After a challenging stretch, Rory McIlroy seemed to find his rhythm again during the Scottish Open and The Open Championship, looking far more settled on the course.
He reached the summit in April by winning The Masters and completing the Career Grand Slam. But after waiting so long to conquer Augusta National, he appeared to lose some of his drive.
However, there were signs at The Renaissance Club and throughout the final major of the year that McIlroy was getting back to his best. And that’s something the rest of the PGA Tour will have taken notice.
The FedEx Cup playoffs are now underway, kicking off a three-event stretch that leads directly into Ryder Cup preparations.
But the world No. 2 won’t be teeing it up in the FedEx St. Jude Championship.
Rich Beem backs Rory McIlroy’s call to skip FedEx St. Jude
McIlroy is set to be the only player in the top 70 not taking part in TPC Southwind. And with starting strokes no longer part of the Tour Championship, it is hard to see how this decision could work against him.
Speaking on the Sky Sports Golf Podcast, Rich Beem suggested that skipping the event could actually improve McIlroy’s chances of winning another FedEx Cup title.
“It’s not surprising, and the reason being is that Memphis is typically very hot. Could be 90s. And I’m not lying here, you’re drinking 20 bottles of water out there. You’re drinking one per hole at least. On par fives, two. If you’re sitting around, it could be three bottles of water on one hole. It can be that stifling,” he said.
“And then you go to the very next week to Caves Valley, which is a massive, massive golf course. A big hard walk. I think if you want to be front and centre, and if Rory wants to win the FedEx Cup a fourth time, he’s got to save all of his energy. And I think that Memphis can really sap your energy just because of how hot and stifling it is.
“You’re going to play four rounds there, and then you’ve got to go to a big old golf course. And then the same thing at Atlanta with the heat and all of that. So the last three weeks can really take it out of you from a weather standpoint, and so I think Rory taking this week off to save himself for the last two is not a bad call.”
How Rory McIlroy fared at last year’s St Jude event
The Northern Irishman did play in Memphis last year but finished tied for 68th alongside Jordan Spieth while only Max Homa finished below them as McIlroy ended up nine-over-par for the week.
Crucially though McIlroy only dropped from third place down into fifth in terms of his ranking in regards to FedEx points meaning even if this year’s Tour Championship did involve starting strokes like previously it would still have been understandable if he skipped playing there again.
The current structure gives top players like McIlroy – who sits comfortably inside the cutoffs – enough breathing room without needing to play every event before Atlanta.
That’s mainly because qualification now depends more on individual finishes than season-long point totals, favouring consistency over short bursts of form outside the playoff stretch.
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