Rory McIlroy’s electric eagle finish put much more than BMW PGA title in his sights

Rory McIlroy said he’d need to do something special.

After a scruffy week in his title defense at the Irish Open, McIlroy arrived at this week’s BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth in second place in the Race to Dubai standings, giving himself a real chance to win his eighth season-long title this fall and tie Colin Montgomerie’s record of eight Race to Dubai crowns. But while McIlroy is in second place, he’s almost 1,000 points behind Patrick Reed, who won twice earlier this year.

“Obviously I’m in a very fortunate position, I guess, to be going for an eighth Race to Dubai. I can’t believe I’m sitting here with seven. So, yeah, I’d love to give myself a chance again,” McIlroy said in his pre-tournament press conference. “Last week wasn’t a great week for me in terms of the overall points. Patrick had a good week, and I didn’t have such a great week. I’m going to try — I’m going to have to try to make up for that this week.”

Reed said it “would mean a lot” to spoil McIlroy’s chances, but things took a turn in McIlroy’s favor this week. The six-time major champion opened with rounds of 69 and 67 while Reed withdrew due to an injury on Friday. Still, McIlroy needed a big weekend at Wentworth to close the gap on — or potentially overtake — Reed heading into the home stretch of the Race to Dubai season.

For most of Saturday’s third round, that didn’t appear to be in the cards. While a packed leaderboard jockeyed for position, McIlroy played the first 11 holes in one over par and slid back behind a wave of challengers that included Adam Scott, J.J. Spaun and Joaquin Niemann. But then McIlroy grabbed a birdie at the 12th before finishing with that something special he said he’d need earlier in the week.

He made another circle at the par-5 17th before hitting a show-stopping 230-yard 4-iron to a few feet for a tap-in closing eagle on the 18th.

That 4-iron lightning bolt made the Wentworth crowd roar and put McIlroy to 11 under through 54 holes, two shots back of co-leaders Filippo Celli and Manuel Elvira, who are 358th and 294th in the Official World Golf Rankings, respectively.

“It was a perfect 4-iron where I could just hold it into the wind slightly,” McIlroy said. “I just needed to stand up and make a good, committed swing, and I did. And obviously a great way to finish the day and keep myself within touching distance of the leaders.”

By playing the three back-nine par-5s in four under, McIlroy has put himself in position to not only win his second-career BMW PGA Championship but also potentially overtake Reed atop the Race to Dubai standings. With the BMW PGA Championship worth 9,000 points, McIlroy needs a solo second to overtake Reed atop the season-long points list.

“I have a big opportunity tomorrow on both front. I’d love to win this tournament again. It’s been a long time, 12 years,” McIlroy said after his round. “I have so many great memories of Wentworth in general. I came here for the first time as a 10-year-old to watch the World Match Play all the way back in the day, and I came in — it was always half-term. I always came with my mum and dad and watched this one.

“Fast forward, I’ve won this event. I’ve played a lot here and we now have a house on the estate as well. This place has a lot of history for me. Hopefully I have a good chance and give myself a real chance at it again.”

Through 11 holes on Saturday, McIlroy was floundering and it looked like he was going to let a golden opportunity to close the gap on Reed slip through his fingers. But after an electric finishing flurry, Rory McIlroy now has a chance to finish his Masters-winning season much as he did a year ago. After winning the 2025 Masters, McIlroy languished before winning his home Irish Open to bust out of his malaise. He defended his Masters title in April but has been battling some inconsistencies in his swing ever since.

On Sunday, he’ll have a chance to win another tournament that’s close to his heart, at a place he now calls home. And in doing so, Rory McIlroy can move one step closer to European Tour history.

“I’d certainly like to win again,” McIlroy said. “The Masters feels like quite a long time ago. I have had half-chances here and there since then, but tomorrow is a great opportunity.”