There was a question or two floating above the head of Rory McIlroy for many years: Will he win the Masters, and will he even win another major?
After winning the 2025 Masters and completing the career grand slam, McIlroy asked the media a question of his own at the press conference at Augusta National:
“What are we going to talk about next year?
A good question, but what we can now ask, given he has dispelled many years of heartache and disappointment in the four major tournaments in men’s golf, is how many majors for Rory now?
The Northern Irishman’s major drought reached 10 complete years through 2024, having won the PGA Championship in 2014. This was his last major win before beating Justin Rose in a playoff done Magnolia Lane in April.
Having won two of his four majors in 2014, the stage was set for McIlroy to kick on further, but it didn’t happen. He knocked on the door in 2022 at St Andrews and was brutally denied a second US Open win in 2024 at Pinehurst. But he is now a five-time major champion and there is an expectation he will kick on now.
NCG’s Matt Chivers and Steve Carroll sat down, thought long and hard, and reached their own conclusions to the new burning question in McIlroy’s career.
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Will Rory McIlroy win more majors?
Double-figure majors aren’t out of the question
Tallying up Rory’s major total is a difficult question. How long is a piece of string? It will probably depend on how hungry he is to win more titles.
He’s got two pretty good chances coming right up in the next few weeks of 2025. Is there anyone on the planet with a better record at Quail Hollow for the PGA Championship? And freed from the pressures of trying to achieve the Grand Slam, The Open at Royal Portrush – where a teenage Rory once shot 61 – could be a glorious homecoming.
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McIlroy has scaled a summit, though, reaching a peak only five other golfers have ever previously climbed. Once you’ve tamed your Everest, where do you go?
Some find their ambitions dulled – the sense of their achievement enough to leave them content. For the real winners, just look at Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus, the relentless urge for victory is what keeps them going.
I sense Rory will be in the latter camp, that having the green jacket on his shoulders will be freeing rather than constricting.
Five is a great number. But with the 36-year-old hoping to count on another decade at the summit of the game, would it be such a huge surprise if he managed to reach a major milestone and double figures?
It will certainly be fun finding out.
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Rory will have the longevity to join golf’s immortals
It is such a shame that McIlroy essentially lost 10 years in the majors. He had close calls in 2022, 2023 and 2024, and the fact he won his fifth major 10 years after his fourth leaves you thinking just how deep he could have gone.
But all of those scars hardened him for winning the Masters at Augusta in 2025. All of those setbacks helped him overcome Justin Rose in the playoff. To me, the shackles have been ripped off, and the Northern Irishman has many exciting years ahead.
Like most professional golfers at the top level, McIlroy is in incredible shape. It’s a little hard to get my head around Rory being 36 years old, perhaps another sign of that lost decade at the majors, but there should be no fear about his age.
Phil Mickelson won his sixth major at the age of 50, and I can’t see why McIlroy can’t compete until that age too. The beauty of golf is in its longevity, so I’m granting McIlroy at least another 15 years of competitiveness at the majors.
Assuming he stays focused and hungry like Steve mentions above, McIlroy will have realistic chances of winning the next 50 or 60 major championships. His talent is immense and his power is explosive, so his fans can definitely expect him to reach 10 or 11 majors.
He is already a god in the grand slam club, but double figures in the majors would make him immortal.
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