Robert Griffin III has a ‘royal’ reaction to Rory McIlroy becoming only the 6th person in golf history to achieve the Career Grand Slam

Rory McIlroy joined the ranks of Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, Gary Player as the sixth men to win a Career Grand Slam.

Robert Griffin III has a ‘royal’ reaction to Rory McIlroy becoming only the 6th person in golf history to achieve the Career Grand Slam

Rory McIlroy, Robert Griffin III (Images via AP/SI)

Rory Daniel McIlroy, the man whose name has echoed loudly through the sporting world, currently. The 35-year-old from Holywood, Northern Ireland, became the sixth man in history to achieve a Career Grand Slam in golf. McIlroy started his illustrious professional career eighteen long years ago in 2007 after one of the most iconic amateur eras ever.

McIlroy won his first and only US Open in 2011, followed by a PGA title in 2012. In 2014, he won one more PGA Title and his first-ever Open. Eleven years later, McIlroy won the Masters tournament hosted at the Augusta National Golf Club in Georgia on April 13th and donned the green jacket for the first time in his career. With the green jacket, McIlroy has joined the elite Career Grand Slam list and become the first European man to ever do so.

YouTube video

Exclusivity has and will always be a thing. In sports, being part of a small group of individuals with the highest honor relates to being royalty in the game. Robert Griffin III, former NFL quarterback, had the perfect congratulations for the newest Masters champion.

Rory McIlroy, attempting for the eleventh time to win the Masters Tournament, qualified for the tournament as the recent winner of the Players Championship. After a pretty worrisome first-round finish, McIlroy finished third in the second round. He moved onto the first position in the third round and kept the position, albeit tied with Justin Rose, in the final round.

After Rose missed his birdie attempt in the playoff, McIlroy calmly sank his putt, sealing his emotional victory and capturing his first Masters title.

Rory McIlroy “royal” in more than one way

Rory McIlroy has turned precision and timing into a lucrative formula this PGA Tour season, amassing over $13 million in just six starts. McIlroy leads the money list by a wide margin, with more than $7.3 million ahead of second-place Collin Morikawa.

Rory McIlroy , Erica Stoll, Poppy
Rory McIlroy celebrates 2025 Masters win at Augusta, Georgia with wife Erica Stoll and daughter Poppy (Image via Newsweek)

His biggest payday came at Augusta National, where he made history by becoming the first Masters champion to earn more than $4 million. McIlroy pocketed $4.2 million for his emotional win on April 13, marking a monumental moment not only in his career, but also in Masters history.

In 2023, Jon Rahm became the first to bag more than $3 million, winning $3.24 million, to be exact. Scottie Scheffler, who won the Masters for the second time last year, bagged $3.6 million. McIlroy’s win highlighted the rise of golf and the inflow of money into the sport in recent times. It was only six years ago when the prize pot reached the figures of $2 million.

The Masters now stands as the second-richest major, trailing only the U.S. Open’s $21.5 million purse and $4.3 million winner’s check. The PGA Championship and British Open offer $18.5 million and $17 million, respectively, and potential increases are expected for the upcoming tournaments.

McIlroy kicked off the 2025 PGA Tour with the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, where he finished as the champion. He bagged $3.6 million from the victory. His biggest win this season was his ticket to the Masters, the Players Championship, where he won $4.5 million. In the other three tournaments he played this season – The Genesis Invitational, Arnold Palmer’s Invitational by Mastercard, and Texas Children’s Houston Open – he earned around $950,000 in total.