The surprising move Rory McIlroy made this year which has left ‘incredible’ part of his game better than it’s been for years

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With Scottie Scheffler sat in second place, Rory McIlroy has potentially flown a little under the radar heading into the weekend at the Genesis Invitational, with the Northern Irishman fourth at the halfway stage at Torrey Pines.

Rory McIlroy sent out a real message to any of his potential rivals on his first appearance on the PGA Tour in 2025, with the 35-year-old winning the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

And he is well-placed to make it two wins in two starts this year, with McIlroy just three shots off the lead with two rounds to play at the Genesis Invitational. McIlroy boasts such an impressive record at Torrey Pines from the handful of appearances he has made at the course.

Some parts of his game have not been as impressive as usual. McIlroy has been erratic off the tee, while also second for strokes gained in that area over the first two rounds, according to the PGA Tour’s website.

How one part of Rory McIlroy’s game looks better than ever at the Genesis Invitational

But it seems that one part of his game has improved considerably. Previously, McIlroy’s wedge game has been something of an Achilles heel, with the four-time major winner producing some strange shots having got himself into a phenomenal position.

However, that has not been the case at Torrey Pines. Speaking on Golf Channel, Johnson Wagner suggested that he is not sure he can remember a time when McIlroy has looked better when bearing down on the green.

“My takeaway is that he’s in a better position with his wedge shots now this early in the year, than he has been in years past. I remember back to the US Open at LACC in 2023, he was messing around with four wedges. And I think when I watch him play these last couple of days, and even at Pebble Beach, the tempo and the rhythm and the way he’s varying his shot shapes is incredible,” he said.

“He’s switched to a spinnier golf ball, which is kind of the opposite of what I would have thought going to the west coast. You’d think you’d want a golf ball that doesn’t spin, but it’s worked for him because he said a spinnier ball forces him to work on those softer shots more and forces him to execute and hit those shots more, because if he hit a full swing shot with the ball he’s playing with a wedge, it would be ripping off these greens.”

The problem McIlroy has despite such a promising start to the PGA Tour season

It does feel like McIlroy has found another level of determination. There is an argument to be made that there is no-one better in the world when he is at his very best.

And the win at Pebble Beach felt significant, particularly as he had never won around that course previously.

Trevor Immelman recently claimed that McIlroy’s short game is so much better than many realise or give him credit for. And there has been further evidence of that with the praise he has received this week.

The problem for McIlroy is that his performances on the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour are never going to be the deciding factor in how his seasons are viewed anymore. He has won so many events that he has nothing left to prove outside of the majors.

It will only be when he gets himself in position to win major number five and is faced with a real tester of a wedge shot that we will know just how far McIlroy’s game has really come.