Rory McIlroy is playing in the Cognizant Classic — formally known as the Honda Classic — for the first time since 2018 this week. He won at PGA National’s The Champion Course in 2012 for his third victory on the PGA Tour.
This week, he’s hoping to get on track after a few average finishes at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and Genesis Invitational to open his 2024 Tour campaign.
“So third start on the PGA Tour. I had two events in the Middle East and played well in Dubai. I feel like Pebble, the weather disrupted it and the courses were super soft. Won the pro-am portion, so I guess it wasn’t all bad,” McIlory told the media ahead of Thursday’s start in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. “And then Riv was pretty good. I made a mess of 15 and 16 on the first day, but apart from that, I felt like I played some pretty good golf.
Cognizant Classic: Picks to win, odds | Thursday tee times
“Feel like my game is in pretty good shape. You know, it’s nice to stay at home this week and feel a little more I guess relaxed in the surroundings. Looking forward to getting started.”
On Tuesday, LIV Golf member Talor Gooch made a few interesting comments regarding this year’s Masters and McIlroy’s chase for the career grand slam.
“If Rory McIlroy goes and completes his (career) grand slam without some of the best players in the world, there’s just going to be an asterisk. It’s just the reality,” Gooch told Australian Golf Digest. “I think everybody wins whenever the majors figure out a way to get the best players in the world there.”
Gooch, who won the season-long competition on LIV last season, is not in the Augusta National field this year after tying for 34th in 2023. In 11 career major starts, Gooch has yet to finish inside the top 10.
Talor Gooch of the United States and Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland shake hands on the 18th green after their round during the third round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard at Arnold Palmer Bay Hill Golf Course on March 05, 2022 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
McIlroy decided to give Gooch the benefit of the doubt Wednesday.
“Look, the Masters is an invitational and they’ll invite whoever they think warrants an invite. I think to be fair to Talor, if you read the entire — the question and then the answer, it’s not as if he just came out with that.
“I feel like whoever did the interview led him down that path to say that, so I’m giving him the benefit of the doubt there a little bit. He just agreed with what the interviewer asked.”
He did, however, point out how Gooch’s fellow LIV member Joaquin Niemann worked hard for an invite.
“At the same time, Joaquin Niemann got an invite, and I played with him a few weeks ago in Dubai, and he went down to Australia and won. He was in Oman last week. He has been chasing his tail around the world to get this, play his way into Augusta or show enough form to warrant an invite. I don’t know if the same can be said for Talor.”
McIlroy is slated to tee off alongside Mexico Open winner Jake Knapp – you have to feel bad for their golf balls, those two are going to chase either off the tee all day – and defending Cognizant Classic champion Chris Kirk at 7:40 a.m. ET Thursday morning.
