Rory McIlroy
With this year’s PGA Championship being played at Quail Hollow Club, saving Rory McIlroy for this major was my plan from the start of the season — and the Irishman shouldn’t disappoint in his return to the par 71 this week. McIlroy has been brilliant at Quail Hollow throughout his career, winning at the famous track four times in 13 starts, including a five-shot victory at last year’s Wells Fargo Championship. In fact, three of his four victories at this venue have been by at least four strokes. McIlroy has finished inside the top 10 nine times at Quail Hollow and he is gaining an incredible 2.72 strokes per round at the par 71, which is the best in this field and its not even close. Ranking second is Phil Mickelson at 1.97.
What makes McIlroy a perfect match for Quail Hollow is that the track is considered a Tom Fazio course, after the famous architect made major renovations to Quail Hollow in 1997, 2013 and 2016. Notably, nine of McIlroy’s 44 wins as a professional have been a Fazio design.
In addition to McIlroy’s love for Quail Hollow, the 36-year-old is in the midst of arguably the best season of his career. McIlroy has already won three times in only eight starts in 2025, most notably with his victory at the Masters last month to complete the career grand slam. McIlroy has shot under par in 20 of his 28 rounds this season and he leads the PGA TOUR in FedEx Cup points. McIlroy doesn’t have a blemish in his game right now and he has been especially outstanding with his driver, with the veteran leading the PGA TOUR in SG OTT and ranking third in driving distance, which is tremendous news with the long Quail Hollow up next. When McIlroy ran away with a five-shot victory at this par 71 last year, he led this field in both SG OTT and driving distance.
With Scottie Scheffler having no previous history at Quail Hollow, McIlroy is without a doubt the best pick to win the PGA Championship this week. The Irishman should contend for his third PGA Championship title and this is the perfect time to deploy him in your one and done pool.
Past One and Done Tournament Results
The Sony Open: Maverick McNealy (T45)
The American Express: Justin Thomas (second)
The Farmers Insurance Open: Ludvig Aberg (T42)
The AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am: Collin Morikawa (T17)
WM Phoenix Open: Hideki Matsuyama (T25)
Genesis Invitational: Taylor Pendrith (T50)
Mexico Open at Vidanta: Patrick Rodgers: (T25)
Cognizant Classic: Shane Lowry (T11)
Arnold Palmer Invitational: Russell Henley (first)
THE PLAYERS Championship: Sepp Straka (T14)
The Valspar Championship: Tommy Fleetwood (T16)
The Texas Children’s Houston Open: Tony Finau (T32)
Valero Texas Open: Corey Conners (T18)
The Masters: Scottie Scheffler (fourth)
RBC Heritage: Jason Day (T49)
THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson: Jordan Spieth (fourth)
The Truist Championship: Viktor Hovland (T54)
