Rory McIlroy took a two-stroke lead at the Pebble Beach Pro-Am last week, winning his 27th PGA Tour victory and getting the 2025 season off to a strong start, much to the delight of Billy Horschel.
Rory McIlroy’s recent win at Pebble Beach confirmed Billy Horschel’s prediction that the golf ace will start the new season with a win.
Despite winning five tournaments last year, including two on the PGA Tour, McIlroy narrowly missed out on victories at the U.S. Open and Dubai Invitational earlier this year, resulting in a season without a major.
The frustration of an 11-year drought of major titles seems to have fueled him. Last week, he won the Pebble Beach Pro-Am by two shots, opening the season in style. For Horschel, a 27th victory on the prestigious circuit was something he was looking forward to and he believed McIlroy’s unlikely win in 2024 would spur him on to claim the trophy even more.
“I think big things are going to happen for Rory in the future,” Horschel, who beat McIlroy in a playoff at the BMW PGA Championship last season, was quoted as saying by the Irish Star last October.
“The way Rory has controlled himself this year and the fact he didn’t collapse like Bryson (DeChambeau) did at the U.S. Open, and what happened with him at the Irish Open and then what happened a week later at Wentworth.”
“That’s why I feel that next year it can be a really incredible year for Rory. Finally, the desired title of Masters is won to complete his large helmet.
“I hope for this, for the sake of Rory, \” Horshel added. “I know very well that in this game, nobody deserves anything and you have to earn it, but look at what Rory has accomplished in golf, he deserves to win the Grand Slam of golf.
“Obviously, the same could be said about players like Arnold Palmer, Tom Watson and Phil Mickelson. I think it’s fantastic to see someone like Rory achieve that feat. I’ve watched Tiger [Woods] reach this milestone but it would be fantastic to see someone that I know so well and respect as much as Rory get to that position.”
The four-time major winner reflected on a year of ups and downs and spoke of the inner conflict surrounding his performance. “On the one hand I’m sitting here feeling proud of what I’ve accomplished this year and on the other hand I’m disappointed with the games I missed. It’s tough,” he admitted.
“I’d say it was a combination of all of those things. I don’t say it’s especially pad. I don’t specifically say that it’s a club choice -I think it’s a combination. \ “
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