Looking back on the most emotionally draining year of Rory McIlroy’s career

His eyes still drying from the thought of equaling Seve Ballesteros’ number of European titles, Rory McIlroy posed for some golden-hour photos on Jumeriah Golf Estates’ 18th green with wife Erica, daughter Poppy and his newly acquired hardware – his sixth Race to Dubai trophy, equaling the late Spaniard, and third winner’s scepter for taking the season-ending DP World Tour Championship in Dubai.

McIlroy’s nearly 3,000-point runaway to the season-long crown capped a whirlwind year for the 35-year-old, a year that ran the gamut of emotions, both professionally and personally, but also one that despite “a lot of self-inflicted pressure,” ended on a positive note.

“I’m going to look back on 2024 and I’m going to have four wins, three individual ones – two in Dubai, Quail Hollow and the win with Shane [Lowry] at the Zurich Classic,” McIlroy said. “But I know that my 2024 is going to be defined, at least by others, by the tournaments that I didn’t win as much as the tournaments that I did. … I think I would have been miserable for a few weeks if I had not won today. It would have just added to the list of ones that I felt I let get away, and for one to not get away and to get over the line and be the final event of the year, it feels nice.”

Here is a look back at, to McIlroy’s own admission, the most emotionally draining year of McIlroy’s career:

JANUARY

‘Too judgmental’

McIlroy says at the start of the year on the “Stick to Football” podcast that he’s been too judgmental of the players who left for LIV Golf and has come to accept that Saudi involvement is now part of the sport. “I think, at this point, I was maybe a little judgmental on the guys who went to LIV Golf at the start, and I think it was a bit of a mistake on my part because I now realize that not everyone is in my position or in Tiger Woods’ position,” McIlroy said on the podcast. “We all turn professional to make a living playing the sports that we do, and I think that’s what I realized over the last two years. I can’t judge people for making that decision.”

Dream scenario

Before his 2024 debut in Dubai in January, McIlroy tells Golf Digest’s John Huggan that he’d love for there to be a true world tour, with the Aussie Open becoming a fifth major among other stops in South Africa, Japan, Singapore and Hong Kong. “We could end up with something that resembles Formula One, but with a little more of an American presence,” McIlroy adds. “Throw in the four majors and you have a brilliant schedule for the top 70-100 guys, whatever the number is. We’d have, say a 22-event schedule. That would look pretty good to me.” McIlroy then told reporters the following week, also in Dubai: “There’s so much opportunity out there to go global with it, and I’ve said this for the last few months, but golf is at an inflection point, and if golf doesn’t do it now, I fear that it will never do it and we’ll sort of have this fractured landscape forever.”

The first runner-up

Tommy Fleetwood benefits from two huge errors on the back nine from McIlroy and wins the Dubai Invitational following a back-and-forth final-round duel on Sunday. McIlroy three-putts from 2 feet at No. 14 and then, with a one-shot lead, pulls his drive on No. 18 into the water. “First week back out, I think you’re going to expect some of those sloppy mistakes,” McIlroy said afterward, “and unfortunately for me those mistakes came at the wrong time today.”

The following week, McIlroy wins the Dubai Desert Classic for a record fourth time after reeling in Cameron Young early in the final round then holding off Adrian Meronk down the back nine to seal a one-stroke victory.

FEBRUARY

Rules confusion

McIlroy gets confused with the Rules of Golf after hitting his drive under a tree during the first round of February’s AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am at Spyglass Hill and is subsequently penalized two shots for taking an improper drop. “Unbeknownst to me, the rule changed in January 2023 where you used to be able to come back on line, take a club length either side,” McIlroy explained. “I took a drop thinking of the 2019 rules when everything was sort of changed, not knowing that the rule was changed again in 2023, so got a two-stroke penalty there.” McIlroy ends up tying for 66th in the rain-shortened, 54-hole signature event.

‘Pretty frank discussion’

McIlroy reveals that he had an hour-long conversation with Jordan Spieth prior to the start of the Pebble Beach tournament after Spieth shared with reporters that he didn’t think a PGA Tour deal with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund was necessary anymore after the Tour’s recently announced deal with Strategic Sports Group. McIlroy then removed himself from a group text of top Tour pros. “I know what Jordan was saying, I absolutely know what he was saying and what he was trying to say,” McIlroy shared. “But if I were PIF and I was hearing that coming from here, the day after doing this SSG deal, it wouldn’t have made me too happy, I guess?”

MARCH

Rory wants lean and mean

It was an eventual T-21 for McIlroy at Bay Hill in March. He was spotted on Thursday evening working with putting coach Brad Faxon and then turned around and led the field in strokes gained: putting in Round 2. On that Saturday, McIlroy accomplished a first in the ShotLink era, driving the par-4 10th green, and he capped off his round with a tournament record-tying, back-nine 30. However, his four-shot deficit turns into 14 shots behind winner Scottie Scheffler as McIlroy shoots 76 on Sunday. To top it all off, McIlroy’s week probably is most remembered for saying he wants fewer cards on Tour. “I just feel like there are a lot of categories on Tour that people are sort of still benefiting off what they did like five or 10 years ago,” McIlroy said. “I feel like the most competitive professional golf tour in the world, you should have to come out and prove yourself year after year after year.”

Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

McIlroy fires a 65 to tie the first-round lead at The Players – but not before being the subject of some controversy after hitting his tee shot in the water left of TPC Sawgrass’ seventh fairway. For over eight minutes, McIlroy debated with his playing competitors, Jordan Spieth and Viktor Hovland, where he should drop. “Everyone that I’m hearing that had eyes on it, which again is not what matters, is saying they’re 100% certain it landed below the line,” Spieth shouted at McIlroy, who would’ve had to drop some 250 yards back had his ball not crossed – or landed – in play before bouncing into the lake. Eventually, McIlroy went with his opinion and later said he was “comfortable” with the drop and a “big believer in karma.” (He’d go on to tie for 19th.) The incident also produced Johnson Wagner’s big “Live From” breakthrough with Golf Channel.

APRIL

Another Masters miss

McIlroy meets with instructor Butch Harman before finishing third at the Valero Texas Open, and he then shows up to Augusta National on Tuesday of Masters week. Shortly after arriving, McIlroy strolls into the interview room and delivers a shockingly short, 13-minute press conference. After 36 holes, McIlroy narrowly survives the cut while saying his swing “felt horrific.” He ends up T-22 and never factors.

‘I’ll play the PGA Tour for the rest of my career’

McIlroy dismisses unsubstantiated reports that he was negotiating a potential deal to join LIV Golf and reiterates his support for the PGA Tour and the need for the professional game to be reunited. In an exclusive interview with Golf Channel’s Todd Lewis at the RBC Heritage, following the Masters, McIlroy said of the report that he had accepted an $850 million offer to join the breakaway league: “I honestly don’t know how these things get started, I’ve never been offered a number [potential deal] from LIV and I’ve never contemplated going to LIV. I think I’ve made it clear over the past two years that I don’t think it’s something for me. That doesn’t mean I judge people who have gone and played [LIV Golf]. One of the things I’ve realized over the past two years is people can make their own decisions for whatever they think is best for themselves and who are we to judge them for that? For me, my future is here on the PGA Tour.”

Back on board? Not so fast

After Webb Simpson submits his letter of resignation to the PGA Tour policy board, McIlroy says in late April he’d be open to returning to his position on the board, which he vacated at the end of 2023. However, a couple weeks later, McIlroy’s bid to return was quashed. “There’s been a lot of conversations,” McIlroy said. “Sort of reminded me partly why I [left the board in the first place]. So yeah, I think it just got pretty complicated and pretty messy, and I think with the way it happened, I think it opened up some old wounds and scar tissue from things that have happened before. I think there was a subset of people on the board that were maybe uncomfortable with me coming back on for some reason. … I put my hand up to help and I wouldn’t say it was rejected, it was a complicated process to get through to put me back on there. So that’s all fine, no hard feelings and we’ll all move on.” McIlroy would later be named to the Tour’s transaction subcommittee.

McIlroy and Shane Lowry team up to capture the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, beating Chad Ramey and Martin Trainer with a par on the first hole of a playoff. “Absolutely amazing,” McIlroy said. “We’ve had an awesome week here in New Orleans. The crowds all week have been absolutely amazing. To get the support that we’ve had out there and to have so much fun while doing it, it’s been an awesome week, and obviously I feel like it’s just a bonus to win at the end. But couldn’t be better to have this man alongside me to get a PGA Tour win together.” They then take to the karaoke tent for a rendition of Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’.”

MAY

Quail man

With the PGA Championship a week away, McIlroy wins May’s Wells Fargo Championship for a record fourth time with another dominating performance at Quail Hollow, easily overcoming a two-stroke deficit to beat Xander Schauffele by five shots.

A strange PGA week

A day after winning his 26^th PGA Tour event, McIlroy files for a divorce from his wife, Erica, in a Palm Beach County (Fla.) family court. In the confidential filing, McIlroy is listed as the plaintiff and Erica McIlroy the defendant. A statement from McIlroy’s communications team confirmed the divorce and “stressed Rory’s desire to ensure this difficult time is as respectful and amicable as possible.” At Valhalla, McIlroy declined to answer questions about the divorce and started strong with a 5-under 66. However, he backed that up with a second-round 71 and then struggled with a balky putter late in his round on Saturday, playing Nos. 11-17 in 2 over. “Obviously started the week well and then I’ve obviously played decent over the weekend. That sort of six-hole stretch on the back nine yesterday, not being able to hole any putts, I’ll probably rue that,” said McIlroy, who finished T-12.

JUNE

LIV regret

While playing the RBC Canadian Open, McIlroy reflects on last year’s “sacrificial lamb” comment and admits that he regrets getting so involved in the PGA Tour-LIV split. “In hindsight, I wish I hadn’t have gotten as deeply involved in it,” McIlroy said prior to his T-4 finish in Canada. “I hold no grudge, I hold no resentment over the guys that chose to go and play on LIV. Everyone’s got their own decisions to make, and everyone has the right to make those decisions.” Days later, McIlroy, still involved, is among the PGA Tour representatives who take part in a lengthy meeting with the PIF in New York City. McIlroy attends remotely, and then he tells reporters, “Definitely things are heading in the right direction. A lot of progress was made. I can’t really say much more than that, but it was really positive. … Definitely encouraged.”

Great news comes out at the start of U.S. Open week in June that McIlroy and his wife have voluntarily dismissed their divorce filing. “There have been rumors about my personal life recently, which is unfortunate. Responding to each rumor is a fool’s game,” McIlroy said in a statement. “Over the past weeks, Erica and I have realized that our best future was as a family together. Thankfully, we have resolved our differences and look forward to a new beginning.” That leaves a “more confident than ever” McIlroy ready to chase a fifth major title at Pinehurst. And for much of the week, it looks like it will happen – that is until McIlroy misses two short putts in his final three holes to lose to Bryson DeChambeau. McIlroy declines to speak with media afterward and speeds out of the parking lot, as Golf Channel’s Rex Hoggard describes it as a “new level of major heartbreak” for McIlroy.

JUNE-JULY

‘Probably the toughest’ day of career

Following the U.S. Open, McIlroy withdraws from the Travelers while calling Sunday at Pinehurst “probably the toughest” day of his career. We didn’t see McIlroy again until the Genesis Scottish Open in mid-July, when he revealed that after the U.S. Open, he flew to New York City and spent some time in reflection, mainly while walking Manhattan’s High Line. “Sort of was alone with my thoughts for a couple days, which was good,” McIlroy said. “I had some good chats with people close to me, and as you start to think about not just Sunday at Pinehurst but the whole way throughout the week, there was a couple of things that I noticed that I wanted to try to work on over the last few weeks coming into here, and obviously next week at Troon. They were hard, but at the same time, as each day went by, it became easier to focus on the positives and then to think about the future instead of what had just happened.” McIlroy then ties for fourth at Renaissance Club.

PA Images via Getty Images

McIlroy’s final major start of the year ends up his worst, as he cards rounds of 78-74 for his highest two-round total at a major since the 2013 Open Championship. “I look back on the two majors that I didn’t play my best at, here and the Masters, the wind got the better of me on Friday at Augusta, and then the wind got the better of me the last two days here,” said McIlroy, who was 6 over through his first six holes Friday, including a triple-bogey 8 at No. 4. “I didn’t adapt well at all to that left-to-right wind yesterday on the back nine, and then this afternoon going out in that gusty wind on the front, as I said, it got the better of me, and I felt pretty uncomfortable over a few shots.”

AUGUST-SEPTEMBER

Subpar playoffs

Following Troon, McIlroy had a relatively quiet final few tournaments of the PGA Tour season. He placed fifth at the Olympics in Paris, then went T-68, T-11, T-9 in the FedExCup Playoffs. His BMW Championship features a few viral moments as he tosses his 3-wood into the water, breaks his driver shaft and hits a shot shoeless from the rocks.

Big match announced

It’s announced in September that McIlroy will team up with Scottie Scheffler to face Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau in a made-for-TV event in Las Vegas in mid-December. “We all thought it was a good idea,” McIlroy said at the Irish Open, “and something that hopefully is a sign of things to come in the future.” It’s since come out that the match will be contested at Shadow Creek on Dec. 17.

Rasmus Hojgaard birdies his last three holes to win the Irish Open and hand McIlroy another dose of disappointment before a raucous gallery at Royal County Down. McIlroy had a two-shot lead on the back nine until Hojgaard put together a stunning charge down the stretch to win for the fifth time on the European tour and deny McIlroy a victory in his home country. “Unfortunately, I’m getting used to it this year,” McIlroy said. “Hopefully, the tide is going to turn pretty soon, and I can turn all these close calls into victories.” McIlroy would also tie for second the next week at the BMW PGA Championship, where his clubhead flew off during an opening 67. “Last week was a tough one, but I left there with my head held high with the way I played the last hole trying to make 3,” McIlroy said, “and then yeah, I mean, played the playoff holes perfectly, really, a couple of birdies. But it just shows the standard out here. If you slip up just a little bit or don’t make a birdie on a crucial hole, someone is always waiting to take advantage of that. … Two weeks in a row, I’ve played well. Just not quite well enough. But you know, happy with where my game is and happy where it’s trending.”

NOVEMBER

Parting thoughts

McIlroy’s last two weeks of press conferences, in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, featured comments on Donald Trump winning the U.S. Presidential Election, how he spent three weeks hitting balls into a simulator screen and his season as a whole. “Thinking about the ones that got away, I could be sitting up here with a fifth major title and I’m not,” McIlroy told reporters before the DP World Tour season finale in Dubai. “So that stings and that’s something that I have to come to terms with, but at the same time I’ve got plenty more opportunities in the future. But I really just tried to focus on the positives this year of consistently performing at the highest level. Did I achieve every goal I set for myself this year? Probably not. But I still consider it a successful season.”

No doubt all these memories, in some capacity, flooded McIlroy’s thoughts as he participated in his final press conference of the year. Perhaps the emotions McIlroy was displaying weren’t all because of Seve.

“It’s been quite the year,” McIlroy said. “But you know, I’m super happy with where I am in my career and in my life, and I feel like everything’s worked out the way it was supposed to.”