What Rory McIlroy did in the second round at the Genesis Invitational which Patrick McDonald thought he’d never do again after Pebble Beach

Add as preferred source on Google

Rory McIlroy is very much in contention to make it two wins from two at the start of the 2025 PGA Tour season, with the Northern Irishman fourth heading into the weekend at the Genesis Invitational.

Rory McIlroy made a real statement with his first appearance of the year on the PGA Tour, with the Northern Irishman winning the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. It was remarkable how in control McIlroy appeared to be as he won by two over Shane Lowry.

And he is one of the names many will be looking out for over the final two rounds at the Genesis Invitational, with McIlroy fourth right now, three shots off the lead. And, unlike Scottie Scheffler, he has the experience of getting across the line and winning this year.

But not everything has clicked for McIlroy this week.

The surprising aspect of Rory McIlroy’s performance at the Genesis Invitational

Previously, McIlroy’s driving appeared to be the huge strength within his game, with the problems generally emerging the closer he got to the green. However, he has only hit 13 of 28 fairways so far this week – with perhaps the worst moment coming on the 14th during the second round.

McIlroy found himself well left after only hitting the ball 242 yards off the tee. And speaking on The First Cut podcast, Patrick McDonald admitted that there may be something to keep an eye on moving forward given that that has already happened this year.

“I thought the round could have, maybe not got away from him, but almost like Friday at Pebble Beach, where he tripped over himself a little bit on that back nine. I thought something similar was about to happen in that middle stretch. Missed it left on 12, missed it left on 13, missed it left on 14,” he said.

“You know what, that’s not the first time he’s done it this year. He did it on number six on Pebble Beach, I believe during Thursday or Friday. Did not think anything of it, it’s never going to happen again. It’s happened in the second straight tournament that he’s played in, so maybe something to monitor. Just pencil it, just star it.

“But I thought this round had the potential to get away from him, but he hit some really good sawed off wedge shots, short shots coming in. And I think that’s really been the story of Rory McIlroy’s first six rounds on the PGA Tour this season, the controlled approaches from eight iron and in. And surprisingly for him, it’s almost been the long game that has let him down a little bit.”

How McIlroy has performed in the first two rounds at the Genesis Invitational

What is incredible about the problems McIlroy had is that he was still second for strokes gained off the tee during the second round. He has hit the second longest drive of the week at 355 yards, while he is third for average driving distance.

And he is inside the top 20 for around the green and putting.

So if he can keep those aspects of his game moving in the right direction while also tightening everything up again with the driver, he is surely going to be the man to beat when major championship season comes around.