Brandel Chamblee makes harsh assessment about Rory McIlroy's game- "Why does his game deteriorate in the biggest moments?"
Rory McIlroy has gone nearly 10 years without winning a major championship, despite consistently ranking among the world's best. Why is a question on the minds of many in the golf world, including, Brandel Chamblee.
The well-known Golf Channel analyst recently evaluated Rory McIlroy's performance in major championships and found that the Northern Irishman's game "deteriorates in the biggest moments."
"Why does Rory’s game deteriorate in the biggest moments?," Brandel Chamblee said (via Golf.com). "And, of course, those biggest moments are the major championships. He looks like he can hit every single shot in the game and run faster than anybody can run at the Wells Fargo, or the Canadian Open or regular PGA Tour events.”
According to data provided by Chamblee, Rory McIlroy has played 37 major championships between 2015 and 2024, with 21 top 10s (56%). However, he has only finished in the top 10 after 36 holes on 11 occasions.
"So, a lot of those times he gets off to slow starts and then plays well on the weekend when there’s really no pressure to win," Chamblee commented.
For Brandel Chamblee, the answer to the question of why this is happening to Rory McIlroy is "too many swing thoughts in his mind, or too many voices in his head", referring to the fact that McIlroy may be getting advice from multiple sources, and it may be affecting his performance.
A look at Rory McIlroy's 10 years without winning a major championship
The last major championship won by Rory McIlroy was the 2014 PGA Championship, played in August of that year. Since then, he has had other victories, but not in this type of tournament.
However, McIlroy's performance in major championships has not stopped being impressive. His best event has been the U.S. Open, where he has seven top 10s in 10 starts, including six consecutive top 10s and two runner-up finishes.
The Open Championship has also brought him success. In the seven editions he has played since 2015, he has five top 10s, including a tie for second in 2018.
McIlroy has played in 10 editions of the Masters from 2015 to the present, with six top 10s, including a second-place finish in 2022. As for the PGA Championship, he has made 10 appearances with three Top 10s.
Over the same period, McIlroy has won 17 events on the PGA Tour and five on the DP World Tour. He has won the FedEx Cup on the PGA Tour and the Race to Dubai on the DP World Tour three times each.
He has also played in the Ryder Cup four times between 2015 and 2024, winning twice. This period includes his career-best performance in the biennial event in 2023 when he won four points in five matches.