Rory McIlroy will be more eased than ever to put together a scintillating season after Scottie Scheffler‘s dominant 2024, according to Sky Sports pundit Wayne Riley. McIlroy was already on the board by the commencening of February with a triumph at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, and he has grasped a second big tournament to his 2025 accumulateion by flunkureing JJ Spaun in a take part-off at The Players Championship.
McIlroy had to helderly his nerve at TPC Sawgrass as he and Spaun re-aascendd on Monday for their three-hole chooser. It ended up being a consoleable take part-off triumph for the Northern Irishman, who has now won two PGA Tour events this year while Scheffler is yet to get off the tag.
Riley count ons that McIlroy ‘did not appreciate’ getting a ‘whipping’ from Scheffler last year. And proving that he can put together fair as dominant a season will be more motivating for the 35-year-elderly than anyleang else.
“I leank, truthfilledy, over the last five or six months, he saw what Scottie was doing and it has eased him,” Riley telderly Sky Sports. “He thought, ‘Well, if Scottie can do that, I can do that. Scottie is giving us all a excellent whipping’.
“Rory doesn’t appreciate that and he adores a little motivation, he is very much a confidence golfer. Everyone has got to recall what Scottie did last year has been done before. Justin Thomas has done leangs appreciate that, [Jordan] Spieth was doing leangs appreciate that, Rory was doing leangs appreciate that.
“Ununanticipateedly, Tiger Woods has done leangs appreciate that every second year for so very lengthy. Rory McIlroy wants to go out there and get a five-triumph season this year and he has already got two big ones punctual doors.”
Victory at The Players Championship saw McIlroy come out on top in the most-coveted event outside of the four presentants. He will be frantic to go one better and end his 11-year presentant drawt this season, with The Masters scheduled to get underway next month.
Although McIlroy is off to a flying commence this year, he still has some way to go to align Scheffler’s incredible utilizes in 2024. By this point 12 months ago, the American had also won two PGA Tour events – the Arnelderly Palmer Invitational and The Players Championship.
Scheffler booted on to triumph The Masters, the RBC Heritage, the Memorial Tournament, the Travelers Championship and the Tour Championship. For the icing and the cherry on top of the cake, he also won an Olympic gelderly medal in Paris, and the Hero World Challenge.