Rory McIlroy can focus fully on claiming a record fourth FedEx Cup title and 18million US dollar (£14.1million) first prize after revealing he is less “emotionally invested” in off-course affairs.
McIlroy was one of the most prominent supporters of the PGA Tour in its battle with LIV Golf and spent part of the build-up to last year’s Tour Championship getting changes to the Tour’s schedule ratified in response to the threat posed by the Saudi-funded breakaway.
However, with the PGA Tour announcing in June plans for a shock deal with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, which bankrolls LIV, McIlroy has been able to take more of a back seat, especially with Tiger Woods recently joining the PGA Tour’s policy board.
“I think last year, I was probably energised by everything that was going on in the world of golf. I felt like we were maybe in a bit more of a state of flux,” McIlroy said in his pre-event press conference in Atlanta.
“I sat up here at this table this day last year talking about designated events and getting all the best players to play together and all that stuff.
“I remember this time last year being on a board call at 7.30 in the morning on the Tuesday trying to get all that stuff ratified and get it passed through the board.
“I’ve been able to focus a little bit more just on golf and my game and even able to take two days at home between Chicago and here, getting to spend some time with the girls. That’s been really nice.
“(I’m) maybe less emotionally involved. Last year it was to do with how can we make the product of the PGA TOUR better and I think I was really invested in that.
“So when it comes to, like, governance and investment and all that, it’s not that I don’t care about it, but it doesn’t excite me as much as making the product better and how can we make this the most competitive landscape to play professional golf and how can we get all the best players to play together.
“I’m on the board and I have to be involved and whenever something’s brought to the table I’ll vote on it yes or no. But, yeah, maybe just not as emotionally engaged on all of this other stuff.”
McIlroy is the only three-time winner of the FedEx Cup after overturning a six-shot deficit in the final round of the Tour Championship last year.
The 34-year-old had also started the week six shots behind world number one Scottie Scheffler under the handicap scoring system and instantly fell further behind by making a triple bogey on the first hole.
As the player with the most FedEx Cup points from the regular season, Scheffler again starts the Tour Championship on 10 under par, with Viktor Hovland eight under, McIlroy on seven under and Masters champion Jon Rahm six under.
While McIlroy is in favour of the controversial scoring system first adopted in 2019, Scheffler is not a fan of the format, even though it gives him an advantage.
“This tournament is a little bit weird because there’s starting strokes and I wouldn’t say that it is the best format to identify the best golfer for the year,” Scheffler said.
“Jon Rahm played some of the best golf of anybody this year and he’s coming into this tournament fourth and he’s four shots back. And, in theory, he could have won 20 times this year and he would only have a two-shot lead.
“I feel like I’ve joked a decent amount about being (world) number one meaning you don’t get any extra strokes and you show up this week and I do get some extra strokes. So it’s a bit strange, but it should be a fun week.”
Asked what he learned about losing his six-shot lead in the space of seven holes in last year’s final round, Scheffler said: “I don’t know if impatient is the right word, but I just didn’t get off to a good start and after that, I played really well.
“I remember walking down number eight and kind of just having a talk with myself about, you know, this is why you practice, this is why you prepare, just kind of give yourself a little pump-up speech, and then after that I snapped right back in.”
'The game is testing me' – More agony for McIlroy as Horschel wins BMW PGA Championship
Rory McIlroy admitted golf is "testing" him more than usual after enduring yet another near miss at the BMW PGA Championship, losing to Billy Horschel in a play-off.
McIlroy, Horschel and Thriston Lawrence were forced into a three-way play-off after they all finished 20-under through four rounds at Wentworth.
Lawrence carded a final round of 65 to close a two-shot gap to McIlroy and Horschel, but the South African bogeyed the first play-off hole to put himself out of contention.
Horschel then wrapped up his second triumph at Wentworth with an eagle on the second, having previously triumphed at the event in 2021.
McIlroy has endured a frustrating year, missing two close-range putts when in pole position to win the US Open in June, then slipping again on the final round to finish second at last week's Irish Open.
Speaking after Sunday's play-off, the Northern Irishman said: "Last week was a tough one but I left there with my head held high with the way I played the last hole, trying to make three.
"Two weeks in a row I've played well. Just not quite well enough. The game is testing me a little more than it has done in the past, but that's fine.
"It could have been a different year but the nice thing is there's next year and the year after and the year after and the year after.
"If you think of my career as a 30-year journey, it's only one year in a 30-year journey, and hopefully the other 29 are a little more productive or a little bit better."
Horschel, meanwhile, admitted the struggles of the four-time major winner, a close friend of his, put a slight dampener on his victory.
"I'm thrilled and excited for the way I played," Horschel said.
"At the same time I'm a little disappointed – Rory is a great friend of mine and he's a generational talent. I know how close he's been this year so I feel for him.
"I needed a bit of luck. There was a lot of luck on my side to get this victory today."
McIlroy pleased with 'solid' round as he chases Manassero at Wentworth
Rory McIlroy was pleased with a 'solid' bogey-free round of 66 as he sits joint-second on 15 under par, three shots off leader Matteo Manassero, ahead of the final day of the BMW PGA Championship.
McIlroy carded a six-under round with four birdies and one eagle on the fourth, only bettered by leader Manassero's 63 and Billy Horschel's 65, which included a run of seven straight birdies and put him in a tie for second alongside the Northern Irishman.
The 35-year-old, who won the event in 2014, was happy enough with his third round, despite finding the water on 18 and scrambling a par on the scoreable final hole.
He said to Sky Sports: "I had a few chances that I let slip there on the back nine, but I got going out there on moving day, shooting six under par, trying to keep up with Matteo.
"It was another solid day, my lowest score of the week and no bogeys. I know I'm going to need another low one tomorrow to try to catch him.
"I love it here. It would be amazing to get my name on the trophy again."
Manassero, who also tasted success at Wentworth in 2013, was delighted with his round, coming towards the end of a season in which he has returned from the wilderness to play some of his very best golf.
"I have to be honest, one of the best rounds I've ever played," the Italian said afterwards.
"Thinking of the difficult years, to be standing here right now in the lead - it feels amazing."
"My perspective has changed. I'm going to go out and enjoy tomorrow."
Spieth expecting to be tournament ready for 2025 PGA season
Jordan Spieth is expecting to return to action for the 2025 PGA Tour season after undergoing successful wrist surgery last month.
Spieth, who last competed at the FedEx St. Jude Classic at TPC Southwind, failed to find his best form during the recent campaign out on the course.
The former world number one started the season strong, finishing third in The Sentry and then, a few weeks later, tied for sixth in the WM Phoenix Open
But the American missed the final two playoffs in the BMW Championship and Tour Championship, while also missing seven cuts, one of which included the Masters.
Spieth was seen sporting a cast on his first appearance since the surgery and was able to reveal the timeline for his return to action.
"I think that by 2025, by Jan. 1, it's my goal to be tournament-ready," Spieth told Golfweek in a Q&A published on Monday.
"And for me, that would be not just going out and seeing how it feels, you know, but expecting to play at my ceiling."
Spieth has three major wins and 13 overall victories on the PGA Tour but has not emerged victorious since the RBC Heritage in April 2022.
The American did not earn entry into the 2025 season-opening tournament. However, he is able to play in the Sony Open in Hawaii at the start of January.
While the 31-year-old's main reason for surgery was to see him return to form, he also detailed the personal reasons for his decision to go under the knife.
"I would say the number one reason why I ended up getting it done was because it affects my way of life at home," Spieth said.
"Like when it would dislocate and I couldn't get it back in, it would happen when I'm getting my daughter out of the bath, I'm putting a sweatshirt on or it just so random that it was like, I didn't want it to continue, and it happened more and more.
"And it wasn't going to heal itself based on a number of different docs and scans and whatever. So it's just inevitable."
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