As we hurtle towards another Masters tournament it is Rory McIlroy who is once again the big talking point ahead of things getting underway at Augusta National.
McIlroy comes into the tournament having won twice already in 2025 and now 11 years on from his last major win, the topic of him finally winning number five has never burned brighter.
As McIlroy knows, the pressure on him to win at Augusta National and finally complete that career grand slam is well and truly felt by everyone. None more so than himself, it seems.
However, ahead of the 2025 Masters teeing off, McIlroy has not only been playing well but also made some slight changes to his equipment.
And according to Brandel Chamblee, it is this key factor which lines McIlroy up nicely to win.
Why Rory McIlroy’s equipment change could be key to winning The Masters
After already getting his hands on The Players Championship by using a different ball and seeing off JJ Spaun in a playoff, McIlroy will have high hopes of going low around Augusta.
And according to golf analyst Chamblee, Rory’s Tiger-esque change has set him up nicely.
“It is harder for him than it is Scottie to hit those cuts, but this year I think because he has gone to a spinner ball, it requires him to get on top of it a bit more to control the spin,” Chamblee pointed out.
“The spinnier ball is important. He won the Players with a spinnier ball. I’m not sure he would have been able to win [before] because he didn’t hit it great when he was able to recover and hit these beautiful, bendy shots out of the trees and also because it keeps him on top of it.
“In an era where everybody is going to balls that spin less and clubs with a high MOI that spin less. Tiger played the ‘spinniest’ ball of anybody on tour. So Tiger was sacrificing distance for control and I think Rory has made a change this year to sacrifice for control.
“His distance is amazing, he has distance to play with, as did Tiger. I think that is important and it betokens good form this week because he has never won here before. From a winning perspective he has never come into The Masters in better form and the data is there, it says its his best chance ever to win the Masters, I would argue.”
Rory McIlroy told his wedge game is key to Masters success
While everyone knows Rory McIlroy is one of the best in the business in all aspects of the game of golf, there are times when things don’t all come together and at somewhere like The Masters, it’s costly.
Indeed, adding further comment on McIlroy’s wedge and iron play issues, Chamblee has claimed McIlroy simply has to be better to win.
“The draw bias means that he is coming ever so slightly a little in to out. The thing that is very important at Augusta National because you have so many hook lies, if you come in to out, you slam into the hill and it shuts the face down. It shuts the face down and then you get the long, left shot. That is the reason why [he is not sharp with his wedges],” Chamblee added.
“He hits the long left shot and now you are above the hole. The high soft shot is likely to land and stop short of the hole. If Rory is above the hole at 11 on a clock face and I am at 5 o’clock and beneath the hole, putting up the hole, right to left and Rory is down the hill. We are both 10 feet away. The guy at 5 o’clock, if they are the exact same putter, makes about 20 per cent more of those putts.
“Multiple that by 72 holes and then, by the way, you are not going to finish 10 feet, you are going to finish longer than that because the shot is coming in lower, with less spin. So for him to be on top of it and what I mean by on top of it, is where he is covering it and it’s like if you are trying to hit a low, punch cut, that is the position you would be in.
“Tiger got their beautifully, Scheffler gets their beautifully, Jack, Hogan and Jordan Spieth got their beautifully. For me there are two aspects to play at Augusta National strokes gained approach and scrambling. But to me it is that you cannot win there unless you are under rare weather conditions, unless you are able to hit superior iron shots. And those are the things that have really held Rory back.”
McIlroy will know full well the implications of his swing and what they mean around Augusta.
But as Chamblee points out, it feels like the time could well be now for the 35-year-old to finally win that green jacket.
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