Rory McIlroy has enjoyed an illustrious career, but one title continues to elude him the Masters.

Determined to claim the Green Jacket at Augusta, McIlroy has taken drastic steps to rebuild his game after his heartbreaking near-miss in 2024.

McIlroy’s Bold Approach to Rebuilding His Swing

The 35-year-old has literally locked himself away in an effort to construct a new swing, aiming to give himself the best chance to secure his first Masters title.

Over the past decade, McIlroy has won three of golf’s major championships, though his last victory came over a decade ago.

Despite his achievements, The Masters remains the one major title missing from his collection.

He famously led the tournament by four strokes in 2011, only to suffer a dramatic back-nine collapse and finish 10 shots behind the winner. He also came close in 2022, finishing second to Scottie Scheffler.

In total, McIlroy has won four major titles but has not claimed one of golf’s biggest prizes since his second PGA Championship victory in 2014. Since then, he has endured a series of agonizing near-misses.

Last year, it seemed like his long wait was finally coming to an end as he held a two-shot lead with four holes remaining at the U.S. Open.

However, three bogeys in his final four holes including two missed short putts on the 16th and 18th saw his chances slip away.

Inside McIlroy’s Radical Swing Experiment

Determined to put an end to his Masters and major drought, McIlroy has taken extraordinary measures by completely deconstructing and rebuilding his swing.

Speaking to talkSPORT, Chad Mumm, the executive producer of Netflix documentary Full Swing, revealed:

“I got to spend a little bit of time with Rory in the offseason. And it was interesting, because he was in the middle of a pretty rigorous reworking of his swing.”

Mumm further explained McIlroy’s unique approach:

“The month that we were filming Happy Gilmore in New Jersey, he was not watching his ball flight, which I thought was really fascinating.”

“Actually, I invited him out to play golf on one of the off days of filming, and a couple of the other players had come out. But he said, ‘Look, I’m rebuilding my swing. I’d love to come, but I’m literally locking myself in a simulator at night, turning the simulator off, filming my swing from behind, and just looking at the motion. If I see my ball flying through the air, I’ll start going back to the old ways.’”

“So he took a month to rebuild it, and he came back, and all of a sudden, here he is … seemingly in total control of his game.”

McIlroy himself has already opened up about his swing transformation, particularly his efforts to add more power. Speaking in November last year, he shared details of his approach:

“The only way I was going to make a change, or at least move in the right direction, with my swing was to lock myself in a studio and not see the ball flight for a bit and just focus entirely on the movement.”

He added:

“It’s something just to make my golf swing more efficient. And then if it is more efficient, it means it’s not going to break down as much under pressure. If I look at my year, the one thing that I would criticize myself on is the fact that I’ve had these chances to win.”

It appears that McIlroy’s hard work behind the scenes is already paying off. Currently ranked World No. 2, he has already won the Players Championship and the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am this season.

With renewed confidence and a refined swing, McIlroy is hoping his latest experiment will finally help him conquer Augusta and secure the Masters title he has long been chasing.

Tiger Woods has officially confirmed his relationship with Vanessa Trump, the former daughter-in-law of Donald Trump, by sharing two photos on social media with the caption: “Love is in the air.”

Vanessa, who was previously married to Donald Trump Jr. for 12 years, was seen alongside Woods and her daughter, Kai, at Torrey Pines in San Diego, where the golf legend hosted the Genesis Invitational.

Seventeen-year-old Kai attends The Benjamin School, the same institution as Woods’s children, Sam and Charlie. She recently participated in a high-profile junior golf event alongside Charlie.

Woods expressed his happiness in his social media post, writing:

“Love is in the air and life is better with you by my side! We look forward to our journey through life together.”

He also requested privacy, adding:

“At this time, we would appreciate privacy for all those close to our hearts.”

One of the images posted shows the couple posing together, while another captures a relaxed moment in a hammock, with Vanessa’s arm draped over Woods.

Relationship Rumors Confirmed

Speculation about their relationship had been circulating for weeks, but Woods, known for keeping his personal life private, had not addressed it until now.

His decision to go public is similar to his 2013 announcement with Lindsey Vonn when the couple shared their own photos to counter intrusive media attention.

At the time, Woods explained that doing so would “limit the ‘stalkarazzi’ and all those sleazy websites that are out there following us.”

He also previously expressed concerns about paparazzi creating unsafe situations for his children, believing that sharing his own images would reduce the demand for unauthorized photos.

Woods’s Private Dating History

Woods, who shares two children with ex-wife Elin Nordegren, has generally kept his romantic relationships out of the spotlight.

His most recent public relationship with Erica Herman ended in 2022. Their breakup was contentious, but Herman later dropped the lawsuits she had filed against Woods and the trust that owned his South Florida home, where she had been living.

Vanessa, 47, was married to Donald Trump Jr. from 2005 to 2018. The former couple shares five children: Kai, Donald III, Tristan, Spencer, and Chloe.

Woods, 49, has a long-standing relationship with former President Donald Trump, having played golf with him multiple times.

In 2019, Trump awarded Woods the Presidential Medal of Freedom, recognizing his achievements in golf.

Earlier this year, Woods also visited the White House to discuss the future of professional golf, including the impact of the Saudi-backed LIV Golf Tour.

Injury Setback

Woods’s announcement about his relationship comes shortly after he revealed that he ruptured his left Achilles tendon, an injury that will rule him out of the Masters and likely keep him sidelined for the remainder of the year.

Paul McGinley, a Golf Channel analyst and former DP World Tour board member, believes the PGA Tour should consider adopting a key feature of LIV Golf’s structure to improve its sustainability and competitiveness.

McGinley argues that the current model, which allows players to pick and choose tournaments, is outdated in the modern era of billion-dollar TV deals and media rights.

The Problem with Independent Contractors

McGinley explained that the PGA Tour’s reliance on players as independent contractors is no longer practical.

“I think as we’ve moved into the modern day, with billion-dollar TV contracts, media rights, and multi-billion-dollar businesses that sport has become, particularly golf, we need to evolve away from being a members organization,” he told Sky Sports.

“That includes moving away from independent traders for players picking and choosing the tournaments they want to play in. For the good of the game.”

Signature Events and Player Obligations

In response to LIV Golf’s emergence, the PGA Tour introduced designated (now signature) events in 2023.

Players were required to participate in all but one of these tournaments to retain their full Player Impact Program (PIP) bonus.

Rory McIlroy, for example, was fined $3 million for skipping two events. While the policy was relaxed in 2024, McGinley believes the Tour needs more control over its product.

“If it’s going to be really run as a business and compete against the NBA, NFL, soccer, etc., the administration needs to be more in control of the product,” McGinley said. “It’s very difficult to be in control of the product when you don’t know who is playing and you’re hoping the players are going to turn up.”

Learning from LIV Golf

LIV Golf’s model, which contracts players and requires them to compete in every event, is something McGinley thinks the PGA Tour should consider. “It’s one of the things that I think LIV have got right,” he said.

“I’m not saying pay the players less, but pay them differently. If they’re contracted, and you know what you’re selling, then it’s a whole different conversation from the business of golf.”

McGinley also emphasized the importance of top players competing internationally. “I’d love to see Scheffler, Morikawa, Schauffele, and those guys travel a bit more,” he said.

“They finish in the middle of August and, unless it’s a Ryder Cup year, they don’t play until January. I don’t think that’s a great dynamic for the game.”

McGinley’s comments follow his recent proposal for unity between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf.

He suggested allowing the top 10 LIV golfers to participate in five PGA Tour signature events and The Players Championship, while the PGA Tour could field two teams in LIV’s season-ending Team Championship.

By adopting a more structured approach, McGinley believes the PGA Tour can better compete with other major sports leagues and ensure the long-term growth of golf.

His insights highlight the need for innovation and collaboration in a rapidly evolving sport.