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For all of Rory McIlroy’s success over the past 10-plus years ― a combined 26 victories on the PGA and DP World Tours ― it was a lost decade in the major championships for the man who is hottest player in the world heading into this week’s Masters Tournament, the first major of the year.
Since he won four majors by age 25, there have been no more for the player who was known as the Boy Wonder during his major run from 2011-14.
Since his victory at the 2014 PGA Championship, he’s 0-for-38 in major starts.
During that span, McIlroy posted 21 top-10 finishes. In his words, McIlroy has had his “heart broken” a number of times in majors, especially in the 2022 British Open and last year’s U.S. Open at Pinehurst.
At 35 years old, the world’s No. 2-ranked player went over the $100 million mark in PGA Tour career earnings a week ago, but he’s still motivated to add to his two PGA Championships, U.S. Open and Open Championship titles.
That self-belief is the reason why McIlroy knows every word of the 1981 song "Don’t Stop Believin’" by Journey.
It's been said before: This could be the year McIlroy’s breaks through again in the majors.
Perhaps this week at Augusta National Golf Club. The other major sites this year are at Quail Hollow for May’s PGA Championship, Oakmont for June’s U.S. Open and Royal Portrush in July in McIlroy’s native Northern Ireland.
Regardless of his result in Augusta, McIlroy will be no doubt looking forward to the PGA in Charlotte, where he has won the PGA Tour stop there four times, including last year.
He’s won twice in five PGA Tour starts this year, something he’s never done before heading into the Masters. He won a signature event at Pebble Beach and also the prestigious Players Championship. Last week in Houston, he tied for fifth thanks to weekend rounds of 65-64.
Technically, he says he’s a more complete player and his motivation is off the charts, starting with a dedicated offseason of work with an eye on ending his major drought.
More: How much has Augusta National Golf Club changed after Hurricane Helene? 'They do magic out here'
More: Fun facts about Masters, Augusta National trees, bridges and more you may not know about
'Isn’t this one cute?': 2025 Masters gnome arrives at Augusta National Women's Amateur
“It's nice to see the fruits of my labor paying off," McIlroy said after his Players Championship victory.
McIlroy is a year older than Phil Mickelson was when he won his first major, then won five more.
However, McIlroy is up against a daunting piece of history. If he wins a major this year, it would mark 11 years since his last major. Only five players have ever gone that long between majors. Tiger Woods has the record for time between major wins (14 years) but after that, the record is 11 years.
McIlroy’s ongoing major drought is brought up in detail this time each year. The noise here is the loudest because it’s the major he needs to complete the Career Grand Slam. It’s a feat only five players have achieved. Of active players, Jordan Spieth also has three legs of the Career Grand Slam, missing the PGA Championship (he’s on the eighth year of his Career Grand Slam watch).
“I feel like I say this (at every Open Championship), but we don’t just play four tournaments a year,” McIlroy said last summer after missing the cut at Royal Troon.
This time of year, though, there is only one major on anyone’s mind – the Masters.
For McIlroy, who turned pro at age 18, this is in 17th Masters and it seems like he’s had about that many pretournament gameplans.
None has worked.
He’s finished second once here with six other top-10 finishes. In 2011 he carried a four-shot lead into the final round and shot 80 to tie for 15th.
The goal, of course, is to peak for Masters Week, and McIlroy has always detailed his plan for each particular year. Since the 2020 fall Masters, McIlroy’s pretournament approaches have led to a runner-up finish, a tie for 22nd and two missed cuts.
In 2021, he played seven times prior to the Masters. No pre-Masters Week practice. He arrived the Sunday before the tournament. Result: Missed cut.
In 2022, he played four times before the Masters, including the week before, something he’d rarely done, missing the cut in San Antonio. His plan was to have more patience at Augusta National, he said in his pretournament press conference. Result: Runner-up, three behind Scottie Scheffler.
In 2023, he played six times before the tournament and played 81 holes at Augusta National in the three weeks before the tournament and had shot 5-under on the back nine in a Wednesday practice round. He thought that could be his year. Result: Missed cut.
In 2024, he played the week before the Masters, finishing third in San Antonio. Then, he really changed it up. He was the last player to register Tuesday, then conducted a short (for him) pretournament interview that ended after eight questions. In contrast, he answered 27 questions in 2023. On Wednesday, he skipped the Par 3 Contest, which he normally plays, and instead played a practice round. He walked in after the seventh hole at 3:45 p.m., 45 minutes after players are supposed to be off the course in order for the maintenance staff to prepare the course for Thursday’s first round. Result: Tied for 22nd, which seemed to be more of the same for him at the time.
And this year?
He took a scouting trip to Augusta National on March 24, then played in the Houston Open, tying for fifth place. He made another stop at Augusta National, then skipped last week's tour stop in San Antonio.
McIlroy has never come outright and said he’s going to win the Masters.
“I know I've got the potential to do it. It's not as if I haven't been a pretty good player for the last couple of decades,” McIlroy said before the 2024 Masters.
Prior to the 2023 Masters he said: “It’s nice to know that I come back to this place every year and that if I played the way I know that I can, that I should have a good chance.”
While McIlroy won’t say he’ll win it, other players, including five-time Masters champion Woods, say it’s only a matter of time before McIlroy dons a green jacket.
“It’s just what year it will be,” Woods said. “It will definitely happen.”
“Yeah, it's flattering,” McIlroy said of Woods’ prediction. “It's nice to hear, in my opinion, the best player ever to play the game say something like that. So, yeah, I mean, does that mean that it's going to happen? Obviously not. But he's been around the game long enough to know that I at least have the potential to do it. So, but, yeah, it's nice to hear it when it comes out of his mouth.”
Since McIlroy burst on the scene at the Masters in 2009, it’s been said the Augusta National course is right up his alley, particularly with his length off the tee.
“There's been players before that that has been said ― that, you know, this course is tailor-made for those players and they haven't went on to win a green jacket,” McIlroy said, mentioning Greg Norman and Ernie Els. “That's always in my mind, too. It's not just because a place is deemed, you know, perfectly set up for your game, it doesn't automatically mean that you're going to win it one day. There's more to it than that. There's also been players that you would think this golf course wouldn't set up well for them, and they have went on and won a green jacket.”
So let the McIlroy Masters Watch begin.
Again.
This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Masters 2025: Rory McIlroy tries again to break decade-long major skid
Continue reading...
Since he won four majors by age 25, there have been no more for the player who was known as the Boy Wonder during his major run from 2011-14.
Since his victory at the 2014 PGA Championship, he’s 0-for-38 in major starts.
During that span, McIlroy posted 21 top-10 finishes. In his words, McIlroy has had his “heart broken” a number of times in majors, especially in the 2022 British Open and last year’s U.S. Open at Pinehurst.
At 35 years old, the world’s No. 2-ranked player went over the $100 million mark in PGA Tour career earnings a week ago, but he’s still motivated to add to his two PGA Championships, U.S. Open and Open Championship titles.
That self-belief is the reason why McIlroy knows every word of the 1981 song "Don’t Stop Believin’" by Journey.
It goes on and on and on and on
It's been said before: This could be the year McIlroy’s breaks through again in the majors.
Perhaps this week at Augusta National Golf Club. The other major sites this year are at Quail Hollow for May’s PGA Championship, Oakmont for June’s U.S. Open and Royal Portrush in July in McIlroy’s native Northern Ireland.
Regardless of his result in Augusta, McIlroy will be no doubt looking forward to the PGA in Charlotte, where he has won the PGA Tour stop there four times, including last year.
He’s won twice in five PGA Tour starts this year, something he’s never done before heading into the Masters. He won a signature event at Pebble Beach and also the prestigious Players Championship. Last week in Houston, he tied for fifth thanks to weekend rounds of 65-64.
Technically, he says he’s a more complete player and his motivation is off the charts, starting with a dedicated offseason of work with an eye on ending his major drought.
More: How much has Augusta National Golf Club changed after Hurricane Helene? 'They do magic out here'
More: Fun facts about Masters, Augusta National trees, bridges and more you may not know about
'Isn’t this one cute?': 2025 Masters gnome arrives at Augusta National Women's Amateur
“It's nice to see the fruits of my labor paying off," McIlroy said after his Players Championship victory.
McIlroy is a year older than Phil Mickelson was when he won his first major, then won five more.
However, McIlroy is up against a daunting piece of history. If he wins a major this year, it would mark 11 years since his last major. Only five players have ever gone that long between majors. Tiger Woods has the record for time between major wins (14 years) but after that, the record is 11 years.
McIlroy’s ongoing major drought is brought up in detail this time each year. The noise here is the loudest because it’s the major he needs to complete the Career Grand Slam. It’s a feat only five players have achieved. Of active players, Jordan Spieth also has three legs of the Career Grand Slam, missing the PGA Championship (he’s on the eighth year of his Career Grand Slam watch).
“I feel like I say this (at every Open Championship), but we don’t just play four tournaments a year,” McIlroy said last summer after missing the cut at Royal Troon.
Workin' hard to get my fill
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This time of year, though, there is only one major on anyone’s mind – the Masters.
For McIlroy, who turned pro at age 18, this is in 17th Masters and it seems like he’s had about that many pretournament gameplans.
None has worked.
He’s finished second once here with six other top-10 finishes. In 2011 he carried a four-shot lead into the final round and shot 80 to tie for 15th.
The goal, of course, is to peak for Masters Week, and McIlroy has always detailed his plan for each particular year. Since the 2020 fall Masters, McIlroy’s pretournament approaches have led to a runner-up finish, a tie for 22nd and two missed cuts.
In 2021, he played seven times prior to the Masters. No pre-Masters Week practice. He arrived the Sunday before the tournament. Result: Missed cut.
In 2022, he played four times before the Masters, including the week before, something he’d rarely done, missing the cut in San Antonio. His plan was to have more patience at Augusta National, he said in his pretournament press conference. Result: Runner-up, three behind Scottie Scheffler.
In 2023, he played six times before the tournament and played 81 holes at Augusta National in the three weeks before the tournament and had shot 5-under on the back nine in a Wednesday practice round. He thought that could be his year. Result: Missed cut.
In 2024, he played the week before the Masters, finishing third in San Antonio. Then, he really changed it up. He was the last player to register Tuesday, then conducted a short (for him) pretournament interview that ended after eight questions. In contrast, he answered 27 questions in 2023. On Wednesday, he skipped the Par 3 Contest, which he normally plays, and instead played a practice round. He walked in after the seventh hole at 3:45 p.m., 45 minutes after players are supposed to be off the course in order for the maintenance staff to prepare the course for Thursday’s first round. Result: Tied for 22nd, which seemed to be more of the same for him at the time.
And this year?
He took a scouting trip to Augusta National on March 24, then played in the Houston Open, tying for fifth place. He made another stop at Augusta National, then skipped last week's tour stop in San Antonio.
Some'll win, some will lose, some are born to sing the blues
You must be registered for see images attach
McIlroy has never come outright and said he’s going to win the Masters.
“I know I've got the potential to do it. It's not as if I haven't been a pretty good player for the last couple of decades,” McIlroy said before the 2024 Masters.
Prior to the 2023 Masters he said: “It’s nice to know that I come back to this place every year and that if I played the way I know that I can, that I should have a good chance.”
While McIlroy won’t say he’ll win it, other players, including five-time Masters champion Woods, say it’s only a matter of time before McIlroy dons a green jacket.
“It’s just what year it will be,” Woods said. “It will definitely happen.”
“Yeah, it's flattering,” McIlroy said of Woods’ prediction. “It's nice to hear, in my opinion, the best player ever to play the game say something like that. So, yeah, I mean, does that mean that it's going to happen? Obviously not. But he's been around the game long enough to know that I at least have the potential to do it. So, but, yeah, it's nice to hear it when it comes out of his mouth.”
Since McIlroy burst on the scene at the Masters in 2009, it’s been said the Augusta National course is right up his alley, particularly with his length off the tee.
“There's been players before that that has been said ― that, you know, this course is tailor-made for those players and they haven't went on to win a green jacket,” McIlroy said, mentioning Greg Norman and Ernie Els. “That's always in my mind, too. It's not just because a place is deemed, you know, perfectly set up for your game, it doesn't automatically mean that you're going to win it one day. There's more to it than that. There's also been players that you would think this golf course wouldn't set up well for them, and they have went on and won a green jacket.”
So let the McIlroy Masters Watch begin.
Again.
This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Masters 2025: Rory McIlroy tries again to break decade-long major skid
Continue reading...
