Rory McIlroy's Path to Six Majors: A Look Back at His Career Highlights

Rory McIlroy's impressive career has been marked by numerous record-breaking victories and a career Grand Slam. His first major win came in 2011 at the US Open, where he dominated the field with a six-stroke victory. This achievement smashed Tiger Woods' tournament scoring record, as McIlroy finished the week on 16 under. In 2012, McIlroy won his second major at the PGA Championship, claiming an eight-shot victory and becoming the youngest player to achieve two major wins since Woods. McIlroy's winning margin was the largest in PGA Championship history, surpassing Jack Nicklaus' record. At the 2014 Open Championship, McIlroy secured a wire-to-wire victory, laying the foundations with a bogey-free opening round. He went on to win the Claret Jug with a two-shot victory over Sergio Garcia and Rickie Fowler. Later that summer, McIlroy added a WGC-Bridgestone Invitational title to his collection and secured his fourth major success with a narrow win at Valhalla Golf Club. After an 11-year wait, McIlroy claimed his fifth major win at the 2025 Masters, overcoming a dramatic final round and play-off to complete the men's career Grand Slam. He became the sixth player to achieve this feat, joining the likes of Woods, Nicklaus, and Gary Player. In 2026, McIlroy made history again by becoming the fourth player to win back-to-back Masters titles, following in the footsteps of Woods, Nicklaus, and Herman Keiser.