Rory McIlroy has revealed a crucial tip for weekend golfers looking to slash their handicaps. Recreational players may fantasise about emulating the five-time major winner’s prowess, but they can realistically lower their handicap by heeding one straightforward, if rather dull, piece of wisdom from the Northern Irish star.

The Masters champion regularly partners with amateur players and celebrities during pre-tournament pro-am events across the PGA Tour. Naturally, many seek his expertise on enhancing their performance, yet McIlroy believes they often focus on the wrong areas entirely. Following the recent Travelers Championship, the former world No.1 explained: “I’ll certainly help them to read a green. But the last thing they need is more swing thoughts in their head when they’re playing in these pro-ams.”

Instead of obsessing over technical swing mechanics, golfers would benefit far more from sharpening their strategic thinking and staying within their limitations. McIlroy added: “I think sometimes it’s just they try to take shots on or they try to hit a shot that they probably could pull off once or twice out of 10 instead of playing a little bit more percentage. That’s boring, but that’s certainly the most effective way to lower your score.”

McIlroy is resetting his focus and schedule to ensure he’s in peak condition for Europe’s Ryder Cup defence. After a seventh-place finish at the Open, where world No.1 Scottie Scheffler claimed victory, McIlroy is determined to end 2025 on a high.

Having overcome a rough patch following his Masters triumph in April, which secured him the career Grand Slam, the 36-year-old is intent on bringing his A-game to Bethpage in New York in September.

While he has the FedEx Cup play-offs on his schedule, McIlroy has decided to skip the first event, the St Jude Championship. His main focus is on the Ryder Cup and winning the competition on American soil for the first time since the ‘Miracle of Medinah’ in 2012.

He said: “I feel like being back in Europe for a bit was a nice reset. I feel like I’m getting back to where I want to be and we’ve still got a lot of golf left this year with obviously Ryder Cup being the big one in there in September.

“I don’t want to play too much leading up to that because I want to be fresh, so I’m looking forward to a few weeks off here. I’ll reflect on what’s already been a good year and start to get myself ready for that run up to the Ryder Cup.”

The year kicked off superbly for McIlroy with a win at the Pebble Beach Pro-am in February, followed by triumph at the Players Championship in March and then the crowning glory at Augusta in April. Since then, he hasn’t clinched another title, while Scheffler has surged ahead with four victories, including two majors at The Open and US PGA, gaining significant momentum.

McIlroy believes his early-season sharpness has returned and insists he isn’t being driven on by Scheffler’s brilliance. He said: “Yeah, I do feel good. But I also had the three wins when Scottie wasn’t quite on his game.

“All I can do is focus on myself and try to play the best golf that I can. I know that, when I do that, I’ll have my weeks where I’ll contend and hopefully win.”