Rory McIlroy may be inching closer to a historic feat, but he refuses to stay idle when it comes to improving his game.
The Northern Irishman will be in the field at the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship, which begins on Thursday, and will compete against the likes of Tommy Fleetwood, Adam Scott, Tyrrell Hatton and Shane Lowry.
A victory at Abu Dhabi would also guarantee a sixth-straight title as Europe’s top player given McIlroy sits atop the Race to Dubai rankings.
Ahead of this week’s tournament, McIlroy has 4,532 ranking points to his name, 1,573 points ahead of second-placed South African Thriston Lawrence.
Barring a capitulation in Abu Dhabi, a sixth Race to Dubai crown leaves McIlroy equal with Seve Ballesteros and two behind Colin Montgomerie in the all-time list.
However, McIlroy won’t rest on his laurels as he prepares to test a new element of his game.
The 35-year-old revealed he had been trialling out a new swing at his studios in Florida and New York fore three weeks.
McIlroy would constantly hit balls at a screen with his new swing but would not even bother looking at the flight of the ball.
He revealed the primary reason for altering his swing was to fare better in high-pressure situations.
“The only way I was going to make a change, or at least move in the right direction, with my swing was to lock myself in a studio and not see the ball flight for a bit and just focus entirely on the movement,” McIlroy said.
“It’s something just to make my golf swing more efficient, and then if it is more efficient, then it means it’s not going to break down as much under pressure.
“If I look at my year, the one thing that I would criticise myself on is the fact that I’ve had these chances to win.”
There was no greater example of McIlroy struggling under pressure with a golden chance to seal victory than at this year’s US Open at Pinehurst.
McIlroy led the field by two strokes with only five holes to play.
However, the Northern Irishman made three bogeys in the final four holes along with a missed three foot putt on the 18th.
McIlroy cruel collapse allowed Bryson DeChambeau to surge home and win his second major, with the former watching the final scenes on a TV in the recorder’s building before making a swift exit from the venue.
It meant McIlroy’s wait for a first major since his victory at the 2014 PGA Championship rumbled on.
However, Abu Dhabi represents a chance for him to continue chipping away at one of his main golf dreams.
“I’m a European player,” McIlroy said.
“I would like to go down as the most successful European of all time. Obviously Race to Dubai wins would count to that but also major championships and hopefully I’ve got a few more Ryder Cups ahead of me as well.
“So that’s something that I would like to [do]. I think [it] is a goal that’s quite attainable over the next ten years.”
