Rory McIlroy puts PGA Tour on red alert with latest comments

Rory McIlroy has revealed exactly which PGA Tour events he wants to skip in 2025.

McIlroy, 35, explained before the BMW PGA Championship in September that he wanted to drastically reduce his playing schedule next year.

Playing the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship this week represents its 26th event of the season.

He will also play the DP World Tour Championship before taking some time off over Christmas.

Going forward, McIlroy plans to play 18 to 20 times a year.

In 2025, he said Telegraph Sports that he is considering skipping:

The Cognizant classic in the Palm Beaches
The Valero Texas Open
RBC Heritage
FedEx St. Jude Championship

Rory McIlroy

He told the paper: “There are a few tournaments that I played this year that I don’t normally play and that I might not play next year.

“For example, I played the Cognizant (Classic) at Palm Beach Gardens (formerly the Honda Classic), San Antonio (Texas Open) and Hilton Head (RBC Heritage).

“And I probably won’t play the first playoff event in Memphis (the FedEx St. Jude). I mean, I finished pretty much last there this year (tied for 68th out of 70) and only moved down one spot in the play-off ranking.”

He added: “Well, at this point in my career… Hey, I’m 35 and I’ve been here 17, 18 years, so I just go to the places I like and play.” Good.

“Look, I’ve been working hard, I’ve been doing 25 to 30 events like that a year. And I’m not getting any younger.”

Skipping the Cognizant Classic is not really a surprise given its position in the schedule.

It will be played in late February and would give McIlroy more time to prepare for the coveted players ahead of the majors.

But skipping the RBC Heritage in Hilton Head might raise a few eyebrows since it’s a signature event.

McIlroy tends to skip The Sentry every January and that would mean he would miss two of the eight signature events in 2025.

The Northern Irishman lobbied for the $20 million tournaments alongside Tiger Woods at the height of the LIV Golf feud.

It was previously a provision that it was a requirement for golfers to play signature events if they were qualified.

McIlroy famously skipped the RBC Heritage in 2022 after a disastrous Masters performance, which led to a huge fine.

The provision has now been removed.

Rory McIlroy results 2024
Tournament	Finish
Dubai invitation	T-2
Hero Dubai Desert Classic	1
AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am	T-66
The Genesis Invitational	T-24
Understandable classic	T-21
Arnold Palmer invitation	T-21
The Players Championship	T-19
Valero Texas Open	3
Masters tournament	T-22
RBC Heritage	T-33
Zurich Classic from New Orleans	1
Wells Fargo Championship	1
PGA Championship	T-12
RBC Canadian Open	T-4
the Memorial Tournament	T-15
US open	2
Genesis Scottish Open	T-4
The Open Championship	M.C
Olympic golf tournament	T-5
FedEx St. Jude Championship	T-68
BMW Championship	T-11
Tour Championship	T-9
Amgen Irish Open	2
BMW PGA Championship	T-2
Alfred Dunhill Links Championship	T-25