Rory McIlroy cemented himself as one of the greatest golfers of all-time with his win at The Masters on Sunday.
The exclusive Grand Slam club finally has a new member in the form of Rory McIlroy, and it has been a long time coming for the Northern Irishman.
Rory ended 11 years of pain with his win at The Masters and now anything is possible for him moving forward.
McIlroy was a really special talent when he burst onto the scene as a teenager in the late 2000’s.
Funnily enough, Sir Nick Faldo said Rory McIlroy wasn’t even the best amateur at the time, but I feel like that was hyperbole from the six-time major winner.
The 35-year-old was destined for greatness from the very first tournament he played.
And now, 29 PGA Tour wins, 19 DP World Tour wins and five major championships later, he is rightly viewed as one of the greats of the game.
Titleist manufacturers were ‘amazed’ by ‘bizarre’ aspect of Rory McIlroy’s swing
McIlroy’s swing today is very different to the one he arrived on tour with.
Back in 2009, the Northern Irishman was competing in the RBC Heritage classic at Harbour Town.
During McIlroy’s round, Gary McCord performed an analysis of the then 19-year-old’s swing.
And what McCord said about one aspect of Rory’s swing was truly remarkable:
“Let me explain this. He was doing a swing sequence with his club manufacturers, Titleist. They put these little glowing dots all over you and then they put it into a computer model. And when they looked at his swing again they were amazed, they had never seen this, ever. His hips on his downswing, you can see him open up there, opening counter-clockwise. At the end, he snaps his hips back clockwise, you can see it. And they couldn’t believe it, they’d never seen anybody do this. Now this kid is 5ft 11, 160lbs, and he hammers it. They think this bizarre hip action is causing this amazing amount of torque.“
McIroy has obviously tightened up his movement since then, but that unique hip movement has remained with him throughout his career.
The below video is from August 2024:
Rory McIlroy capable of hitting shots like only one other Tour pro can
The incredible speed and spin that McIlroy generates allows him to launch his ball into orbit, even with long irons.
His second shots on the 15th and 17th holes in the final round of The Masters served as evidence of this.
And according to Padraig Harrington, only one other tour pro is able to hit shots like McIlroy does:
“17 was very interesting, he hit a very conservative tee shot. I wouldn’t have been able to play the hole that way. Justin Rose wasn’t able to play the hole that way. The reality is Justin Rose didn’t want 190 yards into the green on 17. Rory handled that because he’s one of the few players who can hit an iron into the clouds to get it to stop. Let’s face it, most players would have been hitting a six or seven iron from where Rory was. It was a very conservative play off the tee, but the second shot was the opposite. Himself and Bryson were the only two players in the field capable of hitting that shot.“
Rory McIlroy is one of the most naturally gifted players the game of golf has ever seen.
It could be argued that his swing is the most unique amongst his peers as well.
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