Rory McIlroy has categorically denied any notion that his career will last into his 50s as Tiger Woods begins his recovery from yet another injury. Woods, 49, broke an Achilles tendon while training at home on Tuesday morning. According to McIlroy, Woods will not compete in any majors in 2025. According to McIlroy, “It’s a pain.” He has had trouble with injuries and his body. He was trying to ramp up to get ready for Augusta and Achilles surgeries aren’t fun.
I’m hoping he’s doing well and is in good spirits. He won’t play golf this year, which is obvious, but we hope to see him play in 2026. McIlroy’s perspective is very different from Woods’s constant desire to compete in golf tournaments. The 36-year-old Northern Irishman is aware of the precise duration of his professional career. “I’m very happy to move aside for the younger generation to come through,” McIlroy stated. “I consider other sports; my professional debut was in 2007. I’m 18 years into a career. I’m one of very few athletes who has played sports for 18 years and is only 35 years old. “I can acknowledge how lucky golfers are to be able to do what they do for so long compared to other athletes, so whenever I feel like the time is right, I’ll have no problem moving aside and letting the next generation do their thing.”
Pressed on precisely when that may be, McIlroy added: “I think when I’ve achieved everything I want to achieve in the game and I get to the point where I don’t think I can maybe do that anymore. Additionally, I’d like some fuel left over when I leave. I don’t want to make myself look bad out there. I’d like to leave a little earlier than I should. That is the way things are. I won’t play golf on the Champions Tour. In the time that I have walked back, I have stated numerous absolutes, but I do not intend to play Champions Tour golf. Something has gone wrong if I have to compete in golf at 50.”
McIlroy reaffirmed his desire for a more global approach to elite golf, as traditional golf tours and the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund continue to discuss a possible merger. In Singapore on Wednesday, Brooks Koepka did not exactly play down the sense he may seek a return to the PGA Tour from the Saudi-backed LIV circuit. Fred Couples, a former Masters champion, made headlines last week by stating that Brooks Koepka wants to return to the PGA Tour. Most people think that LIV’s light playing schedule makes Koepka, who has won five majors, feel undercooked. “I have a contract obligation to fulfill out here, and then we’ll see what happens,” Koepka stated. I have no idea where I’m going, so I have no idea how other people fare. At the moment, all I’m thinking about is how to play better, how to play better in the majors, and how this team wins. We’ll figure out how to play better again the following year. The same thing applies. It’s just a cycle that keeps going. Nothing is mine. I appear to be less knowledgeable than everyone else.
