Rory McIlroy is one of the most popular golfers on the planet, but huge popularity can lead to a wide variety of other jobs being created for himself
Joseph McBride US Sports Reporter and Patrick Austen-Hardy Senior Sports Journalist
09:20, 20 Aug 2025
Rory McIlroy still thinks about his Masters triumph(Image: Richard Heathcote, Getty Images)
Rory McIlroy collected 1,100 Masters flags following his emotional triumph at Augusta National earlier this year – he will be hoping to collect many more when he returns to defend his crown in 2026.
In April, McIlroy, 36, brought his 11-year major championship drought to a spectacular end as he pipped Justin Rose in a nail-biting play-off to claim his maiden Masters title. In doing so, he became just the sixth player in golf history to achieve the Grand Slam, having previously captured the PGA Championship, the US Open and The Open Championship during his illustrious career.
The Holywood star has spent the rest of this year autographing Masters flags for supporters and has amassed over 1,000 items for his personal collection. However, the World No. 2 appreciates his position and is not the kind of person to complain about this extra job.
Speaking before the Tour Championship, McIlroy said he will never tire of signing them. Questioned about how many he’d already signed, he responded: “Actually, I have no idea. It’s been a lot.
“But I do know that they had 1,100 extra – like 1,100 left in the merchandise facility at the end of the week, and we took all 1,100. But it’s been a lot. I’ll never get sick of signing them. I’ve waited 17 years to sign that flag in the middle, and I will never complain about doing it.”
Prior to the Masters, McIlroy secured victories at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and The Players Championship, but hasn’t celebrated another win since Augusta National. Given his packed schedule, McIlroy still hasn’t had the chance to properly reflect on his historic achievement.
He does intend to revisit the course before next year’s tournament. The Holywood ace added: “I’ve already planned a couple of trips with some friends or some members beforehand. Yeah, it’ll probably be a little emotional.
Rory McIlroy took 1,100 Masters flags after winning at Augusta National.(Image: Erick W. Rasco/Sports Illustrated via Getty Images)
“I definitely have planned one trip that my dad is going to come on as well, and my dad wasn’t there when I won, so I think that’ll be a cool moment to be with him. Yeah, it’ll be emotional.
“I still get a little emotional thinking about it. But it’ll be really cool. To go there, I have a lot of members there that have become good friends over the years, and to be able to enjoy that with them and play the golf course again and sort of reminisce over the good and the bad that happened over the course of the week, yeah, that’ll be really cool.”
Following more than a decade pursuing another major championship, the burden grew heavier each time McIlroy entered competition. Now that he’s broken the barren spell, he plans to savour the Masters atmosphere even more come next year.
Rory McIlroy is planning to return to Augusta in the near future with his family and friends(Image: Stuart Franklin/R&A/R&A via Getty Images)
The World No. 2 will look to retain his crown at Augusta National, whilst also hosting the Champions Dinner and viewing proceedings through fresh eyes. He said: “It’s a beautiful place to play golf. If you stop to actually look around and look at the plants and look at the trees and hear the birds, it’s a beautiful place to spend your day and to spend your night and go down to the wine cellar and pick a bottle of wine. It’s one of the coolest experiences you can have in golf.
“I’ve always said some of my favourite times at Augusta were when it wasn’t the Masters Tournament, but it’ll be lovely to next time go there and go up to the champions locker room and put on my green jacket and feel like I belong.”
Whilst McIlroy is eager to return next year, his immediate attention will be on the forthcoming Tour Championship, which offers the victor a £7.4m prize. McIlroy will then turn his attention to the Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black, where he will be spearheading Team Europe’s title defence against Team USA.
