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Jack Nicklaus told Rory McIlroy not to get “any double bogeys” before the Northern Irish golfer won his second consecutive Masters title.
Nicklaus stands alone in golf history with 117 individual tournament wins, including 18 major tournament wins and six at Augusta, and is widely considered the greatest golfer of all time.
The American has long enjoyed a close relationship with McIlroy and highlighted the two’s conversations ahead of his recent success at a tournament that has eluded him for most of his career.
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McIlroy’s final round highlights from the Masters include a one-under par 71 to win a second straight green jacket at Augusta National.
“This year, I saw (McIlroy) on the practice tee before teeing off,” Nicklaus said at a press conference ahead of the Memorial Tournament at Muirfield Village, which Nicklaus is hosting and McIlroy is set to attend.
“I was getting ready to go to the first tee for our opening, and I put my hand on his shoulder, and I told him ‘no double bogeys.’
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“The key for him was not to make double bogey. He made a pair in the last couple of rounds, but he didn’t make any in the first two rounds.
“I was so happy for Rory. I was delighted for him. I’m a big Rory fan.
“There’s only one thing left on his resume now that he really needs to have and that’s to win here (at the Memorial Tournament). You tell him he’s got to do it.”
McIlroy reveals ‘shot for shot’ Masters plan, Nicklaus says
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Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and Tom Watson return to Augusta National as honorary starters to hit the first tee shot of the 2026 Masters Tournament
Nicklaus also reflected on the success McIlroy enjoyed in winning his first Masters and revealed more details about the meal the two shared ahead of the 2025 edition of the tournament.
“We sat down and had lunch two years ago, the weekend before the Masters,” he said.
“I said, ‘OK, Rory, tell me how you play the golf course’. And he said: ‘You want it all?’ I said: ‘Yes, give me shot for shot.’
“And so Rory went through shot for shot, and he said: ‘What do you think?’ And I said: ‘Well, I wouldn’t change a thing. It’s just the way you should play.’
“He varied from it once. He varied from it on the third hole. He said if the pin was left, he wouldn’t drive it, but he would drive it every time.
“Well, he drove it on Sunday and put it to the base of the hill and made birdie.
“But he allowed himself to do more than that.
“But that birdie probably won the tournament for him the first year.”
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