McIlroy Overcomes Toe Injury While Pursuing Back-to-Back Major Wins
In April, Rory McIlroy joined Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo, and Tiger Woods as the only players to win successive Masters titles.
Despite a sore toenail that required self-administered treatment, McIlroy maintained a composed attitude as he prepares for the US PGA Championship in Pennsylvania this week.
"I softened it up in the shower and just ripped it off," the Masters champion said with a laugh, before removing his sock to reveal a plaster-protected little toe on his right foot.
Consequently, McIlroy will wear golf shoes half a size larger for his challenge at the Aronimink course near Philadelphia, which hosts the second men's major of the season starting Thursday.
McIlroy presents a markedly different demeanor compared to the irritable figure who avoided the media during last year's PGA Championship. At that time, he was recovering from his career Grand Slam victory at Augusta National and uncertain about his future trajectory following his dramatic playoff win over Justin Rose at the 2025 Masters.
Having become only the fourth player to retain the Green Jacket with his recent victory, McIlroy took time to celebrate before focusing on this week’s tournament, one of the events that define a golfer’s career.
"Major championship wins don't come along that often," he told . "A little more often for me in the past couple years than the previous decade, so yeah, I wanted to enjoy it.
"The further I get on in my career, the more I start to realise how special these moments are. It was really nice to spend time at home with (wife) Erica and (daughter) Poppy and my parents."
Aronimink Golf Club, Pennsylvania
Live text commentary of rounds one and two will be available on Thursday and Friday from 12:30 BST, and rounds three and four on Saturday and Sunday from 17:00 BST. Live radio commentary of Saturday’s round three will air from 20:00 BST on Sports Extra; Sunday’s final round from 20:00 on 5 Live (all timings subject to change).
'Quail wasn't week I wanted but still useful'
McIlroy’s celebration included attending the State banquet for King Charles' recent visit to Washington DC, an event that led him to skip the PGA Tour's signature event at Doral in Miami earlier this month.
The six-time major winner brought his lifelong coach Michael Bannon to his Florida base to prepare for the remaining three majors: this week’s PGA, next month’s US Open, and July’s Open at Royal Birkdale.
"It's been a really good two and a half weeks of practice and getting back into playing competitively," McIlroy said.
Since his Masters victory, McIlroy has competed in only one tournament, finishing tied for 19th last week in Charlotte.
"Quail Hollow wasn't the week that I wanted, but it was still useful," he said. "There's still a lot that I learned about my game and that's what I needed to do coming into this week.
"I didn't give myself a chance to win, unfortunately, but I still feel like it was a good week to see where my game was at and what I need to do to get myself into contention this week."
McIlroy faded during the third round at Quail Hollow, a course where he has won four times. However, similar to his approach at Augusta, he worked on his game on the range Saturday evening before shooting an impressive 67 in the final 18 holes.
"It was a nice way to finish the week," McIlroy said. "I went away from Quail Hollow with quite a few positives.
"I did some practice at home [on Monday] and I feel good about where my game is heading into this week."
'Greens big defence but strategy off tee non-existent' - McIlroy on Aronimink
McIlroy and Jon Rahm are grouped together for the US PGA tee times.
'Majors are won with grit and determination'
McIlroy’s focus remains firmly on the majors. As the Masters winner, he is the only player currently capable of achieving the unprecedented calendar year Grand Slam.
Tiger Woods is the only player to have held all four modern majors simultaneously, but his sequence began with the 2000 US Open and concluded with the 2001 Masters, spanning two calendar years.
Regarding the possibility of winning all four majors in the same year, McIlroy said:
"I think it's possible. But it's incredibly difficult to achieve.
"There's a reason that no one's been able to do it before in the history of the game.
"The best thing that you can do is give yourself a chance in each one and then just see where the chips fall on the Sunday.
"There's quite a lot of randomness at times to winning golf tournaments. You have to have a lot of things go your way along with playing well yourself.
"So, in 100 years time if one person has done it, I would say, yeah, I could see that happening, but it's so difficult."
The world number two has overcome challenges that resulted in an almost 11-year gap before his fifth major title, which he secured at last year's Masters.
"If you look at my game and my results and my consistency from 2022 through to now, I've been on a nice run," McIlroy said. "And that run has culminated with the last couple of Masters, which has been really nice.
"Major championships aren't won with statistics or previous results. They are won with grit and determination and hitting the shots under pressure when you need to.
"And there are no real statistics to show you how good you are at that. That's just something that you have to learn and be."
McIlroy experienced several near misses at majors before his breakthrough at last year's Masters.
"Once you start to get over that hump and you get a win, you get another win, it sort of breeds confidence from there," he said.
"Form gives you confidence leading into events, but I would say that the way I won at Augusta a few weeks ago gives me more confidence about where I'm at and what I can do in these big weeks, than say winning two or three events leading up to a major."
This week, McIlroy faces strong competition from world number one and defending champion Scottie Scheffler, who skipped Quail Hollow to prepare for Aronimink.
Other notable contenders include Players champion Cameron Young and England’s Matt Fitzpatrick. McIlroy’s Ryder Cup partner Tommy Fleetwood showed promise by finishing fifth in Charlotte last week.
