Personal Gain Leads Rory McIlroy to Make Amends With PGA Tour Member Who Challenged His LIV Golf U-Turn

Rory McIlroy‘s return to Quail Hollow is only a few days away. With the Green Jacket in the bag, the Irishman will be the favorite to win the 2025 PGA Championship. But before that, his next challenge is to defend the Truist Championship against a packed field (excluding Scottie Scheffler). That should help McIlroy prepare for the second major of the season. However, the latest reports seem to suggest that the 29x PGA Tour winner has already shifted his focus to Quail Hollow.

In the latest episode of 5 Clubs, Wagner joined Gary Williams and Brendon de Jonge as he mentioned, “I had a nice conversation with him (Rory McIlroy).”  Setting the scene, Wagner stated that he was on site for the Pro-Am of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans on Wednesday. On the third hole of the event, he had a short chat with McIlroy, where the latter was trying to discuss the PGA Championship. “He couldn’t get enough information from me about Quail Hollow,” said Wagner, emphasizing the 35-year-old’s intent.

“What does the roof look like? What are the greens like? What’s this like?” said the reporter as he shared the questions McIlroy had. Sharing his opinion on what he thinks is going through Rory’s mind, Wagner added, “It led me to believe he is probably going to take some time off after this week, get ready for the Truist, and just make sure his game’s in good shape at Truist. Obviously, a win there would be nice. But he is now refocusing for the PGA Championship.” Clearly, all Rory McIlroy is thinking about right now is Quail Hollow.

Why wouldn’t he? After all, the Irishman has an outstanding record on the course. Even Wagner believes the same, as he said, “Having the advantage he does around that golf course in history, I fully expect him to be in contention and win.” Quail Hollow has been a haven for some of Rory McIlroy’s best performances over the years. He has won four Wells Fargo Championships (now, Truist Championship) on the same course. He may not have the advantage in 2025 as the Signature event has been moved to the Wissahickon Golf Course, but the PGA Championship at Quail Hollow might still be a lot less challenging for him.

The @PGAChampionship is still a couple weekends away but @johnson_wagner told us @McIlroyRory is already digging for intel.@GolfChannel | @Garywilliams1Up | @BrendonDeJonge | @golfpridegrips pic.twitter.com/K8GqR96Uwv

— 5 Clubs (@5ClubsGolf) May 2, 2025

Surprisingly, Johnson Wagner has been a harsh critic of the 2025 Masters champion. It started when McIlroy had a change of opinion regarding LIV Golf. He went from being a strong critic to saying, “We’re playing for a $20 million prize fund this week. That would have never happened if LIV hadn’t come around.”  The PGA Tour Signature events’ purse has drastically increased ever since LIV Golf came into existence. That prompted a reaction from Wagner as he said, “He’s trying to get his way in every way. I’m a huge fan of Rory, but he’s angering me right now.”  The golf analyst was frustrated at how McIlroy had conveniently changed his tune now that he was benefiting from LIV Golf.

Still probably infuriated by the Irishman’s comments, Wagner believed that he had the lowest chance of winning THE PLAYERS Championship among the top three golfers in the world. However, we have since seen how McIlroy not only won the PGA Tour flagship event but also finally triumphed at the Masters. Looking at his recent form, it seems that Wagner has gone back to being a “huge fan of Rory,” as the reporter discussed his recent interaction about the 2025 PGA Championship with him.

Having said that, how has Rory McIlroy performed at the iconic golf club apart from his 4 victories there? Let’s find out.

Rory McIlroy’s advantage at Quail Hollow Golf & Country Club

So far, Rory McIlroy has made 13 appearances at the Quail Hollow Golf & Country Club. He won his first-ever PGA Tour title in the 2010 Quail Hollow Championship on the course. That was the last time the tournament was named that, as it was later changed to the Wells Fargo Championship. McIlroy won the tournament again in 2015, 2021, and 2024. McIlroy would have captured the 2012 edition as well, but he lost it to Rickie Fowler in the playoffs.

In total, the Irishman has had nine top-10 finishes on the course. He also finished tied at 22nd in the 2017 PGA Championship, which was also held at Quail Hollow. That was also one of the very few seasons Rory McIlroy had not won a single title on the PGA Tour. That’s not the case in 2025, as he has already captured three wins this year. Something tells us the PGA Championship will be his fourth win of the season. That is, if he doesn’t retain the Truist Championship to change the count, of course. What do you think about it?

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