FLOURTOWN, Pa. — Masters winner Rory McIlroy might have been scouting his Champions Dinner menu for next April’s gathering at Augusta National when he told autograph seekers he was headed for a bite at Angelo’s Pizzeria, the current hot spot in Philadelphia for cheesesteaks.
One fan disagreed, suggesting McIlroy should instead hit nearby Verona’s Pizza for a late lunch.
Everyone, especially at the rain-slogged Truist Invitational, had an opinion for McIlroy weeks after the 36-year-old from Northern Ireland fulfilled his lifelong golf dream of winning his first green jacket, completing the career Grand Slam.
Maybe the best advice came from close friend and frequent playing partner, Shane Lowry of Ireland.
“I keep saying to him, no matter what he does now, it doesn’t matter,” Lowry said.
The problem with that line of thinking is that McIlroy isn’t really built to let past achievements — even one as recent or as thrilling as winning the Masters — stand in the way of trying to win the next one.
McIlroy used six birdies to shoot a 3-under-par 67 on the Wissahickon Course at the Philadelphia Cricket Club on Friday and stayed within striking distance of the top of the leaderboard headed into the weekend at the Truist Championship, a PGA Tour signature event. McIlroy is playing his first individual tournament since he took his place in golf history as the sixth player in men’s golf history to win four majors, having previously won the PGA Championship twice (2012, 2014), the British Open (2014) and the U.S. Open (2011).
Lowry, the 2019 British Open winner, even conceded McIlroy wouldn’t exactly coast this week, even those most players in the field of 72 are using the Truist Championship to tune up for next week’s PGA Championship at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, North Carolina.
“I found it hard in 2019 when I won the Open to kind of come back out, and you almost want it too much sometimes to almost forget about that and move on,” Lowry said. “I think there’s a part of you that should enjoy what you’ve just done.”
McIlroy was reminded by fans throughout the first two rounds of all the spoils that come with his slice of golf history. The ones who braved the rain — and $27 cheesesteaks and $22 fairway margaritas — tailed him all over the course yelling “Masters champ!” or “The champ is here!” ahead of each tee shot. There were, as always, the ubiquitous “Rory!” chants that McIlroy has gamely tried to ignore.
But it’s harder to keep those Masters thoughts from lingering when there are roaring reminders of his success on every hole.
“We all have our own challenges, and if my challenge is to try to focus on the present and not think about a dream come true a few weeks ago, then that’s a pretty good challenge to have,” McIlroy said.
McIlroy won the Truist Championship in 2010, 2015, 2021 and 2024, when the tournament was known as the Wells Fargo Championship. But the tiny suburban course it’s being played on this week is new, serving as a one-year substitute with Quail Hollow getting ready for the second major tournament of the year.
It came with some frustration, notably on No. 17 when his drive missed the fairway and landed on a steep slope. He barely got his next shot off the hill and reacted by swiping the rough with his club. The hole was one of his three bogeys.
“If the golf ball just went a little shorter, this course would be awesome,” McIlroy said. “Not that it isn’t awesome anyway, but right now for the distances we hit it, it’s probably 500 or 600 yards too short.”
He had better luck on No. 14, sinking a 28-foot birdie putt on the par-3 hole.
McIlroy has been on a tear of late, going back to last November, when he won the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai. He won the Pebble Beach Pro-Am in February and The Players Championship in March.
All of those feats have been swallowed by the enormity of what happened in Augusta, where he beat Justin Rose in a playoff on the first extra hole.
He laughed when asked the most surprising thing to happen since winning the Masters, saying, “I think that everyone forgot I won The Players.”
“Look, obviously (the Masters) is at the forefront of everyone’s mind because of what it meant and how I did it and all that stuff, but I think for me it’s great that I was able to do it but, not that I’m leaving it in the rearview mirror, but I’ve got a lot of golf still left to play this year. I want to really try to focus on that,” he added.
The victory has sparked conversation of a calendar Grand Slam, though, considering McIlroy has four victories in May at Quail Hollow.
“It’s been a very consistent period for sure,” McIlroy said. “Even when I feel like I haven’t played my best, I find a way. I think that’s when I talk about being a more complete golfer, if one part of my game isn’t on, then I can maybe lean into another part.
“Like today, holing quite a few putts and making my score that way rather than hitting the ball unbelievably well. I think that’s been a big key to this consistent run is not having to rely too much on any one aspect of the game.”