That\u2019s likely a career first for Rory McIlroy.\u00a0<\/p>\n
On the par-4 second hole in Round 3 of the Australian Open at Royal Melbourne, Rory McIlroy hit a wayward drive that nestled into the rough next to a bizarre obstacle: a banana peel.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was sort of a double whammy\u2014it was in the tough grass, and under a banana skin,\u201d McIlroy said. \u201cBut I shouldn\u2019t have been there in the first place.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sign Up Now. SI Golf Newsletters. Sports Illustrated\u2019s Free Golf Newsletters. dark<\/p>\n
Under the rules, players can move loose impediments, but if the ball shifts in the process, they\u2019ll receive a one-stroke penalty.<\/p>\n
So McIlroy hit his shot through the discarded banana peel, and the ball advanced roughly 30 feet en route to a double bogey.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Have you ever seen this before?! \ud83e\udd14<\/p>\n
Rory McIlroy double bogeys the second hole after finding his ball next to a banana \ud83c\udf4c#AusOpenGolf<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/229POQPHct<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) December 6, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n However, that wasn\u2019t the only unusual moment of McIlroy\u2019s year, which included completing his career Grand Slam at the Masters<\/a>. Just a day before his banana conundrum, he whiffed a shot on the par-5 14th under the trees<\/a>, calling it \u201cnot one of my finer moments.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Also, in Round 3 of the British Open, McIlroy, after slicing a drive into the rough, hit an approach shot and a second, hidden ball popped out of the ground<\/a> immediately after his swing.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThat is the most weird, ridiculous thing I’ve ever seen,\u201d McIlroy said afterward.\u00a0<\/p>\n With another oddity occurring on Saturday in Australia, McIlroy shot a 3-under 68, leaving him nine strokes behind leader Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI am probably going to be too far behind to challenge tomorrow,\u201d McIlroy said. <\/p>\n