Padraig Harrington has come to the defense of Rory McIlroy, praising his ‘unbelievable’ 2024 season.
The four-time major champion and world No.3 secured four victories in 2024 across both the PGA Tour and DP World Tour. His winning streak began in January with a record fourth win at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic, followed by two Stateside victories at the Wells Fargo Championship and the Zurich Classic of New Orleans alongside Shane Lowry.
He ended his campaign on a high note, clinching the DP World Tour Championship and the Race to Dubai crown for the sixth time. Despite his impressive performance, some have criticized McIlroy’s season due to his lack of major wins.
The 35 year old hasn’t won a flagship event since the PGA Championship in 2014, but came close at the US Open in June. Leading by two shots with just four holes left, McIlroy made three bogeys, allowing Bryson DeChambeau to snatch the title. That was a devastating blow for the 2011 champion and somewhat overshadowed his other achievements throughout the year.
Harrington had nothing but praise for McIlroy’s performance this year, telling the Belfast Telegraph, “Unbelievable,” He lauded McIlroy’s driving, chipping, and putting skills, noting, “He’s driving it great. He seems very comfortable with that. He chips it, unbelievable. His putting is the best it’s been. He’s putted great the last three, four years.”
While McIlroy didn’t clinch a major victory, both Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele did, with Scheffler winning the Masters and Schauffele taking home the PGA Championship and Open Championship trophies. Despite their success, Harrington believes most players would envy McIlroy’s year, even suggesting that stars like Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka should consider swapping places with him.
“Wouldn’t you love to be in his position? That’s exactly what you say,” Harrington remarked. McIlroy himself, however, remained humble about his season, rating it a seven out of 10 and reflecting on his Ryder Cup success and the one that got away at LA.
“I’d probably give it a seven out of 10,” he said. “I had my best-ever Ryder Cup, which feels like a win to me, especially coming off the back of Whistling Straits. I’ll rue that miss at LA.”
“I had a great opportunity there to pick up another major and I didn’t. But I’m not going to let that take away from the fact that it’s been another really consistent, solid year with some really good performances. I’m feeling like my game is in as good of shape as its ever been throughout my career. I’m happy with that.”
Leave a Reply