Does Rory McIlroy Need A Masters Tune-Up? Take A Look At His Options

The next confirmed tournament on Rory McIlroy's schedule is The Masters, but after his recent back injury does he need a warm-up event first?

McIlroy withdrew after two rounds at Bay Hill with a back injury, but he returned to action just six days later teeing off at The Players Championship.

Despite spending less than a week out of golf, after not having a practice round at TPC Sawgrass he said he felt "unbelievably rusty" after his opening round.

He was glad to get four rounds under his belt at The Players and said his body felt in good shape, but he'd made no plans for the lead in to Augusta.

When could McIlroy play before The Masters?

There are just three PGA Tour events before McIlroy strolls down Magnolia Lane as defending champion and recent history suggests he should play one of them if he's to launch a decent defence of the Green Jacket.

As McIlroy's gone straight from The Players to The Masters twice in the last five years - and missed the cut in both events both times.

He's played the Valero Texas Open the week before Augusta twice and finished second and T22 while last year he made a slight tweak and played the Texas Children's Houston Open two weeks before - and that turned out alright didn't it?

That gave him a week off after winning at Sawgrass before finishing T5 in Houston then another free weekend to prepare for what ended up being his crowning Grand Slam glory.

From McIlroy's quotes he's obviously not making any firm plans until he's put his back through his usual practice and fitness routine - as a further setback this close to Augusta is the last thing he needs.

So common sense would say he gives it a week, heads out to Houston for a test tournament run and gives himself a week off afterwards to fully recover and prepare.

And recent history suggests he goes much better at Augusta when he plays a tournament in the three weeks leading up to The Masters.

*The 2020 Players Championship was cancelled after the first round due to Covid-19

Before The Players moved to March in 2019 McIlroy had a pretty fixed schedule of playing the Arnold Palmer Invitational which took place three weeks before The Masters.

And that certainly worked a treat as he had four top-10 finishes in a row, so all things considered McIlroy certainly seems like he'd suit a warm-up event.

How does TGL affect McIlroy's schedule?

The one wrinkle here could be TGL, with McIlroy's Boston Common team playing in Tuesday's semi-finals, with a win meaning they'd be playing in the finals the week of the Houston Open.

Again, much will depend on McIlroy's fitness and how his back is shaping up but as a founder of TGL he has to play if his side makes the finals - which take place on Monday and Tuesday of Houston Open week.

It shouldn't be a deal breaker though and you'd guess a quick hop to Houston from Florida would be preferable to playing the Texas Open the following week and heading straight to Augusta National.

Especially with all the extra responsibilities of being the defending Masters champion - a much better route would be an early arrival down Magnolia Lane and getting some prep work done before the full week's festivities begin.