{"id":226114,"date":"2025-10-20T04:58:10","date_gmt":"2025-10-20T04:58:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/226114\/"},"modified":"2025-10-20T04:58:10","modified_gmt":"2025-10-20T04:58:10","slug":"in-india-rory-mcilroy-one-of-many-to-follow-unprecedented-strategy-in-todays-game","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/226114\/","title":{"rendered":"In India, Rory McIlroy One of Many to Follow Unprecedented Strategy in Today’s Game"},"content":{"rendered":"

On Wednesday, ahead of the DP World Tour\u2019s India Championship<\/a>, Rory McIlroy made a surprising admission.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d say the next time I hit my driver will be in Abu Dhabi,\u201d the five-time major champion said, referring to the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship in early November, his next start.\u00a0<\/p>\n

True to his word, McIlroy did a career first in India: he literally took the driver out of his bag.\u00a0<\/p>\n

dark. Sign Up Now. SI Golf Newsletters. Sports Illustrated\u2019s Free Golf Newsletters<\/p>\n

\u201cI just don\u2019t feel like the risk is worth the reward,\u201d McIlroy said. \u201cI\u2019d rather leave myself two or three clubs back and hit a 7-iron into a par-4 instead of hitting a wedge, where if you just get it off-line here, the ball is gone. You\u2019re hitting it into the jungle and you\u2019re not going to be able to get it out. You can rack up a very big number very quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n

Of course, the driver is the biggest asset to McIlroy\u2019s game. And without it, he finished T26 at 11 under par.\u00a0<\/p>\n

McIlroy wasn\u2019t alone, though, with 42% of the field opting not<\/a> to use the big stick this week, including champion Tommy Fleetwood<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In an age of bombing the ball, why?<\/p>\n

Delhi Golf Club measures 6,912 yards, making it the DPWT\u2019s fifth shortest course. If this were the PGA Tour, it\u2019d be the third shortest course of the season.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But its tightness is what sparked players to ditch the driver, with fairways averaging a width of 25 yards. <\/p>\n

Tommy Fleetwood at the 18th tee \ud83d\ude0d#DPWIC<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/N5bZsRB5Pa<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) October 19, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a more difficult challenge that we don\u2019t see that often on the PGA Tour and we don\u2019t play too many courses where you\u2019re not hitting very many drivers,\u201d said Ben Griffin, who finished T32.\u00a0<\/p>\n

McIlroy, for example, was the second-longest hitter on the PGA Tour in 2025, averaging 323 yards off the tee, with the Tour average 303 yards. In India, the Northern Irishman ranked 27th in driving distance at 278 yards.\u00a0<\/p>\n

India\u2019s Karan Pratap Singh, ranked No. 2,168 in the world, led the field at 310 yards off the tee, yet missed the cut at 3 over par. Brian Harman was fifth at 295. Last season on the PGA Tour, Harman was 149th in average driving distance (294 yards).\u00a0<\/p>\n

But just because players didn\u2019t use driver doesn\u2019t mean they found every fairway. McIlroy, who gained 1.1 strokes off the tee this week (ninth in the field), hit 71% of fairways and was 25th in the field in driving accuracy. Still, that\u2019s an increase of the 51% he hit on the PGA Tour in 2025, ranked 165th out of 171 players.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Fleetwood, meanwhile, found 77% of his fairways this week, tied for 14th in the field.\u00a0<\/p>\n

However, McIlroy doesn\u2019t feel he missed out on a victory because he wasn\u2019t using his most powerful weapon.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I’m struggling to hit fairways with my 2-iron, I\u2019m not going to hit it with my driver,\u201d the 36-year-old said after Round 2, when he was six back of the lead. \u201cSame strategy. Just have to hit it a little closer with my second shots and not miss as many putts.\u201d<\/p>\n

With driving distances ballooning in recent years, golf\u2019s governing bodies have taken steps to combat long hitters by rolling back the golf ball<\/a> as many courses have lengthened. But the India Championship proved that a tight course will deter bombing the golf ball and put a premium on rewarding straight shots off the tee\u2014just as the game intended in a bygone era.\u00a0 <\/p>\n