For 38 consecutive major starts that spanned a decade, Rory McIlroy didn’t win a major. Now, after his back-to-back Masters titles, he has won two in his past five starts.
So, what’s next? Another Irish star is predicting big things.
“Rory could win 10 of them at this stage, or five of them, anyway,” said Padraig Harrington, speaking at Concession Golf Club in Florida on Tuesday ahead of this week’s Senior PGA Championship. “He probably will still be competitive at 50 years of age around that golf course. For him, it was interesting that he won that one with his short game, which makes him even better a player.
“He’s always been a superb chipper, but now it’s with the putting and things like that,” he continued. “A very rounded game and a game that looks like it has a lot of longevity in it. So he’s in a very nice place going forward, particularly at that tournament that you would think. It’s amazing when you win one, that he’s now got two, and we’re thinking that maybe two or three or five would be realistic around that golf course.”
Harrington’s point that McIlroy, who turns 37 next month, could compete at Augusta National past his prime isn’t crazy. Jack Nicklaus famously won at Augusta National at age 46 in 1986. Tiger Woods was 43 when he won in 2019. Even Fred Couples, who plays little golf these days, became the oldest player to make a Masters cut when he made the weekend as a 63-year-old in 2023.
Last week, McIlroy held a six-shot, 36-hole lead at Augusta but lost it all in the third round Saturday. He started Sunday sharing the lead with Cameron Young but fell back after a double-bogey 5 on the par-3 4th hole, but he took control with back-to-back birdies on 12 and 13 and beat Scottie Scheffler by one.
“He showed some real good character there,” Harrington said. “You know, psychology-wise he really won that tournament. His mentality and how he went about things, that’s a very strong showing for him. He obviously still has the physical side of the game, but to show that short game and the mental side of the game means he looks like he would be a very strong force for a while to come in the game.”
While we won’t make our own claims regarding how many more Masters titles McIlroy might win, we will say he has work to do. Nicklaus holds the record with six Masters victories. Woods has five, and Arnold Palmer won four. If McIlroy wins one more, he’ll be the sixth golfer to win three.
