19th Hole

Rory McIlroy reveals the secrets behind his putting transformation

Published

8 months ago

Sep 8, 2025

On Sunday, Rory McIlroy delivered one of the highlights of 2025, rolling in a brilliant eagle putt on the final hole of regulation at the Irish Open to force a playoff, which he then went on to win.

It was an electrifying moment, and probably the best putt of McIlroy’s incredible year, which has been fuelled by a vast improvement on the greens.

RORY MCILROY!!!! ??#AmgenIrishOpen pic.twitter.com/dXPul6ujk5

— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) September 7, 2025

In 2023, the Irishman finished 65th on the PGA Tour for Strokes Gained: Putting, while last year he finished 58th in the same department. However, in 2025 it’s been a different story for Rory on the greens, jumping up to 8th for Strokes Gained: Putting on tour.

Speaking after his victory at the K Club, McIlroy revealed why he believes he has transformed his putting performance this year, saying:

“Yeah, I finally found my range, around 30 feet, it looks like. Yeah, it’s been a great season putting-wise. I think I finished fourth in strokes gained putting on the PGA Tour, which is by far statistically the best I’ve ever done.

“I’ve worked with Brad Faxon now for the last 6 1/2 years, and I learned a few things, I think. Working with Fax has really helped, I think, the style of putter that I’ve gone, the Spider, the mallet-style putter definitely helps me in some of the strokes with the way I do, it helps me be a little more consistent.”

McIlroy added:

“Then when I do work with Fax, we keep it very, very simple. There’s really only a couple of thoughts that — sometimes he’ll come over to The Bear’s Club or whatever, and it’s supposed to be for a putting lesson and we don’t even hit any putts. We’ll talk about putting. We’ll grab a coffee, talk about mindset, we’ll talk about routine, and that will be it.

“Sometimes I don’t even need to go and hit a putt. It’s just talking about it and just being in the right mindset. Like one of the best putts that I felt like I held today was the second putt on the second playoff hole, little slider, four feet left-to-right. That was a nice solid stroke, especially to get the ball in just before he hit his putt.

“So even just little things like that, under a little bit of pressure, being able to stick to your routine, making good strokes, I have been pleased with that part of my game this year.”

On the specifics of his routine, the 36-year-old revealed:

“For me it’s about keeping my right arm soft. It’s about keeping the putter level through impact and picking my spot a couple feet in front of me, lining up to that.

“Yeah, I think that’s the nice thing, when you get under pressure and your routine is dialed in, it sort of makes everything a little bit better and makes everything a bit easier.”

The Grand Slam winner will now head to the BMW Championship this week before he competes later this month at the Ryder Cup.

19th Hole

How much each player won at the 2026 Masters

Published

1 month ago

Apr 13, 2026

Gianni Magliocco

Rory McIlroy made it two wins in as many years at Augusta National, seeing off the challengers on a dramatic Sunday to slip on the green jacket once again. The victory earned Rory a whopping payday of $4.5 million, with Scottie Scheffler his closest challenger earning $2.43 million for his sole runner-up finish.

With a total prize purse of $22.5 million up for grabs, here’s a look at how much each player won at the 2026 Masters tournament.

For players that did not make the cut, they still earned $25k for their efforts at the year’s opening major.

1: Rory McIlroy, $4.5 million
2: Scottie Scheffler, $2.43 million
T3: Tyrrell Hatton, $1.08 million
T3: Russell Henley, $1.08 million
T3: Justin Rose, $1.08 million
T3: Cameron Young, $1.08 million
T7: Collin Morikawa, $725,625
T7: Sam Burns, $725,625
T9: Xander Schauffele, $630,00
T9: Max Homa, $630,00
11: Jake Knapp, $562,500
T12: Jordan Spieth, $427,500
T12: Brooks Koepka, $427,500
T12: Hideki Matsuyama, $427,500
T12: Patrick Reed, $427,500
T12: Patrick Cantlay, $427,500
T12: Jason Day, $427,500
T18: Viktor Hovland, $315,000
T18: Maverick McNealy, $315,000
T18: Matt Fitzpatrick, $315,000
T21: Keegan Bradley, $252,000
T21: Ludvig Aberg, $252,000
T21: Wyndham Clark, $252,000
T24: Matt McCarty, $182,083
T24: Adam Scott, $182,083
T24: Sam Stevens, $182,083
T24: Chris Gotterup, $182,083
T24: Michael Brennan, $182,083
T24: Brian Campbell, $182,083
T30: Alex Noren, $146,250
T30: Harris English, $146,250
T30: Shane Lowry, $146,250
T33: Gary Woodland, $121,500
T33: Dustin Johnson, $121,500
T33: Brian Harman, $121,500
T33: Tommy Fleetwood, $121,500
T33: Ben Griffin, $121,500
T38: Jon Rahm, $105,750
T38: Ryan Gerard, $101,250
T38: Haotong Li, $96,750
T41: Justin Thomas, $92,250
T41: Sepp Straka, $87,750
T41: Jacob Bridgeman, $83,250
T41: Kristoffer Reitan, $78,750
T41: Nick Taylor, $74,250
46: Sungjae Im, $69,750
47: Si Woo Kim, $65,250
48: Aaron Rai, $61,650
T49: Corey Conners, $57,600
T49: Marco Penge, $57,600
51: Kurt Kitayama, $55,250
52: Sergio Garcia, $54,000
53: Rasmus Hojgaard, $52,650
54: Charl Schwartzel, $51,300

19th Hole

CBS’s Sunday Masters coverage slammed by golf fans

Published

1 month ago

Apr 13, 2026

Gianni Magliocco

While Sunday was a dramatic day at the Masters, many golf fans were left feeling frustrated by the CBS final round coverage.

There were plenty of moments that golf fans took to social media to air their frustrations on Sunday over, including a lack of shots being shown throughout the day, being behind the live action, confusion over the approach shots of the final group on 18, and providing an angle for the winning putt where the cup couldn’t be seen.

Here’s a look at some of the criticisms that were directed at the CBS coverage throughout the day on X:

This has been a brutal broadcast for CBS. When the folks from Augusta sit down with them this year, you can bet they’ll talk about this 15 seconds where we have no idea where Rory’s ball went, and Dottie moans. #TheMasters pic.twitter.com/ak3mkpIN7V

— Ryan (@PossiblyRy) April 12, 2026

It’s rare criticism coming in for CBS, who are usually heavily praised for their Masters coverage each year.

19th Hole

The surprise club Tommy Fleetwood says is key to his Masters chances

Published

1 month ago

Apr 7, 2026

Gianni Magliocco

Tommy Fleetwood goes in search for the first major victory of his career again this week, with the Englishman proving to be a popular pick at Augusta National.

Fleetwood’s best showing at Augusta came back in 2024 where he finished T3, and while speaking at his pre-tournament press conference, the 35-year-old emphasized the importance of his 9-wood in his pursuit of the green jacket.

Speaking on Tuesday to media, Fleetwood said:

“It’s a great 9-wood golf course. I think it’s always been — I can’t remember when I first put like a 9-wood in or a high lofted club, but it’s a perfect like 9-wood golf course. I’ve had that in the bag for a few years.”

The Englishman continued, revealing that his strategy for the week won’t just be to hit driver off the tee as much as possible:

“Yeah, it’s funny really because I know Augusta is probably associated with being fairly forgiving off the tee in a way, so you think you can whale around driver a little bit. But I don’t necessarily think that’s always the play for me. I think there’s holes that set up really well where I can draw it with the mini driver if I’m feeling less comfortable with the driver and things like that.”

That strategy he believes will make his TaylorMade Qi10 9-wood extra critical this week in Georgia:

“The biggest thing is the 9-wood for me. If I can put myself in position on the par-5s or the 4th long par-3, like it — for me, I can’t really hit that high 4-iron, so 9-wood helps me a lot.”