Rory McIlroy Makes Tom Brady, Novak Djokovic Comparison at Scottish Open

Newsweek

09-07-2025

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Since winning the Masters Tournament and completing the Career Grand Slam, Rory McIlroy's motivation has been a topic of conversation. It's not just about achieving the ultimate feat in professional golf, but also the length of time the Northern Irishman has been among the world's best players.
Both issues seem to have been on McIlroy's mind quite a bit. During his press conference prior to the Genesis Scottish Open, the five-time major winner showed the utmost respect for sporting longevity and cited examples from stars in other sports to illustrate how big an achievement it is:
"I think it's one of the underappreciated things about any sport," he said.
"You look at what Djokovic is doing at Wimbledon over the last couple weeks or what some of those guys have done, or what someone like Cristiano Ronaldo is still doing at 40 years old, or Tom Brady in American football.
"That longevity piece is something that maybe isn't talked about enough."
Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland talks to the media during a press conference prior to the Genesis Scottish Open 2025 at The Renaissance Club on July 09, 2025 in North Berwick, Scotland.
Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland talks to the media during a press conference prior to the Genesis Scottish Open 2025 at The Renaissance Club on July 09, 2025 in North Berwick, Scotland.The parallel is undeniable. At 38 years old and 24 Grand Slam titles later, Djokovic is still making waves at the highest level of world tennis, while Cristiano Ronaldo just won the UEFA Nations League with Portugal and signed a new contract with the Saudi club Al-Nasr at the age of 40.
Tom Brady, meanwhile, went on to win the 2020 Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at the age of 42, while smashing records well into his 40s.
McIlroy, 36, has been winning professional tournaments since 2010 and has 44 of them by now. He has also spent 122 weeks as the World No. 1 while sharing eras with Tiger Woods and Scottie Scheffler, among other notable stars.
Is Rory McIlroy's Motivation Surging Once More?
Perhaps completing the Career Grand Slam momentarily affected Rory McIlroy's focus on his professional future. Perhaps for a moment, he couldn't define where his career's path was headed.
But it's safe to say that that moment is now completely behind him.
"I don't want that to be my last great moment in the game. There's plenty more that I can do," he said.
"I feel like I've kept banging on this drum all of this year, I feel like I'm a better player now than I ever have been."
"There's venues in the game that just mean a little bit more."
Rory McIlroy on trying to win an Open in his home country, via @Sean_Zak:pic.twitter.com/rRUePXK4Rf — Underdog Golf (@UnderdogGolf) July 9, 2025
McIlroy even hinted what the new milestones set for the future of his career might be:
"There's so many opportunities that lie ahead and whether that's Portrush next week, or The Open going back to St. Andrews, or a U.S. Open at Pebble Beach."
"There's all these great venues that all the greats have won on, and I'd love to add my name to those lists, as well."
The Open Championship and US Open will not return to St. Andrews and Pebble Beach, respectively, until the 2027 season.
So, no one should expect Rory McIlroy to hang up the clubs anytime soon.
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