As the golf world turns its attention to the 2025 PGA Championship at Quail Hollow Club, May 15-18, Rory McIlroy stands on the cusp of history. Fresh off his dramatic playoff victory at the 2025 Masters, McIlroy has a chance to join an exclusive club: golfers who have won The Masters and PGA Championship in the same year. Only three players—Sam Snead (1949), Jack Nicklaus (1963, 1975), and Arnold Palmer (1962)—have achieved this rare double, and McIlroy’s form and familiarity with Quail Hollow make him a prime candidate to become the fourth.

A Historic Feat

The Masters-PGA double is a testament to a golfer’s versatility and peak performance. Snead’s 1949 season saw him dominate with his silky swing, winning the Masters by three strokes and the PGA Championship in match play. Palmer’s 1962 campaign included a thrilling Masters playoff and a two-stroke PGA victory, cementing his status as a fan favorite. Nicklaus, the only golfer to accomplish the feat twice, showcased his prodigious talent in 1963 and his enduring greatness in 1975, the latter featuring one of Augusta’s most iconic finishes. No one has managed this double since Nicklaus’s 1975 triumph, making it a 50-year drought McIlroy aims to end.

McIlroy’s Masters Triumph

McIlroy’s 2025 Masters win was a career-defining moment. After an 11-year major drought, the 35-year-old Northern Irishman defeated Justin Rose in a sudden-death playoff, sinking a 3-foot birdie putt on the 18th to claim his first green jacket and complete the career Grand Slam. The victory was anything but straightforward—McIlroy double-bogeyed the first and 13th holes, bogeyed the 72nd to force the playoff, and admitted to wondering, “Have I let this slip again?” Yet, his resilience shone through, earning him a place alongside Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Nicklaus, and Tiger Woods as one of six men with all four modern majors.

“It was all relief,” McIlroy said, tears streaming as he fell to his knees. “This is my 17th time here, and I started to wonder if it would ever be my time.” The win, his third of 2025 alongside the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and Players Championship, signals a return to peak form, with McIlroy gaining 2.65 strokes per round, surpassing his prime seasons.

Quail Hollow: McIlroy’s Playground

The PGA Championship’s return to Quail Hollow Club, a 7,558-yard, par-71 course, plays directly into McIlroy’s strengths. He has won the Wells Fargo Championship there four times. McIlroy’s recent Masters triumph, combined with his unparalleled success at Quail Hollow, positions him as a leading contender to join this elite group of only 3 players who have complete the double in the same year. However, the pressure of history, fierce competition from players like Scottie Scheffler, and the need to sustain peak form will test his resolve. As the golf world descends on Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, North Carolina – all eyes will be on McIlroy to see if he can etch his name into another chapter of golfing legend.

Sources: ESPN, The Athletic, PGA TOUR, Golf Digest, Yahoo Sports