Rory McIlroy is heavily fancied to win this year’s PGA Championship at Quail Hollow.
McIlroy has been in sensational form in 2025, with three wins to his name including The Players Championship and The Masters, and now he will be hoping to add The PGA Championship to his ever growing list of victories.
Quail Hollow is perfectly set up for the 35-year-old – he has won four PGA Tour events there, and Jordan Spieth recently referred to it as ‘The Rory McIlroy Country Club’.
Rich Beem has already suggested that McIlroy’s familiarity with Quail Hollow makes him favourite to win this week.
The win at The Masters meant that a huge weight was lifted from the Northern Irishman’s shoulders.
McIlroy’s game is tailor made for the challenge that awaits at Quail Hollow, with the golf course playing incredibly long after all the rain that fell in Charlotte over the past two days.
Rory McIlroy disagrees with what Xander Schauffele said about him before the PGA Championship
Xander Schauffele is another player who is expected to feature highly up the leaderboard this week.
Schauffele only returned from injury a couple of months ago, but his game is definitely trending in the right direction.
However, the two-time major champion will have to get past McIlroy if he is to win the Wanamaker Trophy.
On Tuesday, the 31-year-old Californian suggested that the Northern Irishman will now be like a different animal after his triumph at Augusta National.
However, McIlroy doesn’t agree.
He said, “Um. I’m just the same person. No, I look, I turn up and try to have the same attitude and the same approach to each and every tournament and try to get the best out of myself and some weeks that results in wins, and some weeks, it doesn’t.
“And you know, as long as I approach every week that way, you’re all I can do is go out there and try to play the golf that I know that I’m capable of, and you know, as I said, some weeks, someone just plays better than you and on other weeks, you know, it’s your time.
“So, you know, I’ve played over 400 events in my career. I’ve played a lot of major championships, and like, I know how these things go, and you just got to go out there and play.“
Despite McIlroy’s comments, he will undoubtedly feel like there is a lot less pressure on him now, after his win at The Masters.
Paul McGinley on what will happen to McIlroy after he reaches 40
McGinley was speaking on Monday about McIlroy’s hopes of winning more majors between now and the end of his career.
And he suggested that the 35-year-old may well have his work cut out if he is to lift too many more major trophies.
He said, “That is the question. Has he climbed Everest in his own head now as a Grand Slam winner. Will the motivation remain the same? Or is he going to come and knock some of those guys off their perch that were ahead of him, European players. I know certainly that Nick will be in his sights at six majors and try and get to seven.
“I personally think he will keep going, I do think he will get to seven plus. But history shows us – Jack Nicklaus won six times from Rory’s age onwards, Phil Mickelson won five times. But then on the other side Arnold Palmer did not win any, Tom Watson did not win any from 35 onwards and Tiger only won once.
“Who is to know what is inside that heart of Rory’s. I personally think he will go forward. I think his game is equipped to go forward. As you get towards 40 you lose a little bit of distance and maybe five per cent or so will come off with old Father Time catching up but he has got so much in reserve in that regard that I don’t think it is going to affect his game, he is still going to be one of the biggest hitters in the game. He has a game which has longevity in it. If the motivation remains the same there is no reason why he can’t keep driving forward and be the winningest European player ever and certainly overtaking Nick in the modern era with six, is probably somewhat of an immediate goal.”
Comments like that will undoubtedly serve only to motivate McIlroy even more, and he would love to get off the mark immediately at The PGA Championship this week.
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