Rory McIlroy achieved golfing nirvana in April of last year when he won The Masters and completed the career Grand Slam in the process.
McIlroy’s lifelong dream was realized at Augusta National in 2025 after he defeated Justin Rose on the first playoff hole.
Since then, the 36-year-old Northern Irishman has had to reassess his goals after doing what he described as ‘climbing the golfing version of Mount Everest’.
Just 48 hours after finishing his final round at The Players Championship on Sunday, McIlroy played in the TGL for Boston Common against Jupiter Links.
However, it’s worth pointing out that McIlroy has only played six events in total in 2026 – four on the PGA Tour and two on the DP World Tour.
The 29-time PGA Tour winner has been in fairly decent form so far in 2026, but his performance at The Players was extremely sloppy, after suffering a back injury just five days before the start of play at TPC Sawgrass.
He will be very keen to sharpen up his game ahead of his return to Augusta National next month as he looks to win The Masters for a second time.
However, he has now made a decision that, I believe, will prevent him from being at his absolute best at Augusta.
Rory McIlroy is taking a big risk ahead of The Masters
McIlroy will be desperate to defend his Masters title next month at Augusta National.
However, that certainly won’t be easy. Only three golfers have managed to do it in the history of the game – Jack Nicklaus, Sir Nick Faldo and most recently, Tiger Woods in 2002.
So it’s clear that McIlroy will have to be at the very top of his game to stand any chance of walking away from Augusta with green jacket number two.
With that in mind, the question has to be asked: Is the five-time major champion giving himself the best chance to defend his Masters title?
My opinion is that he isn’t, and has made a big mistake heading into the first major of the year.
On Tuesday, McIlroy announced he won’t be playing between now and The Masters, which starts in three weeks time.
That means that The Players Championship will be the last event he will have played by the time he tees it up at Augusta National.
McIlroy usually likes to play an event two weeks before every major championship he competes in.
He has even been known to play the week before majors in the past, most commonly at the Texas Valero Open prior to The Masters.
The last time McIlroy went three weeks or more before getting in some competitive reps before The Masters was way back in 2015 when the only event he played prior to Augusta National was at Bay Hill in March.
So, by deciding to have a three-week layoff before the first major of 2026, McIlroy has veered away from his normal routine.
If you’re a Rory McIlroy fan, that could be bad news on two accounts.
Rory McIlroy fans should be concerned ahead of The Masters
Firstly, McIlroy has achieved great success at Augusta National throughout the years by sticking to a blueprint that he knows and trusts.
By moving away from his trusted plan, he may well be out of sync by the time he arrives at Augusta National next month.
Secondly, in what is perhaps more concerning, McIlroy not playing between now and The Masters could be a sign that he is having more trouble with his back.
Back injuries are notoriously difficult to fix, and they can end up affecting the rest of the body.
Hopefully McIlroy is feeling 100 per cent fit with The Masters just three weeks away now.
However, his decision not to play any competitive golf for three weeks before he tees it up at Augusta National suggests that he might not be feeling great regarding his back right now.
Whatever way you look at it, McIlroy has made a strange decision in the lead-up to the first major championship of the year.
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