Rory McIlroy finally won the Masters for the first time a fortnight ago and his now building up to next month’s PGA Championship, where he has been backed to dominate
Rory McIlroy has been backed to add to his trophy cabinet(Image: Kieran Cleeves/Augusta National/Getty Images)
Former Olympic golf champion Xander Schauffele has backed Rory McIlroy to become a ‘scary’ proposition for his rivals in the wake of his Masters win. McIlroy was finally able to don the Green Jacket after defeating Justin Rose in a play-off at Augusta National a fortnight ago.
It meant that the Northern Irishman finally landed a career Grand Slam, just the sixth player to do so in the modern era. The Masters win was McIlroy’s first major for 10 years, having endured a number of near misses.
Schauffele has been one of his top rivals, winning the PGA Championship and the Open Championship last year. He added those majors to the Olympic gold medal he won in the Tokyo Games, though has endured an injury-hit time this year.
The American ended up eighth in the Masters as he builds his way back to full fitness. But Schauffele has now admitted that he faces an uphill battle to beat McIlroy, with the 35-year-old now able to play without the weight of his Grand Slam chase.
“He is a generational talent and to do what he did is incredible for the game of golf,” Schauffele said. “If that was something that was holding him back and now he feels free, that could be a pretty scary thing.
“He has all the tools, I think, when I look at his game and what he can do. I’ve played against him when he’s firing on all cylinders and it’s not fun for me. It’s fun for everyone else to watch but it’s hard to beat.
“Would I be surprised if he started rattling [more majors] off? No. Am I going to be there to try and stop him? Absolutely.”
McIlroy’s next chance to add to his major tally comes next month in the US PGA Championship. That tournament will be held at Quail Hollow in North Carolina, where McIlroy has won four times in the past.
Xander Schauffele believes McIlroy’s Masters win makes him a different animal(Image: Getty Images)
After that, the US Open will be held at Oakmont in Pennsylvania in June. McIlroy has had six top-10 finishes in that tournament in the past six years, including being runner-up in the past two, with Schauffele winning ahead of him last year.
The final major of the year comes with the Open Championship in July, which will be held in Antrim. That means McIlroy will be one of the home favourites for the 278,000 expected spectators.
Again Schauffele will be the defending champion and he is eyeing back to back wins in that tournament. He said: “If I can cruise along and fly under the radar, that’s exactly what I’ll do.
“I’m from San Diego where [the wind] blows a blistering three miles an hour. When I think of Open Championship golf, I don’t think of it being sunny. I think of people wearing beanies hunkering down.
“Trying everything they can with their caddie to overcome that war that you’re at with the golf course. It’s such a validating and rewarding feeling to do it. I’ve got no problem if it’s bad weather.”
