Paul McGinley reflects on Rory McIlroy’s disappointing title defense at The Players and thinks he may need to reconsider his efforts on and off the course ahead of the Masters.
This week aside, looking at his performance in 2026, McIlroy’s basic stats are all good and he’s had a solid enough start to the season.
A back injury in the days leading up to The Players certainly distracted him, and the lack of preparation seemed to discourage him as a competitor.
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Rory McIlroy reflects on his week at The Players, which ended with even results.
His drive was good, but his putting was very poor and his iron play wasn’t great either, so overall it wasn’t a week for him to feel in shape mentally. Resetting for the Masters.
It was really important for him to play on the weekend. Otherwise, the schedule would be disrupted and they would definitely have to add another tournament between now and the major season.
Now that he’s finished these four rounds, he can continue to recover from this and make sure it’s completed. He can reset himself, get some rest and practice for Augusta National.
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Paul McGinley breaks down Rory McIlroy’s final round performance at The Players and what he needs to do now to get his best result at the Masters
That being said, the fact that he didn’t play well over the weekend probably put a little doubt in his mind that he needed to play a few more competitive rounds.
If he had had a good weekend, he would have kept his original schedule, but due to his poor play, he is now considering additional events.
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Rory McIlroy started his final round at The Players with a clumsy double bogey, then doubled on the par-3 13th hole to fall further down the leaderboard.
It’s probably more obvious at the Texas Children’s Houston Open than it is at the Valero Texas Open. Because it was successful in helping me prepare for Augusta last year.
As we know, a lot goes into defending that title, so he may have to arrive on the scene earlier than usual. He will have more duties than usual.
It’s hard to defend at the Masters because of the many distractions and responsibilities of being the defending champion. That includes hosting a dinner on Tuesday night, a milestone in his career in front of all of his golf buddies.
Rory McIlroy plans to turn his attention to the Masters after defending his title at The Players
Is there anything left to do for McIlroy heading into the Masters?
Although he ran well at The Players, he didn’t perform at the high level he usually does for the rest of the game. His putting was terrible this week, second to last among the competitors.
His irons looked better than they did when we saw them in California, but he was off this week and perhaps a little less confident after playing some good fundamentals in the Middle East and California tournaments.
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Highlights from the final day of The Players. Cameron Young shot a 4-under 68 to win at TPC Sawgrass.
If he had a poor putt on the Poa Anua green at an early-season event in California, he’ll be worried about not being able to find his putting boots at Bay Hill or TPC Sawgrass.
These two both have courses and greens that are very similar to the ones he practices in Palm Beach and where his putting has historically been good in the past. The fact that it can create extra doubt is another thing to consider in preparation for Augusta.
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Rory McIlroy’s best shots from his historic 2025 Masters victory at Augusta National Golf Club
What’s next?
The PGA Tour will be in Florida for the Valspar Championship at Innisbrook Resort and Golf Club in Palm Harbor. Early coverage will begin on Sky Sports Golf from 11.30am on Thursday, ahead of full coverage from 6pm.
There are less than four weeks left until the opening game of this year’s men’s major. McIlroy’s title defense at the Masters will be broadcast live exclusively on Sky Sports Golf from April 9th to 12th. Get and stream Sky Sports without a contract.
