Rory McIlroy returns to the PGA Tour this week, taking on the BMW Championship at Caves Valley Golf Club.
McIlroy is paired with Scottie Scheffler for rounds one and two of the BMW Championship, the latest event in the FedExCup Playoffs.
The Northern Irishman heads into the tournament with three PGA Tour wins this season, including his success at The Masters.
McIlroy has, however, been absent since The Open Championship last month, opting to skip the likes of the St. Jude Championship last week.
He finished T7 in front of his home fans at Royal Portrush, in what was his 14th PGA Tour appearance of 2025.
Rory McIlroy confirms his playing schedule from now until December
Now returning to the course after a break, the five-time major champion has confirmed what the rest of his season looks like.
Discussing his recent absence, he told Golf Today: “It’s been good. Yeah, I enjoyed my break. It was nice to have three weeks off. We enjoyed our new place in London for a little bit which was really nice.
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“I’ve got a really busy stretch from now until the end of the year. I’m playing nine times from here until December.
“So having that extra week off last week was really nice. Felt like I’ll certainly appreciate it as the year goes on.
“And I didn’t lose a spot in the FedExCup rankings, so I didn’t lose anything, which was a bonus too. But happy to be back, happy to be here. I’m excited for the next two weeks.”
Rory McIlroy predicts what Team Europe could look like for the Ryder Cup
One event that McIlroy will, of course, be competing in before the season comes to an end is the Ryder Cup.
McIlroy was the first European player to qualify for the Ryder Cup, and he has since been joined by Justin Rose and Tommy Fleetwood.
Sharing his excitement for the tournament, he said: “I’m excited. I’m excited for our opportunity. I’ve been sort of banging on this drum for a while, but I think winning an away Ryder Cup is one of the toughest things to do, not just in this sport but I think in any sport.
“And I think the next team to win an away Ryder Cup is… it’s going to be a pretty special thing. Excited for the opportunity, yeah.
“A lot of the Europeans have played great all year. It looks like it’s going to be a very similar team to the team that we had in Rome, so I love that we have that continuity, I love that Luke Donald is still our captain, I love that the vice captains are all going to be very similar.
“Yeah, I can’t wait. We’ve got still a little bit of time, and then a lot of us are going back to Europe and playing one or two events before the Ryder Cup as well. But yeah, Bethpage is going to be quite the spectacle.”
McIlroy is bang on with every single one of his claims, namely that the home fans are certain to help create a phenomenal atmosphere at Bethpage Black.
And despite Europeans shining on the PGA Tour in 2025, the visitors can expect a hugely difficult test away from home in New York.
Rory McIlroy says what he really wants to achieve at the BMW Championship
While McIlroy has secured his spot for the prestigious event, several players will be looking to clinch a place with a strong showing this week.
American captain Keegan Bradley incidentally won the BMW Championship in 2024, as McIlroy finished T11 at Castle Pines.
Analysing his current level compared to this time last year, the Northern Irishman said: “I feel like last year was a good year.
“I played well, I had some wins. But I think over the last few years as major season was over, it’s like, okay, what do I have left to play for for the rest of the year?
“And then the FedExCup took on way more… not way more importance, it’s still important, but it was like, okay, that’s done, didn’t get one of the four or whatever it was, so let’s turn my attention to these events, where I think this year it’s like anything else after what happened in April is sort of a bonus, and I’ve been enjoying myself.
“But at the same time when you turn up to tournaments you want to give the best of yourself and you want to play well, and you want to get yourself into contention.
“I haven’t played in a few weeks, it would be great to get myself into contention this week, but if I can shake a little bit of the sort of summer rust off and feel like I’m in a good spot heading into the Tour Championship, I feel like that would be a win for me this week.”
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