Ryan Fox pinpoints the big difference between Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy, ‘He’s just that good’

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To say that Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy are the two best golfers in the world right now is stating the obvious.

World number one Scheffler and the man sitting just behind him in the rankings, McIlroy, have been the best two players in world golf for quite some time now.

McIlroy may well be regretting advising Scheffler to switch to the mallet putter back in February 2024!

They are both actually on completely different level to everyone else on the PGA Tour.

In fact, Scheffler and McIlroy help to motivate each other, and drive one another on to achieve success.

Without having that rivalry, would either of them achieve what they have over the past 12 months? That’s debatable but it’s fair to suggest that neither of them would have.

With the margins at the highest level of the game being so small, it’s great to get a PGA Tour winner’s perspective on who is the better golfer out of the two players.

Ryan Fox pinpoints the difference between Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy

Ryan Fox won two tournaments on the PGA Tour in 2025, and he has seen both Scheffler and McIlroy up close and personal.

When speaking on the Between Two Beers Podcast, Fox was speaking about McIlroy when Scheffler’s name came up.

The man from New Zealand said: “I just watch him (McIlroy) and I’m like, ‘I’m not that good am I’?

“He’s one of the few who you watch him and you’re like, ‘no one else can do that’.

“Like Scottie is like death with a thousand cuts, he just hits every shot that needs to be hit at the right time, no matter what the pressure is.

“But Rory just hits a few shots where you’re like, ‘that’s not fair’. He’s just that good.“

Fox is seemingly suggesting here that McIlroy can hit shots that Scheffler simply isn’t capable of, but the American is perhaps the better and more consistent all-round golfer.

Scottie Scheffler vs Rory McIlroy PGA Tour stats and results in 2025

Scheffler got the better of McIlroy for the most part in 2025, but only just. So where did he gain his slight advantage over the man from Holywood, Northern Ireland?

The big difference between the two players is with their irons.

Scheffler is clearly far superior to McIlroy when it comes to his iron play.

It’s worth noting that McIlroy won his national Open in Ireland on the DP World Tour this year as well, and he played his part on the successful European Ryder Cup team at Bethpage.

Both players have clearly enjoyed great years and the 2026 season is shaping up to be one of the most exciting yet, with both McIlroy and Scheffler right at the top of their games.