Rory McIlroy talks about a golf killer injury that happened to him and his idol Tiger Woods

Rory McIlroy dealt with a career-threatening injury during the early years of his career. Ahead of his debut at the Masters, he noticed a pain in his back.

It wasn't the first time the ace golfer faced a back pain but it was more severe than the previous times. He told Golf Digest:

“It got really bad at the start of the 2010. I played in the Masters and missed the cut. The back really wasn’t feeling good.”

McIlroy went for an MRI scan to find out the problem. Reports revealed that there was a stress fracture to the facet joint connecting his L4 and L5 vertebrae, which he referred to as "very close."

The facet joints, also known as zygapophyseal joints, are small joints located between the adjacent vertebrae in the spine that provide stability to the spine and allow for movement and flexibility in the back. Upon deteriorating, it results in bone-on-bone friction as there is no tissue connecting the vertebrae.

The injury was similar to what happened to Rory's idol, Tiger Woods. It causes struggles in twisting, turning, and tilting hurt. The severity of this injury could jeopardize the golfer's entire career.

For Rory, it was now time to be a little more careful.

The World No. 2 recalled:

"The doctor said to me, ‘Look, if you don't start taking care of yourself or getting stronger, you can seriously jeopardize how long your career is.' That was a wake-up call for me.”

He was quoted saying via CBS Sports:

"I realized that this isn't going to get any better unless I start to take care of myself better. So getting in the gym, eating better, and I think from the start of 2011, the direct correlation between leading a healthier lifestyle and my performance on the course was the same. I won my first major in 2011. I got to the best World Ranking I had ever been in 2011, and then it just continued from there."

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Rory McIlroy going 'all out for Green Jacket this year

Throughout his illustrious career, Rory McIlroy has won 36 professional titles, including four major tournament wins. Despite being regarded as one of the best golfers of the contemporary era, he has never managed to secure a victory at the Masters tournament.

If McIlroy finally breaches the Augusta National frontier, he will become the sixth professional golfer in the history of golf to complete a career grand slam. Ben Hogan, Gene Sarazen, Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player, and Tiger Woods are other names to achieve this feat.

Popular golf tracking Twitter account NUCLR Golf posted that the Northern Irishman is going 'all out' for the green jacket this time.

"🚨Rory McIlroy already scouted 54 holes at Augusta National and today he’s back for even more preparation," NUCLR GOLF wrote on Twitter. " Rory is going all out in search for his 1st green jacket."

Rory's best performance at the Masters came last year when he posted a score of 64 on the final day, his lowest round in Masters history. He finished as the runner-up, three strokes behind Scottie Scheffler at the 2022 Masters.