Rory McIlroy's 8-iron explodes, sticks it to 10 feet at BMW PGA Championship

Thursday kicked off the BMW PGA Championship opening round at Wentworth Golf Club in Surrey, England. Nine of the 12 members of the European Ryder Cup squad from last year are taking part. Rory McIlroy , the world's number three-ranked player, is among them.

McIlroy has had a challenging season in 2024. Despite that, McIlroy is looking to finish his year in style.

McIlroy played very well during his opening round and carded a 5-under 67 to sit two off the lead. But it was what happened on the par-5 12th hole specifically that caught everyone's attention.

McIlroy split the fairway with his drive. He was 178 yards to the pin and pulled out his 8-iron.

Incredibly, his club head went flying upon making impact. For any of us Sunday golfers, that spells doom for wherever that ball is going to land. Not McIlroy.

He somehow still managed the stick the ball inside 10 feet from the pin. He missed the eagle but tapped in for birdie.

"Yeah, it was a bit of a weird feeling... Obviously you're expecting the weight of the club to just pull through and there was nothing there," McIlroy said after the round.

"Thankfully the ball went where I wanted it to. It could have been a lot worse but thankfully got it repaired and it should be okay to go tomorrow."

The look on McIlroy's face upon realizing the club head was gone was priceless.

Rory McIlroy overcoming season of failures

The Northern Irishman has come so close to winning key tournaments in 2024. Yet, some untimely poor play proved costly.

Back in June, McIlroy coughed up a late lead at the U.S. Open , missing a couple putts inside five feet. He had to watch as Bryson DeChambeau passed him in the closing holes. That kept the 34-year-old's major drought alive and well. It has now been more than a decade since his last major championship.

One of the other tournaments he has had his sights set on was the Irish Open. Once again, McIlroy faltered late and blew a lead on Sunday in his home nation's tournament.

Despite the struggles in key moments, Rory McIlroy has still had a solid season overall. He has two wins, seven top-10s and finished tied for ninth in the FedEx Cup standings.

He'll look to capture the BMW PGA Championship this week for the second time. However, England's Matthew Baldwin played out of his mind for the second straight day. He leads at 13-under par with McIlroy five shots back as of this writing.