Rory McIlroy's key to 'excel' revealed by 1-time PGA Tour winner ahead of The Masters at Augusta

PGA Tour professional Michael Kim recently shared insight into what he believes helps Rory McIlroy play his best golf. Kim shared an X post and highlighted McIlroy's driving abilities. He further emphasized how specific course setups can amplify his strengths.

Kim secured his first PGA Tour victory at the 2018 John Deere Classic with an eight-shot margin. Recently, he tied for second at the WM Phoenix Open, which boosted his OWGR ranking. Kim recently secured a spot in the 2025 Masters, marking his second appearance at Augusta National.

Meanwhile, on March 31, Kim penned a message on X. While mentioning the course conditions at Memorial Park during the Texas Children's Houston Open, Kim stated:

"I kinda [thinking face emoji] when I heard people say this course suits Rory. Rory excels when he's able to hit driver in the fairway where people can't. This place anyone can hit driver."

Rory McIlroy, currently ranked World No. 2, has delivered impressive performances heading into the Masters. He carded his second Players Championship title in March 2025, prevailing over J J Spaun in a playoff. It was his 28th PGA Tour win and his second of the 2025 season.

Earlier this year, Rory McIlroy won the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Moreover, McIlroy surpassed $100 million in career PGA Tour earnings after securing a fifth-place finish at the Houston Open.

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Rory McIlroy is recovering from an elbow issue as he prepares for the Masters

After finishing tied for the fifth position at the Houston Open, Rory McIlroy spoke about his elbow issue and preparations for the Masters in a post-round interview.

"My right elbow has been bothering me a little bit, so I'll get some treatment on that and make sure that's OK going into Augusta."

McIlroy scored an impressive final round 64 at the Houston Open. Moving forward, he highlighted how he is gearing up for the Masters.

"I still feel like I've got some stuff to work on. I still don't think my game is absolutely 100% under the control I would want. I've got my coach, Micheal Bannon, coming in (Monday), so we'll be working at home and making sure the game feels good going into the Masters."

Meanwhile, the Masters is scheduled for April 10-13 at Augusta National. Here's the list of golfers qualified for the Masters as of now.

• Ludvig Aberg
• Byeong Hun An
• Josele Ballester (a)
• Evan Beck (a)
• Daniel Berger
• Christiaan Bezuidenhout
• Akshay Bhatia
• Keegan Bradley
• Sam Burns
• Angel Cabrera
• Brian Campbell
• Rafael Campos
• Laurie Canter
• Patrick Cantlay
• Wyndham Clark
• Corey Conners
• Fred Couples
• Cam Davis
• Jason Day
• Bryson DeChambeau
• Thomas Detry
• Nick Dunlap
• Nico Echavarria
• Austin Eckroat
• Harris English
• Tony Finau
• Matt Fitzpatrick
• Tommy Fleetwood
• Sergio Garcia
• Lucas Glover
• Max Greyserman
• Brian Harman
• Justin Hastings (a)
• Tyrrell Hatton
• Russell Henley
• Joe Highsmith
• Tom Hoge
• Nicolai Hojgaard
• Rasmus Hojgaard
• Max Homa
• Billy Horschel
• Viktor Hovland
• Sungjae Im
• Stephan Jaeger
• Dustin Johnson
• Zach Johnson
• Noah Kent (a)
• Michael Kim
• Tom Kim
• Chris Kirk
• Patton Kizzire
• Brooks Koepka
• Bernhard Langer
• Thriston Lawrence
• Min Woo Lee
• Shane Lowry
• Robert MacIntyre
• Hideki Matsuyama
• Denny McCarthy
• Matt McCarty
• Rory McIlroy
• Maverick McNealy
• Phil Mickelson
• Collin Morikawa
• Joaquin Niemann
• Jose Maria Olazabal
• Matthieu Pavon
• Taylor Pendrith
• J.T. Poston
• Jon Rahm
• Aaron Rai
• Patrick Reed
• Davis Riley
• Justin Rose
• Xander Schauffele
• Scottie Scheffler
• Adam Schenk
• Charl Schwartzel
• Adam Scott
• Vijay Singh
• Cameron Smith
• J.J. Spaun
• Jordan Spieth
• Sepp Straka
• Hiroshi Tai (a)
• Nick Taylor
• Sahith Theegala
• Justin Thomas
• Davis Thompson
• Jhonattan Vegas
• Bubba Watson
• Mike Weir
• Danny Willett
• Cameron Young
• Kevin Yu
• Will Zalatoris