Rory McIlroy may well have once again missed out on winning a major championship, but the Northern Irishman was once again crowned the DP World Tour’s top player
Padraig Harrington has risen to the defence of Rory McIlroy after describing the four-time major champion’s 2024 season as ‘unbelievable’.
World No. 3 McIlroy won four times in 2024 across both the PGA Tour and DP World Tour. His first came in January, after winning the Hero Dubai Desert Classic for a record fourth time, before he added two victories Stateside at the Wells Fargo Championship and the Zurich Classic of New Orleans with Shane Lowry.
He then signed off his campaign in style, clinching the DP World Tour Championship and the Race to Dubai crown, the sixth time he has secured the Wentworth-based circuit’s Order of Merit title.
Often held to a high standard though, McIlroy’s season has been marked down by some due to once again missing out on the major stage. The 35-year-old has not won a flagship event since the PGA Championship in 2014, but came as close as he ever has to ending that wait at the US Open in June.
Leading the event by two shots with four holes to play, McIlroy made three bogeys down the stretch, allowing Bryson DeChambeau to swoop in and clinch the title. It was a bitter pill to swallow for the 2011 champion, and somewhat overshadowed his successes elsewhere throughout the year.
Harrington however believes McIlroy’s year was one to remember. “Unbelievable,” the former Ryder Cup captain said of the 35-year-old’s 2024 to the Belfast Telegraph. “He’s driving it great. He seems very comfortable with that. He chips it, unbelievable. His putting is the best it’s been. He’s putted great the last three, four years.”
Padraig Harrington hailed McIlroy ( Image: Getty Images)
Where McIlroy failed, both Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele prevailed, winning on the major stage, with the former taking the green jacket at the Masters and the latter clinching both the PGA Championship and Open Championship. Aside from those two, Harrington believes any player would swap their year with McIlroy’s, including DeChambeau.
“Wouldn’t you love to be in his position? That’s exactly what you say,” he added. “But outside of that, you know, you might say Bryson (DeChambeau) or Brooks Koepka mightn’t swap with him, but they should!”
McIlroy himself was fairly modest when describing his achievements throughout the season, ranking it a seven out of 10 when quizzed by reporters ahead of his season finale win in Dubai last month. “I’d probably give it a seven out of 10,”he claimed. “I had my best-ever Ryder Cup, which feels like a win to me, especially coming off the back of Whistling Straits. I’ll rue that miss at LA.
“I had a great opportunity there to pick up another major and I didn’t. But I’m not going to let that take away from the fact that it’s been another really consistent, solid year with some really good performances. I’m feeling like my game is in as good of shape as its ever been throughout my career. I’m happy with that.”
