At home, Rory McIlroy does not live like a global icon. There are no walls lined with framed major victories, no personal highlight reel greeting him at the door.

Rory McIlroy declined to back Brandel Chamblee and Lee Trevino in their pleas to make the Players Championship the fifth major in men's golf. The tournament - which the Northern Irishman has won twice and is currently the reigning champion of - returns next month at the TPC Sawgrass and is regularly nicknamed 'the fifth major'.

TaylorMade's Rors Proto blades—a set he used when winning at Pebble Beach a year ago and while securing the career Grand Slam with his Masters victory last April—are officially returning to the bag for the tournament’s defending champion.

McIlroy begins the 2026 season free from the burdens of history, but what will an offseason of reflection yield for the world No. 2?

The best players in the world made considerable strides in various strokes-gained categories last season

Ryo Hisatsune leads after a bogey-free 62 at Pebble Beach; Rory McIlroy six back after a four-under 68 at Spyglass Hill, as world No 1 Scottie Scheffler sits 10 off the early lead; watch the AT&T Pebb

Off the course, Tommy Fleetwood and Rory McIlroy have developed a strong friendship, something that’s clear to anyone who follows their careers. While Fleetwood doesn’t have the same number of wins as McIlroy,

Reigning Masters champion Rory McIlroy says he'd rather watch 'cricket for five days' than American football, but appreciates how the NFL has exploded.