experts have had their say on the matter below.

EH: Yes, I think it is fair. He is Rory McIlroy and should, to an extent, be allowed to do whatever he pleases. Don't forget he is a key reason the PGA Tour is in such a strong position today.

Had he jumped ship to LIV Golf or not spent hours in press conferences defending the US circuit then we may be in a different scenario right now. McIlroy is the biggest draw in the game and a career grand slam champion who only has eyes on the Majors.

EH: He builds his schedule around the biggest events and if that means he can't quite fulfill a 15-event PGA Tour minimum this year then so be it. The PGA Tour would be silly to punish him, their biggest star.

Tiger Woods is obviously on another level but the Tour also has a rule that allows him into all of the Signature Events.

I can see how some may feel it's unfair, but I think it is fine that a small number of highly accomplished and needle-moving individuals - Woods, McIlroy, and perhaps one or two more - are able to be treated slightly differently to the rest.

JL: For a tour that preaches the word 'meritocracy' as often as it does, I think this scenario carries a certain amount of hypocrisy by the PGA Tour.

The rules for most tour members are that they play, or at least commit to playing, 15 events per season. But then there's this rule and that rule which seem to give an out to players whenever they need one.

Ultimately, you end up with a situation like this where it looks unfair on the surface, only to realize that - technically - Rory McIlroy will justifiably escape punishment. But I don't really like the situation.

JL: The fact the PGA Tour has to point out to everyone that McIlroy is a Life Member and only needs to play 12 events per team speaks to a lack of clarity the circuit is currently facing. If it was up to me, I'd scrap the discrepancy and go with 15 for everyone, no matter what.

I've got no problem with McIlroy playing whenever and wherever he wants, and I understand why he is doing so at this stage of his career, but rules are rules and I think they should apply to everyone. Then again, the PGA Tour needs McIlroy more than he needs it, so I'm not surprised the situation has played out the way it has.

It's debatable whether this likely escape for McIlroy is right on the balance of all relevant context, but I'm not sure it's fair on the rest of the membership.

CK: This isn't a good look for Rory, but context is important. When LIV Golf threw a grenade into golf's ecosystem, the PGA Tour were desperate for a leader on the players side of things.

Up stepped McIlroy, in the prime of his career, chasing the grand slam, taking time away from his game to sit in board meetings, negotiate with players and business leaders and going to bat for the Tour on the public stage.

His reward? Jay Monahan throwing him under the bus by going behind his and every other player's back and announcing a framework agreement with the PIF.

We saw McIlroy's live reaction to the news on Netflix's Full Swing in which he said "F*** it, do what you want to do". He later said he felt like a "sacrificial lamb" following his advocacy for the Tour.

CK: Three years on, this is a different Rory. He's not only completed the grand slam, but now has TWO Green Jackets to his name. McIlroy took the fight to LIV on behalf of the Tour and in return got a slap in the face.

McIlroy owes nothing to the Tour now and is very much going to do what HE wants to do - and that is to put himself in the best position to win as many Majors as possible.

Yes, it is a new era for Tour under new leadership and a soon-to-be new format, but I don't think Rory cares. He is out for himself now and himself alone.

Agree or disagree with this all you like, but those at the PGA Tour can blame Jay Monahan for the shift in attitude.

PH: In general life I’m a 'one rule for all' type of guy, I don’t like preferential treatment due to status or celebrity, so this one has me a bit torn. But sport isn’t real life really, is it?

Not all golfers are equal, not all have brought in, or offer as much value as Rory McIlroy does to the PGA Tour – far and away more than any other golfer on the planet.

So Brian Rolapp is in a tough spot here to be fair to him, how can he punish his biggest star just at this crucial time in PGA Tour history? Is doesn’t make any sense to pick a fight with McIlroy over this - it makes even less sense to impose some sort of ban that would only damage the ‘product’ we keep hearing so much about.

PH: Even if he did ban him, and I’d actually quite like to see that, as imagine McIlroy then just playing on the DP World Tour and the Majors for a year, that’d be pretty epic if you ask me.

But modern sport is ruled by the athletes, player power is king and bigger players have more power – the PGA Tour needs McIlroy more than McIlroy needs the PGA Tour.

So to sum up, is it fair? No, not to the rest of the PGA Tour it’s not, but those players also know what McIlroy brings, and also know that’s the way of the world in modern sport.

Although Rory McIlroy seems certain to fall short of playing the minimum 15 tournaments on the PGA Tour this year he's never seemed worried.

Sir Nick Faldo ran into McIlroy at Royal Birkdale, where he was prepping for The Open instead of playing at the Travelers Championship - a theme for him this year as he looks set to fall short of playing the PGA Tour minimum.

But McIlroy has never seemed concerned. Could that be because he already knows that CEO Brian Rolapp and the PGA Tour won't take any significant action against him that could affect his status for 2027?

A report by Bob Harig would suggest that could be the case, as when he discussed the prospect of the PGA Tour bending the rules to keep McIlroy's status, Ponte Vedra got in touch.

In truth, McIlroy was never going to budge from his stance of playing exactly when and where he wanted, and the PGA Tour was never going to punish its biggest star.

According to Harig, though, we now know the reason McIlroy would escape punishment, as he says the PGA Tour contacted him to point out the following crucial rule in the player handbook.

“Notwithstanding the above, the Commissioner, upon application by a foreign member and for medical reasons or other extraordinary circumstances that the Commissioner, at his discretion, determines to be a valid reason for not playing in at least 15 PGA Tour cosponsored or approved tournaments, may reduce the 15-minimum (or 12-minimum as the case may be) tournament requirement.”

What that means is that if and when McIlroy falls short of playing the minimum 15 events this season, there's a rule in place to allow Rolapp and the PGA Tour to let him retain his playing rights for 2027.

Just what the "extraordinary circumstances" would be are unclear, and Golf Monthly has contacted the PGA Tour for comment.

McIlroy has had an injury this year that forced him out of the Arnold Palmer Invitational but he returned for The Players before resting between Sawgrass and the Masters.

He still had plenty of practice trips to Augusta National though and since then has chosen to skip PGA Tour events in favor of both moving back to a new house in the UK and preparing for Majors.

And McIlroy still has chances to make up his minimum 15, with the 3M Open, Rocket Classic and Wyndham Championship taking place after The Open and before the FedEx Cup Playoffs.

If he plays all three playoff events he'll get to 14 without taking in one of those previous, so it is within his power - but he is sticking to his guns of playing exactly when and where he wants.

"I've been doing this a long time, I've been on Tour longer - more than half of my life at this point," McIlroy has said about his schedule.

"So I'll pick and choose my spots like I have been doing sort of the last 18 months to two years."

So it seems certain he'll fall short, but also seems certain there'll be no serious punishment from the PGA Tour for it - after all, with all the changes coming Rolapp would not want to be involved in an altercation with his biggest attraction.

Especially a star attraction such as McIlroy, arguably the biggest in the game who seems determined to make his schedule how he wants it - which includes more global appearances.

The 37-year-old will play in Ireland, India and Australia this year along with the regular visits to Wentworth and Dubai - and has previously said around 18-20 events in a year is his target number.

What do you think? Should Rory McIlroy be punished if he doesn't play the minimum PGA Tour events or is he a special case? Let us know by joining the conversation below...

Rory McIlroy has been at Royal Birkdale for an early scouting trip ahead of The Open, and will continue his lighter playing schedule as he won't tee it up in tournamernt golf again until the Scottish Open.

McIlroy's gameplan for the year has been to play less but focus more on the Majors, regularly skipping PGA Tour tournaments to take scouting trips to Augusta, Aronimink and Shinnecock Hills.

And he's doing it again, as McIlroy is missing the final Signature Event of the year at the Travelers Championship and instead is having a look around Royal Birkdale - bumping into three-time Claret Jug winner Sir Nick Faldo while he was there.

McIlroy gave Faldo his Birkdale verdict and confirmed his pre-Open plans only include the Scottish Open - but could his schedule get him in hot water with the PGA Tour?

McIlroy obviously successfully defended his Masters title at Augusta National after taking almost a month off following The Players and making several day trips down Magnolia Lane.

He's played just once in between the Majors since then to focus on preparation, and finished T7 at the PGA Championship and T32 at the US Open despite being close to a challenge.

And he told Faldo that he decided to keep the same plan in place for the final Major, playing just the Scottish Open and playing some links golf ahead of The Open.

"I am going to play the Scottish Open so it will be nice to get a few reps in, get a card in my hand, do all that," McIlroy said on a video posted to Faldo's social media channels.

"It's good to get up here and play early. I've been trying to do that at every major championship, which is working out for me.

"Try to play a bit of links golf, get used to these conditions again."

McIlroy has recently moved back to the UK to a new home in Wentworth, so has been spending time settling in - and has obviously been playing golf in his new neighborhood judging by his SUnningdale polo short from the video.

The Scottish Open and Open Championship will take McIlroy to just 11 counting events towards the minimum of 15 the PGA Tour requires members to play in.

And McIlroy doesn't seem to be on track to make it to that number, as he's not set to play in the 3M Open, Rocket Classic or Wyndham Championship before the FedEx Cup Playoffs begin.

So even if he plays all three of those, he'll come up one event short on 14 - and he's not going to play in any of the Fall Series events that follow.

It remains to be seen how well that goes down at PGA Tour headquarters.

'One of the best' - Rory Mcilroy's Birkdale verdict

Back on Birkdale, McIlroy finished fourth behind Jordan Spieth at the Southport venue back in 2017, while his one Open victory came at nearby Royal Liverpool.

And he added to Faldo, who played his first Open Championship at Birkdale, that he thought it was one of the best courses on the Open rota.

"I've always thought Birkdale is one of the best on the Open rota, so excited to be back," said McIlroy.

"It's good. A little bit different from 2017, the last time we played an Open here. Some different green complexes, different holes.

"The fifth hole I just played is completely different. I like it. A good driveable par four. A bit of a penalty if you got for it and miss.

"I don't know if the water is quite in play on the right but a lot of big deep bunkers guarding the green."

Player behavior is a hot topic right now, with Joaquin Niemann the latest to suffer at the hands of the USGA code of conduct, but that's not a bad thing.

Brandel Chamblee has been discussing the way players act, in particular their foul language and propensity for throwing clubs in anger, and he thinks it's about time punishments were handed out.

With Niemann given a two-stroke penalty in the first round of this year's US Open, perhaps players will think twice before they lash out in frustration.

Chamblee reflected on the legendary players of many decades ago, insisting that the kind of behaviour we see today was simply not a thing in the past.

"I never saw Jack Nicklaus throw a club. Never heard him yell an F bomb. Never heard a profane word from him on the golf course," Chamblee told Golf Channel.

"Never saw Palmer do it. Never Tom Watson. Pick your player. Greg Norman, all the bad losses he had, he never threw a club, never swore. Say what you like about Phil Mickelson, but I’ve never seen him throw a club or drop an F bomb," he added.

Times have changed, though, and Chamblee seemed to suggest Tiger Woods may have been the catalyst for a new breed of golfer today.

Chamblee continued: "The same wasn’t true about Tiger Woods. One of the best players ever, we all love him, everybody got rich off him, but he was one of the most profane golfers to ever play the game.

"Nobody ever criticized him, he skated through… they did to some extent but it wasn’t prolific and he wasn’t held to account the way Wyndham Clark was last year when he broke that locker."

Highlighting the various players he has witnessed acting inappropriately, Chamblee added: "Everybody that’s playing now watched Tiger… and it rains F bombs on the PGA Tour.

"Clubs get thrown all the time. Tee markers get destroyed. Players have all the power in the world, nobody reigns them in. I always thought you would get fined for profanity on the PGA Tour, but I guess not. When you watch it’s F bomb after F bomb.

"Jon Rahm missed a putt and screamed the F word as loud as he could. I’m no prude, I’ve played golf, I understand how crazy it gets and I’ve done it, too, of course. But not if I was on TV. These guys are on video everywhere they go. They have a bigger burden than we had, but with that comes unimaginable wealth. It goes with the scrutiny."

The introduction of a new, sterner code of conduct in golf is applauded by Chamblee, who believes the game has changed for the better in the wake of some high-profile transgressions over the last year.

"Composure is a skill. And it’s lazy to throw clubs and drop F bombs when you know the world is watching. There are people watching with their kids," he said. "It’s great that the code of conduct has been passed and that it’s sending a message to the players."

"What Sergio Garcia did at Augusta National, it sent a message," Chamblee stated. "Everyone drew a line last year at the US Open, with Wyndham Clark, and Rory McIlroy tearing up a tee marker. These guys have run amok and it’s great that the code of conduct has been put in place."

Rory McIlroy is not so sure that all the upcoming PGA Tour changes will actually make it that much better - and fears some decent tournaments will become "a glorified Korn Ferry event" under the new two-tier system.

The Grand Slam winner believes LIV Golf "created this false economy" within the sport, with the PGA Tour forced to react by increasing prize money and creating Signature Events in order to keep its best players.

Now LIV Golf is searching for funding to continue, with any new iteration certain to have a big drop in prize money - but despite that the PGA Tour has seemingly no intention of dropping it's prize money structure.

So with LIV's big-money threat lessened and the atmosphere calmer, McIlroy can't help wondering if the old PGA Tour system wasn't actually so bad after all.

"LIV created this false economy where we had to up prize funds and had to cut fields and try to support the top players and all that stuff," said McIlroy at the US Open.

"Which I think needed to happen because that was the only way to retain talent at the time, but now that LIV looks like it's less of a threat, I think the old ways of the PGA Tour weren't actually that bad."

McIlroy is "not in those rooms" within the PGA Tour as decisions are being made about the future, in a big change to the height of the LIV Golf saga when Jay Monahan seemingly sent him out to be the organisation's big defender.

Now McIlroy is looking at it from slightly afar, and says he's starting to think the way the PGA Tour was setup before all the LIV Golf wars could have actually been the best.

"I play my schedule, and I'll continue to play my schedule, which is getting less and less as the years go on," he insisted.

"Yeah, it's funny. I think, as they've done all this work, you start to realize that the way the Tour was before LIV came along was actually pretty good. It was a pretty good structure, and everything sort of worked pretty well."

McIlroy warns of 'glorified Korn Ferry Tour' events

One of McIlroy's main concerns is with some current events on the PGA Tour seeing their status reduced under the new two-tier system set to be deployed by Brian Rolapp.

The six-time Major champion cites the recent RBC Canadian Open as a prime example, with his worry that such a historic national open, along with other similar events, could be diminished unless it receives a huge sponsorship boost.

"I guess like at an event - I guess, just recency, an event like last week, the Canadian Open, potentially going to one of these track twos," McIlroy added.

"Track two is a glorified Korn Ferry event. That's what track two is going to be. So I don't think the Canadian Open should be one of those.

"I just think there's going to be certain events that might lose their stature if a sponsor doesn't pony up $30 million. So that's the tough thing."

Rory McIlroy has urged the USGA to exercise caution in setting up Shinnecock Hills this week to avoid a repeat of the last two US Opens held at the venue.

Both in 2004 and 2018 the USGA opted to let the greens dry out and used some of the toughest pin placements, but with hot and windy weather it made some putting surfaces almost unplayable.

Players like Tiger Woods and Zach Johnson said the USGA had "lost the course" in both events, and McIlroy referenced those as he warned about taking a chance this time around.

McIlroy knows exactly how tough Shinnecock can play as he missed the cut here in 2018 thanks largely to shooting 80 in his opening round, and believes it's difficult enough without the USGA making it harder.

"We've seen what's happened here the last two US Opens. It doesn't need to get that fast to play incredibly difficult and challenging," McIlroy said at his Shinnecock Hills press conference.

"I'd say the greens yesterday probably averaged about 11.5. They certainly don't need to be any faster than that.

"I think with the wind they're expecting on Thursday, I'd say it seems they'd want to get the greens back to the 10s. 10.5, something like that, just because of how heavy the wind is gong to be, gusts of 35 to 40 miles an hour.

"There was only gusts of 25 to 30 yesterday, and balls wouldn't stand on the 11th green. That's where you just have to use a little bit of caution."

The sight of watering greens mid-round in 2004 sparked controversy, but the USGA has spoken about planned watering this time around as a precaution - especially during the first two days.

"When I first heard of it, my first reaction was, that's stupid, why are they doing that? Then once you actually listen and you've let them break it down to you, you're, like, yeah, that makes sense," said McIlroy of the watering.

"The members at Shinnecock will tell you they do that every single day. Every single day at this course the members play, they put water on the course at 2:00 pm.

"It's a unique golf course and it seems like it's just something they have to do. For me, it's more - my concern was you don't want to look as if you've lost the golf course and you're starting to put water on it, which I don't think what they're going to do.

"I think, especially with the heaviness of the wind on Thursday, it's probably prudent to do that. Friday doesn't look as windy, but I think just for, again, fairness and competitive integrity, they do it on Friday, too.

"Then I don't think - I think they've got enough bandwidth on the weekend that they probably don't need to do it, so I understand it."

Shinnecock 'lures you in' to making mistakes

McIlroy believes Shinnecock can be "the best Championship test in the country" if the setup is right, as the course "tests all aspects of the game".

"You need to have your wits about you on the greens, you need a lot of strategy, thoughtfulness," he added.

McIlroy made a scouting trip to Shinnecock Hills the same day as Scottie Scheffler a couple of weeks ago, where he was surprised by how generous the fairways are this year.

With the weather forecast this week though, he warned "they're going to play a lot narrower" with crosswinds and heavy gusts expected on Long Island.

The 2011 US Open was the first of McIlroy's six Major triumphs, but he missed four of the next seven cuts before eventually getting to grips with what it takes to win this tournament.

Patience the key for McIlroy victory

Six tops 10s in a row culminated with near misses in both 2023 and agonisingly in 2024 at Pinehurst, but McIlroy believes his patience and consistency can see him finally win it again - on a course where patience is very much the key word.

"This course it demands so much patience and it can really lure you into taking on things that you probably shouldn't," he added.

"They're big playing areas, big fairways, pretty big greens but, especially with the weather...if you can get your ball into the middle of the greens here and putt to the corners wherever the flags are going to ne, that's never going to be a bad strategy.

"The strategy that I've employed at the US Open over the past few years has been a lot like that, and that's served me well. It hasn't gotten me the trophy, but it's gotten me pretty close a few years.

"But I definitely feel like I've become a lot better of a US Open player by trying to really stay patient throughout the week and not taking on too much."

With the Grand Slam monkey off his back, and back-to-back Masters titles under his belt, McIlroy can afford to relax and be patient during what will be a tough week.

Whether the strategy that's brought him close to US Open glory can pay off this week at Shinnecock remains to be seen.

Whatever the new PGA Tour season of the future looks like, Rory McIlroy will continue to build his schedule to his own personal preferences - even if it makes it harder for him to win.

McIlroy admitted "I feel a bit like a part-timer" as he returned to action at The Memorial Tournament for the first time since the PGA Championship last month.

The Memorial is just McIlroy's eighth start of the year on the PGA Tour, as he makes his golf-life balance his priority - using his time after Aronimink to settle into a new house in London.

And McIlroy says that he will continue to "pick and choose" his schedule based on his own priorities regardless of how the new PGA Tour is shaped.

Brian Rolapp looks set to create a two-tiered PGA Tour of the future, with Track 1 events expanding in both the size of the field and in the number of tournaments from the current Signature Events.

McIlroy, though, feels he's earned the right to pick his own schedule, so won't be changing things around to play in more of these big events.

"I think with the Track 1 events expanded to 120 players, I mean, I think I would back myself to finish in that top 100 or whatever it is if I play a limited schedule," said McIlroy.

"I've been doing this a long time, I've been on Tour longer - more than half of my life at this point. So I'll pick and choose my spots like I have been doing sort of the last 18 months to two years."

And McIlroy will stick to his plan even if it means making it harder for him to win the FedEx Cup - as balancing his family life and outside interests is more important.

"Does it mean it makes it harder for myself to win the FedExCup or whatever the season-long title race is going to be called? Absolutely.

"But I'm okay with that because it brings balance to my life and let's me enjoy things outside of the game."

How many events does McIlroy want to play a year?

McIlroy says he enjoys the flexibility of being able to add tournament starts on the PGA Tour at late notice if he feels he needs them.

Unlike the majority of American players, McIlroy also has commitments in Europe and globally on the DP World Tour - including events in Australia, India and the Middle East.

All of which he'll juggle to bring him to his preferred number of around 20 events in a year.

"I like that we have the option of the flexibility on this Tour," added McIlroy. "We don't have to enter events until Friday at 5pm before.

"So in the middle of the week before if you feel like you want to get some competitive reps under your belt, you can enter. So it is nice to have the flexibility.

"I play from January through to December with some of the commitments I have over on the DP World Tour, so over the course of that 12-month period, I would like to get it to around - 18 to 20 events seems to be a nice number for me."

The top two players in the world have been on scouting trips to Shinnecock Hills with Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy giving their opinions on what it will take to win the US Open.

World No.1 Scheffler will head to Shinnecock Hills chasing history, as victory at the US Open will see him joing McIlroy to become the seventh man to win the career Grand Slam.

Back-to-back Masters champion McIlroy also played the US Open venue on the same day as Scheffler - on Monday - before heading to Muirfield Village for The Memorial Tournament.

And both men came away with the same impression - that Shinnecock Hills may have some generous fairways, but thanks to how tough the greens are, if you miss a fairway "you have no chance."

McIlroy warns about Shinnecock green speeds

McIlroy made several prep trips to Augusta National before winning his second Green Jacket in a row, and he's also been to Long Island to take a look at what test Shinnecock will provide.

"If it's set up the right way, I think it's one of the best championship tests in the country," was McIlroy's overall verdict. "I mean, it's an amazing golf course.

"The fairways are very generous. They're more generous than they were in 2018. But the first cut of rough is five inches long. So it's like the first cut is maybe three paces wide and then it gets into the fescue.

"So if you miss the fairway even by a yard... but you shouldn't. The fairways are very, very generous. So if you miss the fairway, I feel like you deserve a bad lie."

The USGA was accused of losing control of the course in both the 2004 and 2018 US Opens at Shinnecock with greens becoming unplayable - and McIlroy warned again about the putting surfaces not being allowed to get too quick.

"We played on Monday. The greens are rolling around 11, 11.2, something like that. And I really don't think they need to get much faster," said McIlroy.

"I think if they can keep them at that green speed, they can get them firm, and they can use the hole locations that they want to use without having some of the struggles that they have had the last couple of US Opens.

"So to me, it's all about them just maintaining the green speeds really where they are and not getting them too out of hand, and I think it will be a great week."

Scheffler - USGA can make scores as high as they want

Scheffler made his first trip to Shinnecock Hills and agreed with McIlroy's assessment of the wide fairways - and also that missing them would be fatal.

"That was my first time on property. It was kind of what I expected. I had heard some rumors about how difficult the greens were," said Scheffler.

"I was a little surprised at the width of the fairways, but the green complexes there are extremely difficult, and I think that's where the greatest challenge comes from.

"The rough, also, was a really good penalty, I think, for the width. Once you start missing fairways out there, you have no chance."

Scheffler says the USGA could use the difficulty of the greens to make the scores as high or low as it would want them.

"The fairways are generous enough to where it provides you some opportunity and that way it's just that the green complexes are extraordinarily difficult," he added.

"And so they can put the pins wherever they want and make the scores as high as they could possibly want them to be."

After an incredible third day at Aronimink, the 2026 PGA Championship is perfectly poised on Sunday, with dozens of golfers still in with a chance of winning the tournament.

One of those players within touching distance of the lead is Rory McIlroy. Despite scoring 74 on Thursday, McIlroy has gone three-under and four-under in the past two days and started Sunday three strokes back of leader Alex Smalley.

After his monumental win at Augusta last month, another Major victory here for McIlroy would naturally help to elevate him in the pantheon of the greatest golfers of all time.

Adding the Wanamaker Trophy to his collection for a second time would see McIlroy surpass Sir Nick Faldo with seven Major titles.

But, it would also put him on the list of golfers who have previously won the first two Majors of the year — a list which currently only features six players.

No one has ever won the first three Majors in a row during a season, but here are the legends to have won the first two.

Which Golfers Have Won The First Two Majors Of Any Year?

Craig Wood was the first man to go back-to-back in the Majors at the start of a golfing season. That was way back in 1941.

Incredibly, before that, Wood had a horrible record at the Majors, having lost playoffs in all four events. His luck changed, though, when he won The Masters by three strokes over Byron Nelson, and then went on to win the US Open by three over Denny Shute.

Eight years later, Sam Snead matched that feat. He won the 1949 Masters by three strokes, having clawed back a one-shot deficit heading into the final day.

Snead then won the PGA Championship, which used the match play format at the time. He almost got the hattrick, too, but a birdie chance turned into a par on the final hole at the US Open and the opportunity for a playoff evaded Snead. He would never go on to win the US Open throughout his career.

Ben Hogan is the standout name on this already impressive list — he's the only man to have won the first two Majors in two separate years, doing the Masters-US Open double in both 1951 and 1953.

What's even more impressive is that, in 1953, Hogan actually went on to lift the Claret Jug to claim a third consecutive Major win that year. However, the PGA Championship and The Open schedule overlapped that year, with the former finishing just as the latter was starting.

Essentially, Hogan had to choose one Major or the other, and he often skipped the PGA Championship at that time.

The legendary Arnold Palmer was the first man to truly chase down the single-season Grand Slam. After winning The Masters and the US Open in 1960, Palmer decided to play The Open and try to make it three in a row — he ultimately fell just short, coming second at St. Andrews — but it was at this point that he insisted the Grand Slam should comprise of the four events we consider today.

It should come as no surprise that Jack Nicklaus is on this list.

In what was arguably his greatest year of golf, 1972, Nicklaus claimed The Masters title by three strokes, and later won the US Open at Pebble Beach by the same margin.

A rollercoaster ride at The Open had Nicklaus looking down and out by day three, but a blistering final round of 66 saw him take the clubhouse lead. He was trumped by long-time rival Lee Trevino in the end, and denied the hattrick of Majors.

Another far from surprising member of this elite club is Tiger Woods. What is surprising, perhaps, is that he only managed to win the season's first two Majors on one occasion.

That was in 2002, when he defeated Retief Goosen in the Masters by three strokes, and bested Phil Mickelson in the US Open. He ended up being nowhere near the third Major, though, shooting a career-worst 81 on day three of The Open to well and truly throw away the single-season Grand Slam dream.

It was probably some semblance of a consolation that, prior to The Open, Woods was the holder of all four Majors at the same time.

The most recent man to win the first two Majors in a single season was Jordan Spieth. 2015 was an immense year for Spieth, who sealed the Masters-US Open double to really announce himself as one of the best in the sport.

He very nearly made it three Majors in the same year, too, finishing T4th at The Open but just one stroke away from being involved in a playoff with Zach Johnson, Louis Oosthuizen, and Marc Leishman.

Rory McIlroy is already one of just six golfers to have completed the career Grand Slam thanks to his triumph at Augusta last year. He's undoubtedly one of the best to ever play the sport, but joining this list by winning the PGA Championship would really cement him as a true legend.

In his first Major start since bagging back-to-back Masters titles, Rory McIlroy has suffered a disappointing first round at the PGA Championship.

Going into the event, McIlroy endured pain in his toe and had to cut his practice round short on Tuesday. Still, he stepped up on Thursday ready to make an impact at Aronimink, but things did not go to plan.

While the World No. 2 shot level-par on the back nine, it was his front nine that really let him down and left him frustrated at the end of day one.

McIlroy recorded a four-over score for the day after six bogeys and just two birdies in a very difficult round to start the PGA Championship.

The 37-year-old bogeyed the fourth hole, before bouncing back with a birdie on the fifth. However, he then recorded bogeys on holes six through 10 and saw himself tumble down the leaderboard.

As things stand, The Masters champion is T126th and sits seven shots off the lead going into the second day.

Clearly, McIlroy was not happy with his display, but, he was also unimpressed with patrons at Aronimink who were making noises while he was swinging on the edge of the green on the 13th.

After taking his shot, McIlroy turned to the crowd and said: "With your camera, just [do it] after we hit. Thank you."

Speaking to the media after concluding his round, McIlroy did not hold back when looking back on his performance, which he described as "s***".

Asked to elaborate, McIlroy added: "I started missing fairways. I missed the fairway right on four, the fairway right on six, the fairway right on seven, fairway right on nine. From there, it's hard.

"Then obviously you start missing it just off the edges of these greens, it gets tricky... I made that birdie on five to get back to even-par after the soft bogey on four, then I just got on that bogey train at the end."

McIlroy went on to highlight his driver as one of the big issues, stating: "I'm just not driving the ball well enough. It's been a problem all year for the most part... That's pretty frustrating, especially when I pride myself on driving the ball well.

"I honestly thought I'd figured it out. Coming in here, I hit it well on Sunday at Quail Hollow, and then hit it good at home on Monday... Just once I get under the gun, it just seems like it starts to go a little bit wayward on me."

Claiming the coveted PGA Championship title is one of the four steps any golfer needs to take if they want to become a Grand Slam winner.

The second Major of the golfing season is unique in that it's the only Major that only allows professionals to compete, giving it an extra air of prestige.

The event has been running since way back in 1916, when a match play format was used, before converting to strokeplay in 1958 and becoming the tournament we know and love today.

Of course, with great prestige comes great payouts, and the PGA Championship purse is naturally among the biggest in the golfing world.

Winning the Wanamaker Trophy is one thing, but landing a share of the huge purse is a very nice bonus indeed.

While Jack Nicklaus holds the records for the most wins at the PGA Championship (during the strokeplay era), he doesn't come close to featuring on the all-time list of top earners from the event.

Interestingly, when we look at the top 10 earners in PGA Championship history, there are two golfers who haven't actually won the tournament.

Justin Rose takes tenth place, with earnings of $3,540,011 across a whopping 23 events. The British star's best finish at the PGA Championship was a tie for third back in 2012, which earned him $384,500.

Bryson DeChambeau is also on the list in seventh with earnings of $4,636,217. He's racked up that impressive amount from just eight involvements in the PGA Championship, with back-to-back second place finishes in 2024 and 2025 earning him $2,837,332 alone.

It probably doesn't come as much of a surprise, at least when you really think about it, that Brooks Koepka is at the top of the PGA Championship money list. He's won the tournament more than anyone else in the past couple of decades with three triumphs coming in 2018, 2019, and 2023.

Koepka is clear out in front, too, with earnings of $9,456,726 from 13 events putting him well ahead of Tiger Woods, who comes in second place with winnings of $7,354,862 from 23 events.

Woods did win the tournament four times (in 1999, 2000, 2006, and 2007), but the money on offer back then is nothing compared to where the game of golf is now.

With 32 involvements, Phil Mickelson is the golfer in the top 10 who has featured in the PGA Championship the most, and his earnings of $6,510,066 put him third in the all-time list.

That's not much of a shock considering Lefty also made the cut in 27 out of those 32 events with two victories.

He's followed by another two-time winner, Rory McIlroy. His wins in 2012 and 2014 earned him a combined $3,245,000 towards his total of $6,349,228 over the years.

Rounding out the top five is 2025 PGA Championship winner Scottie Scheffler. That win secured Scheffler $3.42m last year, and he's already earned $6,152,768 from just six events.

The rest of the top 10 includes Justin Thomas ($5,672,581) thanks to his two victories at the PGA Championship in 2017 and 2022.

2015 champion Jason Day ($4,369,608) is in eighth place and Xander Schauffele, who won in 2024, comes in ninth with earnings of $4,363,822 across nine involvements in the PGA Championship.

Another triumph this year for McIlroy or Scheffler would send them to the top of the pile ahead of Koepka, but that man will be desperate to add a fourth title to his name and extend his lead at the top of the money list.

We’re well and truly into Major season with the PGA Championship coming hot on the heels of The Masters.

At this time of year, it’s not unusual to compare the four Majors in men’s golf, with one regular debate being which is the biggest and best of them all.

The answer is entirely subjective, with each having prestige and characteristics that appeal to some more than others.

While the PGA Championship has some elements that make it unique, such as the absence of amateurs and inclusion of PGA professionals, one criticism leveled at it in recent years is that it still lacks the clear identity of the other three.

Indeed, many fans struggle to define exactly what the PGA Championship represents, with some even finding it difficult to distinguish it from a regular PGA Tour event.

It’s not just golf fans either, with one player who believes the PGA Championship currently lacks a clear identity being two-time winner Rory McIlroy.

Before the 2026 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, the Northern Irishman even went as far as to say that a non-Major has a stronger identity than the PGA Championship.

When asked about whether it was time for The Players Championship to attain Major status, he responded: “I think The Players is one of the best golf tournaments in the world. I don't think anyone disputes that or argues that.

"I think from a player perspective it's amazing. I think from an on-site fan experience it's amazing. It's an amazing golf course, location, venue.

"But it's The Players. Like it doesn't need to be anything else. Like I would say it's got more of an identity than the PGA Championship does at the minute.”

One theory on what’s to blame for the PGA Championship’s apparent identity crisis is its shift in the schedule from August to May, which came in 2019.

That’s a school of thought McIlroy subscribes to. Asked what the identity of the tournament should be, he was adamant: “I think glory's last shot. I think it needs to go back to August.”

It’s not the first time McIlroy has suggested the PGA Championship should be moved forward three months.

Back in 2023, when the event was held at Oak Hill Country Club, he made a similar point, saying: “I always liked in August that this was glory's last shot and there was a real identity there.

“Not saying that it's lost any of that identity in terms of it's still a Major championship, but I feel like having it be the last Major of the year maybe just gave it a little bit of something that it doesn't quite have right now.”

Do you think McIlroy is correct? Or is there something else that could be done to give the PGA Championship a stronger identity? Let us know in the comments.

The day after cutting a PGA Championship practice round short because of a blister, Rory McIlroy has been spotted wearing a new pair of shoes during a practice round at Aronimink.

On Wednesday, the two-time PGA Champion wore a pair of custom-fitted Nike Victory Pro 4s, one of the best golf shoes of 2026. He also completed all nine holes of his practice round.

Skratch’s Riley Hamel wrote on X: “New shoes for Rory. Told Harry [caddie Diamond] on the range that the toe feels okay, but still hurts a bit walking. Said the new shoes are ‘softer.’"

That encouraging news was backed up by Today’s Golfer’s Ben Parsons.

He wrote on X: “Rory has just finished playing the back nine in a bigger, wider shoe. Told a few of us after he was pleasantly surprised how good his toe felt. Not causing pain on any of his shots and only discomfort is walking downhill. He’s good to go.”

The blister appeared on Friday at the Truist Championship, and it was still bothering him on Sunday.

Following his final round at Quail Hollow, McIlroy explained the issue, saying: “Yeah, I've got a blister on my pinky toe on my right foot. But it's underneath my nail. So I can't really get to it, so it's a little sore, but I'll be all right.”

Per the Irish Independent, on Monday evening, McIlroy took matters into his own hands, telling reporters the following day: “I ended up ripping the toenail off last night, just because it was bothering me so much. "

He added: “I just got in the bath and got the toenail to soften up and then burst the blister that was underneath. It feels better today.”

However, it was clearly still bothering him during his practice round later on Tuesday.

As first reported by ESPN’s Jeff Darlington on X, McIlroy was on the third fairway on Tuesday when he removed his shoe before finishing the hole.

He then took the shoe off again at the fourth tee before cutting the round short and heading back to the clubhouse on a cart, apparently to try some different shoes.

Darlington’s ESPN colleague Paolo Uggetti added: “On the 4th tee, he literally tried on another person’s shoe. Said he wasn’t bothered by it while just standing. He also seemed to indicate that another pair of shoes may be on their way…”

Underdog Golf also reported on X that, per the Golf Channel’s Kira K. Dixon, members of McIlroy’s team were seen walking into the clubhouse with boxes of shoes.

After McIlroy cut his practice round short on Tuesday, the Golf Channel's Todd Lewis confirmed he'd be using new shoes.

He said: "I did catch up with Rory after he walked off the golf course, and he said he’s probably going to have to have a separator moving forward between his pinky toe and the fourth toe, because they’re rubbing up against each other.

“He’s going to bandage it, put on a new pair of shoes that he’s been fitted for, and he said he should be comfortable, get a little more healing tonight. He is not worried about that pinky for the PGA Championship.”

Assuming McIlroy is fit to play, he will tee it up alongside Jon Rahm and Jordan Spieth in the first two rounds, beginning at 8.40am EDT on Thursday.

It's a big question ahead of every Major, so players and pundits alike have been discussing what will the winning score be at the PGA Championship?

Aronimink near Philadelphia will stage the second men's Major of the year and the first at the Donald Ross layout in 64 years.

Rory McIlroy and others have said that the course could be easily overpowered by the big hitters but the testing, sloping greens will be the big defense.

But how will that play out in terms of a winning score?

"The greens are the main focus this week, and I think getting yourself in the right sections of the greens, making sure you leave yourself below the hole for the most part. That's the key this week," said McIlroy.

Scottie Scheffler says there's a huge difference in a wet Aronimink and a dry and firm one - with the PGA Championship weather forecast suggesting it could be a bit damp to start with but dry out heading into the weekend.

The PGA of America do have a manner of control in terms of pin placements and whether they water the greens or not - but most believe the field will be good enough to post a relatively low score at the par-70 layout.

Keegan Bradley won on -20 at the 2018 BMW Championship held at Aronimink, but we're expecting conditions to be tougher this week.

Still, around the -16 mark has been touted by those on the ground in Pennsylvania as a possible winning score, while Ben Griffin predicted it will be tougher with -12 his pick.

Winning scores in recent years have fluctuated, with Keegan Bradley pointing out that the PGA of America has no agenda in terms of what score it wants to win the Wanamaker Trophy.

Weather can play a part given the new date in May for the PGA Championship - with Xander Schauffele winning a birdiefest at a soggy Valhalla a couple of years ago.

Southern Hills in 2022 was the toughest of the last decade in relation to par as Justin Thomas won a play-off after finishing on five under, while Phil Mickelson took the most strokes to win of the last 10 champions with 282 needed to win at Kiawah Island on six under.

Five of the last 10 have been single figures under par - and while Scheffler was -11 last year he was five shots clear of the field.

And while around that 10 under mark may be the aim, the PGA of America is seemingly more bothered about making the event a spectacle rather than worrying about the winning score.

What do you think the winning score will be in the 2026 PGA Championship? Have you say by joining the conversation below...

PGA Championship winning scores

When Rory McIlroy completed back-to-back titles at The Masters, it ensured that, whatever else happens, 2026 will go down as a memorable year for the Northern Irishman.

There have been fine performances elsewhere, too, including T3 at the Dubai Invitational and T2 at the Genesis Invitational.

It hasn’t all been plain sailing for him, though. For example, he withdrew before the third round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational with a back problem - an issue he was still wary of during the following week’s Players Championship.

Now, ahead of the PGA Championship, he is dealing with another painful issue, although he indicated at the Truist Championship on Sunday that it was not serious enough to put his participation at Aronimink Golf Club in doubt.

Following his final round at Quail Hollow, McIlroy said of the problem, which flared up on Friday: “Yeah, I've got a blister on my pinky toe on my right foot. But it's underneath my nail. So I can't really get to it or so it's a little sore, but I'll be all right.”

Asked further on if he had any concerns about the blister he said: “No, it's fine. I'll be okay.”

However, two days later, the blister was proving troublesome enough to force him to cut a practice round short.

As first reported by ESPN’s Jeff Darlington on X, McIlroy was on the third fairway on Tuesday when he removed his shoe before finishing the hole.

He then took the shoe off again at the fourth tee before cutting the round short, apparently to try some different shoes in the clubhouse.

Darlington’s ESPN colleague Paolo Uggetti added: “On the 4th tee, he literally tried on another person’s shoe. Said he wasn’t bothered by it while just standing. He also seemed to indicate that another pair of shoes may be on their way…”

Underdog Golf also reported that, per the Golf Channel’s Kira K. Dixon, members of McIlroy’s team were seen walking into the clubhouse with boxes of shoes.

During McIlroy’s press conference earlier in the day on Tuesday, there was no mention of the blister, suggesting that it was still not causing him undue concern.

However, even if that is still the case, two days before beginning his attempt to win the Major for the third time, it is hardly the ideal preparation for the star.

Assuming McIlroy is fit to play, he will tee it up alongside Jon Rahm and Jordan Spieth in the first two rounds, beginning at 8.40am EDT on Thursday.

Rory McIlroy has admitted he was wrong to hope the PGA Tour and Saudi PIF would eventually work out a concrete deal to reunite the top level of men's professional golf.

A framework agreement between the three main men's golf tours - which includes the DP World Tour - was signed in June 2023 and McIlroy was among those who publicly supported a future where the trio could potentially co-exist.

The six-time Major winner said at the time he felt the shock deal was "good for golf" and was confident something more permanent would be worked out in the end.

However, as time wore on and the PGA Tour announced a multi-billion dollar investment deal with the Strategic Sports Group (SSG), it became increasingly likely the sport would remain fractured on the men's side.

With the PIF now not only walking away from any kind of merger - but also from the LIV Golf League as a financial backer - and the PGA Tour seemingly making strides to improve with its new private equity partners, McIlroy admitted he should not have doubted the legacy circuit's ability to weather the storm.

Asked ahead of the PGA Championship how he felt about historically making calls for a merger before the PIF chose to walk away from golf, McIlroy said: "I'm glad I was wrong. I can admit when I'm wrong, and that was one that I did get wrong.

"I think it was always a possibility to happen. Look, I think everyone knows like with everything that's happening in the Middle East, that had a lot to do [with it]; but whenever you have funding tied so much to the geopolitical landscape in the world, that's a tricky road to navigate.

"Yeah, their priorities shifted, and that leaves LIV in a pretty precarious spot, but again... it was always a possibility."

McIlroy has certainly softened his stance over the team-based league since its inception but he remains very much a PGA Tour loyalist.

Nevertheless, the Northern Irishman shared he has a degree of sympathy for LIV golfers given McIlroy stated a healthy number of external parties knew of the PIF's intentions before plenty involved with LIV did.

McIlroy continued: "I feel like a lot of us in this room, including me, we almost knew before the players did that this was going to happen. Like I was hearing about this back in March, April time.

"Look, I have friends over there. One of my best friends, Ricky, caddies for Tom McKibbin, who's over there, and I would talk to him all the time about what was going on. I was saying to Ricky, even before Mexico, 'Have you guys heard any of this stuff?' He was like, 'No, everything seems okay over here.'

"It just feels like the rug was pulled from under their feet and everyone was sort of blind sided by it. But again, that's the risk that those guys chose to take. As I said, it leaves... there's a lot of uncertainty in the air right now."

Since the Saudi PIF confirmed its exit at the end of the season, LIV has set about trying to find other sources of funding.

But McIlroy suggested no matter who comes in from 2027 - if anyone at all does - the league will be forced into some potentially significant changes.

McIlroy said: "I'm not privy to the deals they have. I guess from what I read they've got some sponsorship revenue for... I don't know how long that those commitments are.

"Look, if they do somehow get a schedule together for next year, it seems like it's going to look drastically different to what it's looked like over the last four years."

Rory McIlroy enters the 2026 PGA Championship expected to contend for yet another Major title, with the now six-time Major champion high in confidence after winning The Masters.

McIlroy has had great success in the PGA Championship, finishing T3rd in his 2010 debut at Whistling Straits and then again at Atlanta Athletic Club in 2011.

He won his second Major title at the 2012 PGA, storming to an eight-stroke victory, before beating the likes of Phil Mickelson and Rickie Fowler at Valhalla in 2014 for his second Wanamaker Trophy.

Since then, his record in the championship has been good - but it trails his form in the other three Majors.

Rory McIlroy's PGA Championship record vs the other majors

Since 2015, McIlroy has managed three top-10s in his 11 PGA Championship appearances compared to eight in The Masters (from 12 starts, including two wins and a runner-up), seven in the US Open (including two runner-ups) and six in The Open from just nine tournaments, having missed 2015 with injury and the 2020 edition being cancelled.

His best finish in the event since winning is T7th, in 2023, a result he has bettered 12 times in the other three Majors.

The closest he has got to winning a third Wanamaker came in 2022, when he ended the week three strokes back of the playoff between Justin Thomas and Will Zalatoris.

Seven players beat his two-under-par total at Southern Hills, where Thomas won his second PGA Championship.

He has only missed one cut in the PGA since winning in 2015, though, which is actually better than the other three.

Since 2015, he has missed the cut at The Masters twice, three times at the US Open and twice at The Open.

So the PGA Championship has been more of an event when he has a 'run of the mill' week to finish comfortably inside the cut line but short of contention.

Why has Rory McIlroy 'struggled' in the PGA recently?

There could be a few reasons for his somewhat lack of success in recent years.

One of those could be down to the course setup, with the PGA Championship venues resembling more of a standard PGA Tour setup compared to the other Majors, which are usually more exacting tests and allow the best players to rise to the top easier.

Another could be down to the fabled Green Jacket.

Since 2019, the PGA Championship has taken place just five weeks after The Masters - which was the only thing McIlroy truly desired since winning the third leg of the slam in 2014 at Royal Liverpool.

He may have arrived at PGA Championships slightly fatigued and on a comedown from another pressure-filled attempt at Augusta, but that is over now.

We can scrub last year's T47 at Quail Hollow as he clearly was struggling with the case of 'what next' after finally getting his shoulders into the Green Jacket, but his second Masters triumph has him in a fantastic head space right now.

"It feels a lot different," he said of winning at Augusta for the second time.

"Even winning felt different. I guess, you know, and I've spoke about this a lot, I felt like winning the Grand Slam was like this, was going to be this life-changing thing and in some ways it was, but in other ways I had to remember like, no, I still have a lot of my career left and I want to keep playing and keep competing.

"So this year was I think winning was validation for all the work that I've put in over the last few years to get myself back to this place where I'm winning majors.

"I'm excited for the road ahead. I'm excited for this week, I'm excited for Aronimink next week, Shinnecock, Birkdale, you know, like I feel like if anything I'm more motivated after what happened at Augusta this year than I've ever been."

Another reason may be because he had already won the PGA twice so he perhaps wasn't as motivated to win it again versus the other Majors.

He missed three consecutive US Open cuts from 2016-2018 and that kick-started something in him to become a better, more resilient US Open competitor on the USGA's brutally difficult setups.

He has publicly said a big goal of his is to win a US Open on one of the tough setups like Oakmont and Shinnecock Hills after dominating the 2011 US Open at a soft Congressional.

Whatever he has done, it has worked. He followed those MCs with six straight top-10s, including back-to-back runner-up finishes in 2023 and 2024, with a T19 last year at Oakmont amid his post-Masters blues.

He also has a fantastic Open Championship record, with six top-10s in his last nine starts. The Northern Irishman grew up playing links golf and is always buoyed by the home support in the the UK.

So while his PGA Championship record falls short of his performances in the other Majors since 2015, it does feel like this new Rory McIlroy 2.0 is set on nothing but more Major titles.

He is not in a post-Masters funk, is competitively sharp after dusting off the rust at Quail Hollow last week and is well overdue another challenge for the Wanamaker Trophy. It could well be this week in Pennsylvania.

They may not have seen eye-to-eye on the topic, but Rory McIlroy is glad Jon Rahm finally got his deal sorted with the DP World Tour.

McIlroy is especially happy Rahm has secured his Ryder Cup eligibility for next year, to ensure he'll be available for Luke Donald's European side at Adare Manor.

Europe's two Ryder Cup big guns had opposing views on the DP World Tour deal Rahm refused to accept while eight LIV players, including Tyrrell Hatton, signed up.

McIlroy thought it was a "pretty generous" deal though and warned Europe could win the Ryder Cup without the Spaniard.

The news of LIV Golf's impending loss of Saudi PIF funding led to Rahm and the DP World Tour striking a deal.

And that's a relief for McIlroy who hopes they can now put the matter to bed.

“I think it's good that we have it all behind us,” McIlroy said on Golf Channel ahead of the Truist Championship.

“I think as a European Ryder Cup player, we all know that having Jon on the team is better than not having him on the team.

“So look, I'm glad that they came to an agreement. It took him a little longer to get there than some of the other guys, but he got there in the end, thankfully.

“It's good that we can put that behind us and move forward.”

Although the two had kept things pretty cordial, the disagreement could have led to some awkwardness if the matter dragged on any longer.

Having Rahm back in the fold well over a year before the Ryder Cup heads to Ireland will also be a relief for captain Donald.

Europe's success has always been built on the bond between the players, and as Donald bids for a historic hat-trick of wins he will need his big dogs to be on the same page.

Rory McIlroy makes his first start since winning The Masters last month at a very familiar venue, and he'll be doing so with some fresh sticks in the bag.

The six-time Major champion is the tournament favorite this week at Quail Hollow, coined 'Rory McIlroy Country Club', having won four times around the Charlotte, North Carolina course in 2010, 2015, 2021 and 2024.

McIlroy regularly makes equipment changes, including at Augusta where he went back to a TaylorMade Qi10 3 wood, and he has made another tweak to his set-up following The Masters.

The Northern Irishman has taken the Qi10 out this week for the Truist Championship and has gone back to the 2026 Qi4D fairway wood model, although it is a different head to the previous 4D he had in the bag to start the year.

The original Qi4D was benched due to a slight left bias, McIlroy revealed, while he says the Qi10 it was replaced with did not spin enough.

Speaking to media ahead on Wednesday, he revealed he also had a new set of Rors Proto irons and explained his 3-wood changes this year.

"Yeah, so I had been using the [Qi]4D 3-wood at the start of the season. I noticed that it just had a little bit of a left bias in it," he said.

"So I went back to an old Qi10 for a while. But it really wasn't spinning enough. It's more like a mini driver than a 3-wood. It sort of spins like 2,700, it's pretty fast. It could be a good club for like Memorial, for example.

"But I felt like I needed a 3-wood that just spun a little bit more. So the TaylorMade guys were down working with me last week because I needed to get into a new set of irons too. So I got a fresh set of irons.

"So they brought a couple of 3-wood options along and I landed on this one. It doesn't have that left bias I was seeing with the old 4D 3-wood.

"And it's got a nice consistent spin rate sort of like 3,200, which is what I like to see."

He has had three weeks off since winning for the second time at Augusta, where he became the fourth back-to-back winner alongside Jack Nicklaus, Sir Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods.

As well as testing equipment at home in Florida, he also took a trip to New York and was spotted at the White House, where President Trump publicly congratulated him on his Masters victory.

"It's been amazing," McIlroy said of his sixth Major victory.

"Maybe not quite as hectic as last year. I think this win felt a little bit different than the first win at Augusta.

"It's been really nice to spend time at home. I've done a couple of things, but I certainly haven't, you know, I didn't do the media trip up to New York.

"It was nice, my parents were in the States, so I didn't have to fly home and see them. It was nice to just get a little bit of down time and chill.

"Did some fun stuff. Erica and I took a trip to New York, which was nice. Then did the State Dinner at the Whitehouse last Tuesday night, which was an amazing evening.

"So fit in some fun stuff. But I gave myself a good 10 days to enjoy myself and then thought it was, you know, I needed to get back on the range and start to practice and get ready for this stretch coming up."

McIlroy plays alongside Matt Fitzpatrick for the opening two rounds at Quail Hollow.

The PGA Tour’s one trip north of the US border in 2026 comes with the RBC Canadian Open, which takes place between June 11th and 14th.

However, one player who appears set to skip this year’s edition, which will be held at TPC Toronto, is two-time winner Rory McIlroy.

A media day for the tournament was held by officials on Monday, where big names to appear were confirmed, including Matt Fitzpatrick, Brooks Koepka and Collin Morikawa, but McIlroy wasn’t among them.

Players have until Friday June 5th to enter, so there’s still a chance McIlroy will commit, although tournament director Ryan Paul revealed he is satisfied with the quality of the field, regardless of what McIlroy chooses to do.

He said: “We’d obviously love to have him and if he commits, that would be phenomenal, but right now we are beyond pleased with the quality of names that are highlighting our crop of players this year.”

Nevertheless, it seems likely McIlroy will opt against appearing at the event, despite playing in the previous five editions.

McIlroy won the RBC Canadian Open in his maiden appearance in 2019, when he cruised to victory by seven over Shane Lowry and Webb Simpson.

The tournament was cancelled in 2020 and 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but he returned in 2022 to defend his title and beat Tony Finau by two.

McIlroy performed well in his next two appearances as well, placing T9 in 2023 and T4 in 2024. However, in 2025, he endured a torrid eight-over par 78 in the second round on the way to missing the cut at the same venue as this year's edition.

If McIlroy does skip the event, which comes one week before the US Open, it would be in keeping with his preparations for April’s Masters, where he didn’t play in the weeks leading up to the Major.

McIlroy stepped away for almost a month after appearing at The Players Championship, instead using the time to visit Augusta National as part of his preparations. The tactic clearly worked, as McIlroy secured back-to-back titles at the event.

It’s been a similar story for McIlroy since that achievement, where he will only return to competitive action one week before the PGA Championship when he plays in the Truist Championship at Quail Hollow, where he has won four times.

While McIlroy seems unlikely to appear at the RBC Canadian Open, plenty of other big names will be joining Fitzpatrick, Koepka and Morikawa at the event.

They include Tommy Fleetwood, Sam Burns, Jacob Bridgeman and Lowry as well as Canadians Corey Conners, Mackenzie Hughes, Taylor Pendrith and Nick Taylor.

The Truist Championship is the sixth of the PGA Tour’s Signature Events.

As a result, a world-class field will be in attendance, including Cadillac Championship winner Cameron Young and Matt Fitzpatrick, who has three PGA Tour victories this season.

However, most of the attention will surely be on Rory McIlroy, and not just because the event will be his first appearance since he claimed back-to-back Masters titles.

The tournament, which was named the Wells Fargo Championship until the 2025 edition, returns to its home of Quail Hollow in 2026 following a one-year excursion to Philadelphia Cricket Club.

That is sure to have whetted the appetite of McIlroy, because his record at the North Carolina venue is second to none.

McIlroy’s first competitive appearance at Quail Hollow came in 2010.

It is surely an occasion he still looks back on with fond memories, as that year’s Quail Hollow Championship gave him his maiden PGA Tour win, when he beat Phil Mickelson by four. McIlroy's performance included a course record 62 in the final round.

While that would be far from the only time he would triumph at the venue, there was a rare misstep from McIlroy at Quail Hollow in the defence of his title a year later, when he missed the cut before Lucas Glover beat Jonathan Byrd in a playoff.

McIlroy almost bounced back in the best possible way at the 2012 tournament, which had by then become the Wells Fargo Championship.

However, in a playoff with Rickie Fowler and DA Points, it was Fowler who emerged with the win.

Another solid performance in 2013 saw McIlroy place T10 as Derek Ernst took the honors, before he finished T8 in 2014 as JB Holmes beat Jim Furyk by one.

That run suggested more wins were to come for McIlroy at the layout, and in 2015, he proved it in style.

That year, he beat his own course record with a 61 in the third round as he got the better of Patrick Rodgers and Webb Simpson by a tournament-record seven shots to finish on 21-under.

McIlroy wasn’t able to successfully defend his title in 2016, but he came close, finishing T4 as James Hahn claimed victory.

A year later, the Wells Fargo Championship came from Eagle Point Golf Club in Wilmington because Quail Hollow hosted the PGA Championship.

Given his record, McIlroy must have been confident of his third title at the Major, but instead, he placed T22 as Justin Thomas won.

The Wells Fargo Championship returned to Quail Hollow in 2018, where McIlroy finished T16 as Jason Day won the title.

A year later, McIlroy was back in the top 10 with a T8 as he finished eight back of winner Max Homa.

The tournament was cancelled in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but when it returned in 2021, McIlroy claimed his third win at the event, and Quail Hollow, beating Abraham Ancer by one.

In 2022, the Wells Fargo Championship was held at TPC Potomac as Quail Hollow was prepared for the Presidents Cup, and when it returned in 2023, McIlroy had his worst week at the venue since missing the cut 12 years earlier, placing T47.

The following year, he put that disappointment behind him with a final round of 65 to beat Xander Schauffele by five for his fourth victory at the venue.

Quail Hollow hosted the PGA Championship for the second time in eight years in 2025, and hopes were high that McIlroy would lift the Wanamaker Trophy, particularly as the event came just a month after his first Major title for over a decade at The Masters.

In the end, it wasn’t the happiest week for McIlroy as, not only did he finish T47, but he was also the subject of controversy when news was leaked during the tournament that his driver failed a test, forcing him to make a change.

Of course, nothing is certain as McIlroy prepares for his latest appearance at Quail Hollow, but with four wins and five other top-10 finishes in his previous 14 starts at the layout, it wouldn’t be at all surprising if he achieves even more success there at the 2026 Truist Championship.

Rory McIlroy’s Record At Quail Hollow

Following an appearance in the long-awaited Happy Gilmore 2 last year, Rory McIlroy has made his latest acting cameo - this time in The Devil Wears Prada 2.

The Northern Irishman was among a series of world-famous special guests who dropped into the hotly anticipated Hollywood blockbuster, including NBA star Karl-Anthony Towns, music icon Lady Gaga and fashion powerhouse Anna Wintour.

Popular actress Sydney Sweeney saw her three-minute scene cut from the final edit, however, proving McIlroy and his wife Erica's inclusion was no small feat.

In the film, the McIlroys appear at a Met Gala-style party, with roughly 10-15 seconds of airtime alongside other dressed-up guests who are waiting for central characters Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway and Emily Blunt.

The fact the World No.2 was included in the film alongside his wife came as a surprise, with no forewarning from McIlroy, his representatives or the franchise's PR team.

It was only during The Devil Wears Prada 2's European premiere in London at the weekend that director David Frankel was able to explain how the idea to include McIlroy arrived.

Discussing the number of impressive cameos in the movie, Frankel said: “Well, the one I was most excited for will surprise isn’t even in the world of fashion. I mean I loved having Rory McIlroy. He was a great sport. A very good actor."

So how did McIlroy land the role? Why was he even considered? Apparently, an interview at TPC Sawgrass in March 2025 contains the answer.

After defeating JJ Spaun in a playoff to win The Players Championship last year, McIlroy shared how he responded to the initial disappointment of failing to win it outright after 72 holes.

He said at the time: “Yeah, I would say I was a little disappointed last night, but I also was mindful that I couldn't feel that way, that I needed to reset.

"Once I got back to the hotel, I just tried to sort of forget about it and had some room service, watched a little bit of Devil Wears Prada and went to bed. That was basically it."

Frankel revealed he had seen this interview and consequently wanted to bring the golfing superstar on board.

He continued: “You know, it was triggered because last year, right before he won the Players Championship, the press asked him what he did to relax the night before he won the tournament, and he said he watched “The Devil Wears Prada. I knew we had a fan.”

McIlroy's next appearance on stage will arrive at next week's Truist Championship, and all the action will be live and unedited - probably how the five-time Major winner prefers it.

It's safe to say that Quail Hollow has been a happy hunting ground for Rory McIlroy in the past, earning four victories at the course throughout his career.

For 2026, the Truist Championship returns to the lay-out after a brief stint at Philadelphia Cricket Club, and McIlroy is to make his competitive return to action after taking a break following his Masters win in April.

Having not featured at either the RBC Heritage or Cadillac Championship Signature Events, or indeed the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, McIlroy will be the star name in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Taking place a mere few hours away from Augusta National, it'll be the first tournament the 36-year-old has played since he became the fourth player in history to defend The Masters.

Earning a one shot win to secure his sixth Major, McIlroy's nearest challenger that week, Scottie Scheffler, won't be present, as the World No.1 takes a week off following three events in four weeks.

Last year, Quail Hollow staged the PGA Championship instead of the Truist Championship, and, at that Major, Scheffler dominated proceedings, forging out a five shot win over Harris English, Bryson DeChambeau and Davis Riley.

This year, Quail Hollow returns in a Signature Event role, and will play as the starter for the main course of the PGA Championship, which takes place the week after at Aronimink Golf Club.

Much has been made of the 2026 PGA Tour schedule and, since The Masters, three Signature Events are taking place in a four week stretch, with notable names prioritizing their scheduled starts.

The PGA Tour returned to Trump National Doral for the first time in a decade but, despite this, notable names, including McIlroy, opted to skip the $20 million Cadillac Championship.

Major season is upon us and, consequently, with such a tight schedule, some will want to play the week before a Major, while some won't.

Scheffler falls into the won't camp, as he skips the Truist Championship. For the majority, though, they will be present in Charlotte, where a 72-man field will get some competitive reps in at the no-cut event.

Truist Championship Full Field

• Ludvig Aberg
• Harris English
• Nicolai Hojgaard
• Rory McIlroy
• Jordan Spieth
• Daniel Berger
• Tony Finau
• Max Homa
• Maverick McNealy
• Sam Stevens
• Akshay Bhatia
• Alex Fitzpatrick
• Viktor Hovland
• Collin Morikawa
• Sepp Straka
• Chandler Blanchet
• Matt Fitzpatrick
• Mackenzie Hughes
• Alex Noren
• Nick Taylor
• Keegan Bradley
• Tommy Fleetwood
• Sungjae Im
• Andrew Novak
• Sahith Theegala
• Jacob Bridgeman
• Rickie Fowler
• Michael Kim
• Taylor Pendrith
• Justin Thomas
• Sam Burns
• Ryan Fox
• Si Woo Kim
• JT Poston
• Jhonattan Vegas
• Brian Campbell
• Ryan Gerard
• Kurt Kitayama
• Aldrich Potgieter
• Matt Wallace
• Patrick Cantlay
• Lucas Glover
• Jake Knapp
• Patrick Rodgers
• Gary Woodland
• Ricky Castillo
• Chris Gotterup
• Min Woo Lee
• Justin Rose
• Sudarshan Yellamaraju
• Bud Cauley
• Ben Griffin
• David Lipsky
• Xander Schauffele
• Cameron Young
• Corey Conners
• Harry Hall
• Robert MacIntyre
• Adam Scott
• Pierceson Coody
• Brian Harman
• Hideki Matsuyama
• Alex Smalley
• Jason Day
• Ryo Hisatsune
• Denny McCarthy
• Austin Smotherman
• Nico Echavarria
• Tom Hoge
• Matt McCarty
• JJ Spaun

US President Donald Trump broke off from a hugely important White House state dinner speech to sing the praises of Rory McIlroy.

The President is hosting King Charles III and Queen Camilla in a state visit to the United States, but couldn't help but turn to golf talk during a grand banquet speech.

It what is a monumental visit by the King and Queen to try and keep the special relationship between the UK and the USA alive, every word of every speech from both parties is important.

But as President Trump so often does, he took a turn away from his carefully scripted words to freestyle about McIlroy's Masters victory - with the Northern Irishman himself in attendance.

As Trump went about his grand speech, he said: “The entire world has been uplifted by this distinct and special character we share. This unstoppable daring, this unconquerable courage. It really is, it’s unconquerable..."

But then the image of McIlroy winning back-to-back Green Jackets at Augusta National must have popped into Trump's mind.

“Speaking of that, where’s Rory McIlroy? Can you stand up Rory, will you, please?

“That was unconquerable courage. That was very good Rory. I don’t know if that helps him talking about how wonderful the speech… but I had to interrupt my speech because I watched that man win a tournament that was a tough one.

“Congratulations, very proud of you.”

McIlroy did indeed stand up in front of a room full of dignitaries to take a the acclaim for his efforts.

The praise for McIlroy comes even though the Grand Slam winner is skipping the upcoming Cadillac Championship at Trump-owned Doral.

Trump National Doral hosts the latest Signature Event this week in the course's first PGA Tour event in a decade.

But perhaps due to schedulling issues, a host of big names are missing the Cadillac Championship in Miami.

McIlroy, who also missed the RBC Heritage and hasn't played since his victory at Augusta, is joined by the likes of Matt Fitzpatrick, Xander Schauffele, Robert MacIntyre ​and Ludvig Aberg all missing the $20m Signature Event.

But Trump didn't sound too upset by it judging by his words of praise, with him well known for being a big fan of McIlroy.

We'll have to wait at least another week until we see Rory McIlroy back on the golf course after the Masters champion opted to skip the upcoming Cadillac Championship.

It was not at all surprising that McIlroy missed the RBC Heritage earlier this month. It's an event the Northern Irishman has never been keen on and is not necessarily one he has to play.

However, another Signature Event has now failed to make his calendar for the year, which is far more of a surprise.

Next week, the inaugural Cadillac Championship will take place at Donald Trump's renowned golf course, The Blue Monster in Miami.

McIlroy's name is not on the list of players involved, though. Given the tournament comes with a $20m prize purse, that decision has raised some eyebrows.

The Blue Monster at Trump National Doral has not been used on the PGA Tour in 10 years, and McIlroy's absence will be felt.

Funnily enough, in 2015, McIlroy served up a memorable moment at Doral when he launched his 3-iron into the lake during the second round. He also finished T3rd there in 2016, so it's a course with a mixed history for the 36-year-old.

The fact this is the second Signature Event he's skipped in a row also gives us a good insight into McIlroy's motivations from here on out, with Major glory surely now his main focus.

What's more, the PGA Tour calendar is stacked with prestigious events in the coming weeks, and we'll likely see McIlroy teeing up at Quail Hollow for the Truist Championship on May 7.

That Signature Event will be ideal preparation for the PGA Championship the following week, as McIlroy goes on the hunt for another Major title.

Signature Events are designed to attract the best golfers in the world, but McIlroy is not the only top player choosing to give this one a miss.

The likes of Xander Schauffele, Matt Fitzpatrick, Ludvig Aberg, and Robert MacIntyre won't be there for the event, either.

Fitzpatrick will have played ten events this year after completing the Zurich Classic this weekend, so it figures that he's taking a break.

This is also a scheduled break for Aberg, while MacIntyre told the press at a Scottish Open media day that plans to stay in Oban and see his family.

We won't get to see Rory McIlroy do a victory lap at Harbour Town this weekend in the wake of his Masters victory.

The Northern Irishman is one of many big names who won't be playing the RBC Heritage, but his attendance at the event was never to be expected anyway.

McIlroy's decision to skip the Signature Event was confirmed last week prior to his win at Augusta National.

Some may think that McIlroy opts out of the tournament due to its proximity to The Masters as he seeks time off to celebrate and unwind, but it doesn't really have anything to do with scheduling.

In fact, the RBC Heritage is just an event that McIlroy does not enjoy and does not feel suits his game at all.

Back in 2020, after finishing T41 at Harbour Town, McIlroy all but confirmed the RBC Heritage would never be a regular part of his annual schedule.

He said: "Once I got here and I played the golf course, I sort of remembered why I haven't been here for a while. It's tough.

"It's a lovely place. There's other courses on Tour that probably fit my game a little bit better and obviously the week after the Masters is always a tough one.

"Guys like to come here and decompress, but my idea of decompression is not seeing golf clubs for a week."

On that poor showing in 2020, he added: "I got off to a decent start and then the ball in the water on four just stopped any momentum. I played okay after that, I guess. I birdied nine and then birdied a couple coming in on the homestretch.

"It's fine. It's one of those weeks where, obviously, low scores, very bunched. You had to hole a lot of putts and I didn't over the week. But I'm still pretty happy with how I played."

Interestingly, McIlroy was even fined $3m for bowing out of the event in 2023. At the time, the PGA Tour insisted players only miss one Signature Event per season, and that was McIlroy's second of the year (he also skipped the Sentry Tournament of Champions).

That $3m came out of his end-of-season Player Impact Program bonus money.

While we won't see McIlroy at Harbour Town, and Justin Rose has withdrawn from the RBC Heritage, too, there are still some big names in what is a stacked field this weekend.

A total of 17 of the world's top 20 will be present, including defending champion Justin Thomas and world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler.

In total, 10 extra players have been added to the RBC Heritage line-up after the PGA Tour announced winners of events in 2025 (who were outside the top 50 in the FedExCup standings) would be invited to Harbour Town in lieu of playing at The Sentry, which was canceled this year.

Other notable players taking part include Ludvig Aberg, Tommy Fleetwood, Viktor Hovland, Collin Morikawa, and the in-form Cameron Young.

In early 2025, Rory McIlroy outlined his three remaining career goals, telling BBC Sport: “Winning The Masters, winning an Olympic medal and another away Ryder Cup, they are my three goals for the rest of my career.”

Within months, he had achieved the first of those with The Masters title to complete his career Grand Slam. Less than six months later, the second was chalked off when he was an integral part of the European team that beat the US at the Bethpage Black Ryder Cup.

That left an Olympic medal, with McIlroy’s next opportunity to secure it coming around in 2028 at Riviera Country Club.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, he was asked for an update a year later in his press conference for the Dubai Desert Classic.

On that occasion, he said: "Yeah, Olympic medal. Open at St Andrews. Yeah, maybe like a US Open at one of those like old, traditional golf courses - whether it's Shinnecock this year or Winged Foot or Pebble Beach, Merion."

Following his first Masters win, McIlroy struggled to motivate himself for a time, but he admitted at Augusta National a year later that it took him some time to realise that the win wasn’t a destination, but part of his journey in the game.

Later that week, he sealed the title again, becoming the first player to win it back-to-back since Tiger Woods in 2002.

In his press conference following his latest win, McIlroy said: “I don’t think I'll go through that lull of motivation or the sort of things that I was feeling last year post-winning this tournament.”

It appears McIlroy seems as switched on as ever to the idea that, still in his prime, he can cement a legacy as one of the greatest players the game has ever seen.

So what else can he realistically achieve over the remainder of his career? Let's take a look...

A Masters ‘Three-Peat’

It’s early days since McIlroy’s latest Masters success, with even the man himself missing the RBC Heritage as he processes the magnitude of the victory.

Still, it didn’t take long for some to wonder whether, after becoming just the fourth player to win the title back-to-back, he might become the first to win it three times in a row.

The notion has even come into six-time Masters champion Jack Nicklaus’ thoughts. He wrote on Instagram: “The monkey came off your back last year, and now, all of a sudden, you are the only guy who has a chance to three-peat.”

Given the way he blew the field away to race into a six-shot lead at the halfway stage, plus the relatively assured way he dealt with the pressure in the final round of his latest win, you can’t write it off.

Winning An Olympic Gold Medal

The third opportunity of McIlroy's career to win gold at the Olympics representing Ireland comes around just two years from now.

McIlroy finished tied for third in his first Olympics appearance before losing in a seven-man playoff for the bronze medal.

At Le Golf National in 2024, he performed well again, placing T5 as Scottie Scheffler won the gold medal.

McIlroy will still be in his 30s when the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics comes around, suggesting that, even if he misses out again, there will be other opportunities.

However, with the Olympics in the US, where he plays most of his golf, it surely represents as good a chance as any, and he’ll be determined to get it done at Riviera, where he is still looking for his first victory.

Becoming The Top Ryder Cup Points Scorer

McIlroy earned 3.5 points at Bethpage Black, taking his overall Ryder Cup haul to 21.5 points. That leaves him seven behind the all-time leading points scorer, Sergio Garcia.

It’s debatable as to whether we’ll see the Spaniard play another Ryder Cup, while only Lee Westwood of the players between McIlroy and Garcia on the list of the highest points scorers still plays at the top level.

If McIlroy puts in another strong performance at Adare Manor in 2027, the gap to Garcia will shrink considerably if the LIV Golfer misses out, and surely the target would then come firmly into his sights, assuming it hasn't already.

Winning The Most Majors By A European

After winning his second Green Jacket, McIlroy’s name came firmly into the debate on whether he is the greatest European golfer of all time, including from Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald.

Even with so much of his career ahead of him, the numbers suggest his record is already more impressive than European legends Seve Ballesteros and Nick Faldo. However, surely Majors are where it really counts.

McIlroy’s latest Masters title drew him level with Faldo on six titles, with Jersey-born Harry Vardon the only other European to win more over his career, with seven.

With McIlroy two adrift of the lead and with surely dozens more Major appearances ahead of him before winning gets out of reach, it seems a matter of when, not if, he will surpass Vardon’s total.

Winning A Second Career Grand Slam

When McIlroy won his second Masters title, it took him halfway to his second career Grand Slam.

That’s because he had already won the PGA Championship twice, leaving him needing just one more US Open win and one more at The Open to collect all four for the second time.

McIlroy has a recent history of coming close in both events, with six top 10s in his last seven US Opens and three in his last four appearances at The Open.

He also arguably should have won The Open in 2022, having been four clear of eventual winner Cameron Smith after 54 holes, while he appeared to have one hand on the US Open trophy in 2024 before a back-nine collapse handed the initiative to Bryson DeChambeau.

McIlroy’s two Masters titles seem to have laid to rest any psychological demons he had in closing out Major titles, though, so next time he’s in a winning position in either, you would expect him to get it done.

Winning The Open At The Home Of Golf

Had McIlroy won The Open in 2022, he would now have a Major title to his name at the Home of Golf, the Old Course at St Andrews.

As it is, the one time he has won the Claret Jug so far in his career came at Royal Liverpool in 2014.

He won’t have to wait long until he gets another chance to win the title at the Old Course, though, with The Open returning in 2027.

Before that, he’ll get the opportunity to claim his latest Open win at the 2026 edition at Royal Birkdale.

Winning The Most European Tour Order Of Merits

McIlroy missed out on his fourth DP World Tour Championship title in 2025, with Matt Fitzpatrick take the honors, but his playoff defeat to the Englishman still earned him his latest Race to Dubai title.

That was the seventh time McIlroy has won the Harry Vardon Trophy, surpassing Seve Ballesteros, while only one player has won it more times, Colin Montgomerie, with eight.

Despite a busy PGA Tour schedule, McIlroy also takes the DP World Tour seriously, as evidenced by the fact that his most recent four Harry Vardon trophy wins have come in the last four years.

Given that, it’s barely conceivable that McIlroy won’t catch Montgomerie before passing him in the next few years.

He could even match his record in 2026, as he’s currently second behind Patrick Reed in the rankings.

Winning On Every Continent

McIlroy’s Masters win was the 45th of his pro career, with victories coming in North America, Europe, Asia and Australasia along the way.

However, he has yet to win on one continent that stages elite-level golf, Africa. That could all change down the line if he begins focusing more on his DP World Tour schedule, which stages some big events in South Africa, in particular.

Reaching The Top 10 Of All-Time PGA Tour Wins

McIlroy is unlikely to top the list of most PGA Tour wins, with Tiger Woods and Sam Snead out in front with 82 to McIlroy's 30.

However, it is likely he will reach the top 10. In the final position at the moment are Cary Middlecoff and Tom Watson, with 39 wins each.

McIlroy's most recent nine PGA Tour wins have come within the last four years, so if he continues at that pace, he'll make it before his 41st birthday.

Reaching The Top Of The PGA Tour Career Money List

There is a very strong possibility that McIlroy could become the PGA Tour’s career money list leader in 2026 – although whether he would keep the position for long is debatable.

Following his Masters win, he remained in second place, less than $6m behind leader Tiger Woods with career earnings of $114,696,641.

If Woods plays at all this season, it will likely only be in a few events, giving McIlroy every chance of surpassing him.

However, right behind McIlroy is Scottie Scheffler with earnings of over $105m, meaning that, in the not-too-distant future, he too could be within touching distance of the top spot.

What Else?

Some other achievements will be on McIlroy's radar too...

• Winning The Open at Royal Portrush
• Winning the Genesis Invitational
• Winning the Memorial Tournament and receiving a handshake from Jack Nicklaus
• Matching Nicklaus' record of three Players Championship wins
• Winning in Abu Dhabi
• Winning in continental Europe

Immediately following Rory McIlroy's second win at The Masters, congratulations arrived from all over the world as people recognized what an incredible achievement they had just witnessed.

Not long after that, the analysis began. Plenty of experts noted that McIlroy didn't appear to have his 'A game' but still managed to come out on top.

Meanwhile, others waxed lyrical about how Augusta National had produced a near-perfect set-up of the course to bunch the leaderboard and maintain an interesting spectacle for as long as possible.

Also among the reaction was a line about McIlroy's preparation. The six-time Major winner hadn't completed a competitive round since The Players Championship - partly due to a scheduling choice and partly due to a "stubborn" back issue.

But the fact that the Northern Irishman wasn't appearing on the PGA Tour allowed him the chance to frequent Augusta National's fairways on a whim - one of the many perks earned by claiming a Green Jacket.

Speaking after opening up a six-shot lead at the end of round two, McIlroy shared why his preparation looked the way it did and why he designed it that way.

He said: "I honestly just don't like the three tournaments leading up to this event. I'd rather come up here.

"I did a couple of days where I dropped Poppy to school, flew up here, played, landed back home and had dinner with her -- or had dinner with Erica probably.

"Like I did a couple of day trips like that where I felt it was a better use of my time than going to Houston or San Antonio.

"It wasn't really about conserving energy, but just I felt the more time I could spend up here, the better."

And so it proved. Via a number of hairy moments, McIlroy wrapped up Masters title number two by one stroke.

Explaining how he managed to go back-to-back after waiting so long for a first Green Jacket, McIlroy suggested a more intense and frequent look at Augusta National massively aided him.

During his winner's press conference, McIlroy said: "I joked last week and going into this week that this place feels like my home course. I haven't played anywhere else in the last two or three weeks really. I felt prepared in that way.

"I felt prepared that wherever I hit it on the golf course, I sort of know what to do. I know where to miss. I'm pretty comfortable with all the shots around the greens. Yeah, I think it's a good blueprint."

While the plan worked perfectly for McIlroy, some claimed the defending champion possessed an "unfair advantage" by being able to access Augusta National that often.

In actual fact, McIlroy did not have exclusive access unavailable to others as everyone who receives an invitation to play The Masters can head over to Augusta almost as many times as they want for practice rounds in the lead-up.

And that was something Kevin Kisner was keen to point out while speaking on Barstool Sports' Fore Play pod earlier this week.

The eight-time Masters participant said: "As soon as you get your invitation, you're a welcome guest. You obviously just have to call and set it up with the pro shop.

"I've heard that they tell you how many times you can come. Like, if somebody is coming every week, every day, then they're like 'alright bud, you've been here 15 times, that's enough for this leading up to it.'

"But I can guarantee you they're not going to tell the defending champion 'hey, you can't bring your G650 (private jet) up here on Tuesday morning and leave Tuesday afternoon every day this week.

"And when Rory's mentioning that, I don't think he means that he's been up there 20 times in the last three weeks, I think he means 'I came up here four times.'

"And one of the days I played over there, he was there. He literally just played 18 holes and had lunch. He literally did do exactly what he said.

"But who cares how many times he went? Everybody else can go just as much as they want, they just can't beat him.

"I would look at Rory this week with like a B- to a B+ game and still won The Masters. That whole thing, Trent, to your point, I don't think it matters at all. I thought it was the dumbest argument I’ve ever seen in my life. People just don't understand."

Echoing Kisner's point was PGA Tour pro, Michael Kim - who played his third Masters in 2026 but missed the cut.

The 2018 John Deere Classic winner quote-posted ESPN's First Take show on X with a reply which contradicted Stephen A. Smith's suggestion that McIlroy had an unfair advantage.

Kim wrote: "Yes, there’s a number of rounds that ANGC will say no to for me to go by myself and play by myself. That number is prob a little lower for me than a guy like Rory. [But] If you find a member to host you every time, there’s no limit.

"I had plenty of chances to go to ANGC myself if I wanted to but didn’t go. Better use of my time practicing at home or wherever I am to get my game in better shape for my next tournament.

"Course knowledge only gets you so far. Plenty of golfers have even more experience at Augusta than Rory like Justin Rose."

Kim then followed up by posting: "It is not unfair or an advantage people. It’s irrelevant to the result is my point. I guess my writing need to get better."

What do you make of the 'unfair advantage' argument? Let us know in the comments box below.

It wasn’t quite as dramatic as a year ago, when Rory McIlroy took fans on a rollercoaster ride before completing his career Grand Slam at The Masters, but his successful defence of the title in 2026 was still very special indeed.

As well as McIlroy’s latest Augusta National victory handing him his sixth Major title, which drew him level with Lee Trevino, Sir Nick Faldo and Phil Mickelson, it was also the first back-to-back Masters triumph since Tiger Woods in 2002.

Not surprisingly, McIlroy’s victory generated plenty of reaction on social media, with fellow golfers and famous faces from elsewhere congratulating the 36-year-old on social media.

US president Donald Trump led the praise. On his Truth Social account, with a message reposted on X by The White House, he wrote: “Congratulations to Rory McIlroy on another Great Championship, The Masters!

“He performed tremendously under intense pressure, something which few people would be able to even think about doing. With each year, Rory is becoming more and more a LEGEND!

“I look forward to watching him compete in two weeks at Doral. The quality of Professional Golfers today has become extraordinary, each and every one of them. They should all be proud of the way they played at The Masters this weekend! President DONALD J. TRUMP.”

Trump wasn’t the only global figurehead with praise for McIlroy, with the British Royal Family’s X account posting: “Congratulations @McIlroyRory on your extraordinary back-to-back win at @TheMasters!”

Manchester United soccer club perhaps doesn't quite have the same influence, but it’s an institution close to McIlroy’s heart, who is a big fan of the Red Devils.

The official account posted: “So nice he had to do it twice.”

Staying in the soccer world, former England defender Rio Ferdinand also offered his congratulations, writing: “Back to Back @McIlroyRory. Love to see it! Congratulations.”

Former NFL quarterback Dan Orlovsky had his say on McIlroy’s latest Masters win, too, writing: “Rory Best Euro ever? Top 10 golfer ever? What a stud.”

Naturally, high-profile figures from the golf world were also on hand to praise McIlroy, including six-time winner Jack Nicklaus.

As part of a lengthy post on Instagram, he wrote: “What a wonderful @themasters win for @rorymcilroy! Congratulations, Rory, on back-to-back Green Jackets! You played like a guy who has already won a Masters championship, which is relaxed, free, and confident.

"The monkey came off your back last year, and now, all of a sudden, you are the only guy who has a chance to three-peat!”

Three-time Masters champion Phil Mickelson had his say, too. He wrote on X: “Congrats to @McIlroyRory for an exciting @TheMasters win. Back to back is simply remarkable.”

The Golf Channel’s Paul McGinley wrote: “Terrific win again for Rory in a brilliant Masters - his resilience, for me, as impressive as his talent.”

McGinley was McIlroy’s captain at the 2014 Ryder Cup. Nowadays, that role is Luke Donald’s, and he also praised him, writing that he saying he is the best player Europe has ever produced.

He wrote: “Tying Seve with 2 green jackets will mean a lot to Rory. He is undoubtedly the best European golfer of all time now. Congratulations @McIlroyRory.”

One of the players McIlroy got the better of to win The Masters was the man he beat in a playoff a year ago, Justin Rose.

Rose is the nearly man of The Masters, having finished runner-up three times, while he led during the second round before letting his latest chance get away.

However, he vowed to keep on trying, and congratulated McIlroy, writing: “I’ll just keep knocking on that door. See you next year Augusta! Congratulations @McIlroyRory going back-to-back. Thank you for all the support.”

A year ago, Nike released an advertisement immediately after McIlroy’s victory that showed a Green Jacket hanging in a dry cleaner's with the winner’s name on it.

His apparel sponsor was quick off the mark again, this time with a video on winning more than one Green Jacket, alongside the caption: “No alterations needed. @McIlroyRory proves he is tailored for the moment, securing back-to-back jackets at Augusta.”

Rory McIlroy is the talk of the golfing world once again after he triumphed at Augusta National to claim back-to-back Masters titles, but his mother is also making headlines.

The Northern Irishman held the lead throughout the tournament, going wire-to-wire after a strong start. He may have suffered a bit of a wobble on Saturday and in the early stages of Sunday, but McIlroy picked up the pace again on the back nine just as he did last year.

McIlroy was excited to celebrate with family after retaining his crown at Augusta, but it seems his mom was still living off the high of his 2025 victory.

Eagle-eyed fans spotted a very interesting handbag by the feet of Rosie McIlroy as she was sitting behind the 18th hole watching her son hit the home stretch.

A closer inspection reveals the handbag is actually made up of newspaper articles and clippings from McIlroy's momentous win at The Masters from last year to claim the Career Grand Slam.

Golf fans were naturally charmed by this very sweet gesture from Rosie and shared the love on social media.

One wrote, "That’s what amazing mums do," while another said, "There is literally nothing not awesome about this."

A third added: "Amazing thing to have. Great idea."

It seems the bag was made and gifted to Rosie by a company called Couture Planet, who work with upcycled newspaper to create their designs.

The viral celebration of McIlroy and his family sums up just how special it was for him to have his parents at Augusta this year, after they didn't attend the event in 2025.

Speaking to the media after his victory on Sunday, McIlroy reiterated how happy he was to have Rosie and his dad, Gerry there cheering him on.

"I caught myself on the golf course a couple of times thinking about them, and I was like no, not yet. It's really cool to have them here.

"They missed it last year, and the first thing I wanted to do was fly home to see them because I obviously wouldn't be sitting up here if it wasn't for them. I had to sort of convince them to come this year because they thought the reason I won last year was because they weren't here.

"I said on the putting green that I'm glad we proved that wrong, so they can keep coming as long as they want. It's amazing to have them here."

The Masters and Rory McIlroy have been inextricably linked since the Northern Irishman lifted The Open Championship in 2014.

For more than a decade, McIlroy's desire to complete the career grand slam had seemingly consumed him and it was regularly earmarked as one of the few remaining goals he had yet to tick off.

Even before that, the World No.2 had his chance to create history when blowing a sizable advantage at Augusta National in 2011.

Between that fateful day and 14 years later, McIlroy had several chances to remove the monkey from his back. Yet, fate would always intervene to ensure it never happened.

Nevertheless, his time would come and that first Masters victory finally arrived in 2025. Then, as is so often the way, a second triumph followed a mere 12 months later.

McIlroy's first Masters win brought him so many of the perks he had always longed for - none more so than a maiden Green Jacket.

It also led to a winner's check of $4.2 million, which isn't a bad addition if you ask me.

As a result of that significant addition to his bank balance, McIlroy rocketed up the list featuring the highest Masters earners of all time and into third behind Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson at the top.

That was before his second Masters victory in 2026. The Masters announced its total payout at the 90th playing had been increased from $21 million to $22.5 million, with a $4.5 million prize awaiting the winner.

Therefore, in the space of just over a year, McIlroy's total earnings at Augusta National exploded from a modest $4.3 million in 16 starts to a shade above $13 million - making him the highest earner in Masters history.

As an aside, Scottie Scheffler - who was runner-up in 2026 and had already won in both 2022 and 2024 - is now second on the all-time earning list at Augusta National with more than $10 million picked up at the year's first men's Major.

Mainly due to the never-ending increase of modern-day purses, as well as natural inflation, the list of highest earners at The Masters is dominated by active professionals.

Jack Nicklaus has won the most Masters titles ever with six, yet his half a dozen victories between 1963-1986 secured him just $269,000.

Even with the rest of his 37 made cuts included, the Golden Bear didn't even come close to collecting seven figures from the Augusta National championship.

Meanwhile, with the exception of Justin Rose, every other man in the top-10 has competed at and won The Masters since 2010.

However, no one has won more money than McIlroy at The Masters in the tournament's entire history.

TOP-10 HIGHEST EARNERS IN MASTERS HISTORY

RORY MCILROY CAREER MASTERS EARNINGS

April is not only Masters month for the world of golf, it's also a time to reflect on the past financial year and see which golfers have earned the most money.

With massive prize funds given out each week across the PGA Tour, the LIV Golf League and the DP World Tour, the best players in the world are racking up huge bank balances throughout the season.

Rory McIlroy has just added another $4.5m to his career earnings thanks to his incredible triumph at Augusta National. That'll give him a nice head start for next year's totals, but it doesn't help him surpass one other golfer for the 2025-26 tax year.

The data comes from Sportico, breaking down the earnings of the top-10 highest paid golfers in the world, with details as to how much they earned on the course and off it through sponsorship deals and the like.

McIlroy was in the top two, and led the way in off-course income, but it's actually Jon Rahm who earned the most in total for the last year.

Rahm benefits massively from his contract with LIV, of course. It is though the Spaniard was offered $300m to join the breakaway tour, with half paid upfront and the other $150m paid equally across the years of his contract.

Last year, Rahm is said to have earned a total of $102m, and is the only golfer to break the $100m barrier. Of that figure, $92m came from on-course earnings, with another $10m in sponsorship payments.

The 31-year-old didn't actually win an event throughout the LIV Golf season in 2025, but he still claimed enough points to come out on top in the individual leaderboard. That earned him a massive $18m, which is exactly how much he beat McIlroy by in the money charts.

McIlroy is arguably the most marketable golfer in the world, especially after his remarkable double Masters win. It speaks volumes that McIlroy's net worth was thought to be around $294m in 2023, and will be much higher now.

But, for 2025-26, he is reported to have earned $84m from golf. $29m of that comes from event payouts, while a whopping $55m comes from off-course deals. That actually makes McIlroy the leader in commercial income, narrowly beating Tiger Woods.

Still, McIlroy's closest competitor is Scottie Scheffler, who recorded $81m in earnings last year. Not surprisingly, given his dominance on the Tour, $51m of that came from winnings on the course, while he's thought to have earned a huge $30m from sponsorship deals with the likes of Turtlebox, Nike, TaylorMade, and Huntington Bank.

Looking elsewhere, there's quite a gap between that top three and the rest of the top-10 highest paid golfers. Bryson DeChambeau is next in line, but his earnings stood at around $65m, with $45m of that coming from his lucrative deal with LIV.

Woods, as we mentioned, is the second highest-earner when it comes to commercial deals. $54m of his total came from that side of the game, while only $200,000 was earned from his performances on the course.

Rounding out the rest of the top-10, Tommy Fleetwood enjoyed a successful year thanks to his Tour Championship win in August. That netted the Englishman a mega $10m payout which contributed to his $42m earnings.

Joaquin Niemann is the third and final LIV golfer in the top 10. The Chilean won five events last year, so it's not surprising that he's up there, with earnings of $41m in total.

Beyond that, we have Hideki Matsuyama sitting at $31m. That's largely thanks to his endorsement portfolio, which contributed $25m. Xander Schauffele ($30m) and Collin Morikawa ($28m) complete the list.

Highest-Paid Golfers 2025-26

Cameron Young came up short in his battle with Rory McIlroy on the final day of The Masters and had to watch the Northern Irishman claim the title at Augusta National right in front of him.

Going into Sunday, Young had gone level with McIlroy on -11 after three rounds. With the momentum behind the American, many fancied Young to go all the way.

However, a tricky final round, including three bogeys between holes six through nine, cost Young and saw him drop to T3 in the end.

Young was front and center for a moment of golfing history as McIlroy secured back-to-back Masters titles.

By the sounds of it, the pair didn't converse much in the process of that final round - but Young isn't taking it personally.

Speaking in the aftermath of the tournament, Young said: "I'm not one to talk a ton to begin with, and I don't think he really wanted to talk to me.

"Sunday at the Masters in the final group, you know, I don't wish anything poorly on the guy, but we're playing against each other. We're not trying to be best friends out there.

"It's just one of those times that you leave each other be and if there is a moment [you talk] - there were one or two but not many."

This is nothing new for McIlroy, of course. Last year, it was well-documented that McIlroy didn't speak to Bryson DeChambeau during their final round at Augusta.

For Young, it was a case of close but no cigar, but it sounds like the 28-year-old has learned a lot from the experience.

During his interview, he reflected on his performance, adding: "I think I handled it fine, just didn't make anything. That's the story of the week, if you look through all four rounds.

"I feel like I played the golf I needed to. I just didn't have the day making anything at all.

"There is no negative to take away other than obviously I would've loved a different result.

"But in terms of the golf, I played plenty well enough to win today and plenty well enough to win by a couple I think. So it was just one of those days."

Young has already qualified for the 2027 edition of The Masters, and if he plays like he did this weekend, he'll be right up there again next year.