Valspar Championship

Innisbrook Resort (Copperhead)



    How The ?!?!

    Even Rory McIlroy knew this shot out of the Torrey Pines rough was pure devil magic

    February 13, 2025

    Rory McIlroy has always had shots that other guys simply don't have. Case in point, his mammoth tee shots on the par-5 14th at Pebble Beach two weeks ago. Those were simply not human.

    But this shot from Thursday at Torrey Pines is something entirely different. It's straight up devil magic, and even McIlroy seemed to agree based off his reaction. 

    For those not payng attention, it's a wet and wild one in the opening round of the Genesis Invitational, making the already impossibly long rough at Torrey Pines even more difficult to hack out of. Unless, of course, you're McIlroy, who found the rough at the par-4 fifth and then only advanced his second shot 139 yards, leaving him 88 yards to the hole ... in the rough. 

    At this point, par was a pipedream, bogey the most likely and palatable outcome. Then McIlroy went AFTER it with a wedge, flew it past the hole and somehow spun it back some 10 feet, setting up a kick-in four. It has to be seen to be believed:

    Sorcery. How is it possible, you ask? If we knew that, we'd all be hitting a lot more greens after missing the fairway. It certainly doesn't hurt when you're able to generate the speed McIlroy does. 

    This wound up up being a massive save, as McIlroy went on to play his remaining four holes in one under to post even par, a beautiful looking score on a real ugly weather day in San Diego.