Jack Nicklaus has given plenty of advice to Rory McIlroy throughout the years.
Nicklaus famously sat down with McIlroy just before he completed the career Grand Slam at Augusta National back in 2025, and helped the Northern Irishman devise a game plan to finally get his hands on a green jacket.
Of course, the rest is history. The 37-year-old went on to defend his Masters title earlier this year in April and it would be foolhardy to bet against him adding many more to his collection before he hangs up his clubs.
Nicklaus once again gave McIlroy advice before The Masters this year, and the fact that he always makes himself available for the Northern Irishman tells us all we need to know about the admiration he has for him.
Rory McIlroy has 30 PGA Tour wins to his name, including six major championships.
Meanwhile, Jack Nicklaus racked up 73 PGA Tour victories, including a record 18 majors.
So it goes without saying that McIlroy is usually very receptive to any advice offered to him by the Golden Bear.
Jack Nicklaus confirms what his relationship with Rory McIlroy is like now
Nicklaus was speaking on The Golf Channel during the broadcast of the second round at Muirfield Village on Friday.
As the conversation turned to McIlroy, Nicklaus lifted the lid on what his relationship is now like with the 37-year-old.
“The most impressive thing is he’s not a big guy and he hits it so darn far, that’s what’s impressive,” the 18-time major winner said.
“When he throttles it back a little bit, then he becomes a really, really good player.
“When he keeps hitting it too hard, then Rory gets himself in trouble. I love Rory. He’s a wonderful guy and a great player.
“We’ve become very close friends and I like to see him play well. But I think it takes time for us all to learn.“
Rory McIlroy made big change to his driver before The Memorial
Before the start of The Memorial Tournament this week, McIlroy switched to a heavier shaft in his driver.
The move was made in order to improve his accuracy, despite the fact that it may see his speed and distance decrease, as explained by The Golf Channel’s Todd Lewis.
“Rory McIlroy, by the way, is making a slightly significant change in his driver,“ Lewis said.
“Now, he normally has a 65-gram shaft in his driver. Well, he’s added 10 grams to his shaft.
“He’s using a 75-gram shaft in his driver this week. Why? Well, he feels, even though he’s going to give up some speed with a heavier shaft, his misses won’t be as wide.
“So he’s adding 10 grams to his driver for more accuracy, but, as you know, he’s got plenty of speed to spare, so it should not hurt him significantly in regards to distance off the tee.“
By making that change, Rory McIlroy clearly listened to Jack Nicklaus’ advice.
However, he has only hit 57.14% of fairways this week at Muirfield Village, so improving his accuracy is clearly still an ongoing process for him.
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