Relaxed and ripping off toenails – McIlroy’s unusual US PGA preparation

McIlroy’s priorities are all about the majors and, as is always the case for a Masters winner, he is the only man capable of completing a calendar year Grand Slam with unprecedented success.

Tiger Woods is the only player to hold all four of the modern majors simultaneously, but the streak began with the 2000 US Open, won The Open and the PGA played in August, and ended at the following year’s Masters.

So, is it possible to win all four majors in the same year? “I think it’s possible,” McIlroy told me. “But this is incredibly difficult to achieve.

“There’s a reason no one has ever done this before in the history of the game.

“The best thing you can do is give yourself a shot at each one and then see where the chips fall on Sunday.

“There can be quite a bit of randomness at times in winning golf tournaments. Besides playing well yourself, a lot of things have to go right.

“So if one person did this in 100 years, I would say: Yes, I could see this happening, but it is very difficult.”

Yet the world number two overcame the demons that led to a nearly 11-year wait for his fifth major title, which he won at last year’s Masters.

“If you look at my play, my results and my consistency from 2022 to now, I’m on a good roll,” McIlroy said. he said. “And that run has culminated in the last few Masters, which has been really nice.

“Major championships are not won by statistics or previous results. They are won by courage, determination and hitting shots under pressure when you need to.

“And there are no real statistics to show how good you are at it. It’s just something you have to learn and become.”

McIlroy endured a series of near misses in the majors before taking last year’s Masters. “Once you start getting over that hump and you get one win, you get another win, it kind of breeds confidence,” he said.

“Form gives you confidence going into events, but I would say the way I won at Augusta a few weeks ago gives me more confidence in where I am and what I can do in those big weeks than winning two or three events leading up to a major.”

McIlroy’s biggest challenge this week will come from world number one and defending champion Scottie Scheffler, who skipped Quail Hollow to hone his skills for the Aronimink test.

Players champion Cameron Young and England’s Matt Fitzpatrick are other players in form, while McIlroy’s Ryder Cup partner Tommy Fleetwood showed encouraging signs by finishing fifth in Charlotte last week.