Rory McIlroy Explains His Extraordinary Pre-Round Routine (And It's The Complete Opposite Of Most Amateurs)

If you asked most amateurs what their pre-round routine looks like, the response might involve anything from a good 30-minute warm-up at the range to making their tee time with seconds to spare and throwing a coffee down their throat as fuel.

The latter is about as far away from Rory McIlroy's usual tournament preparation as it gets, with the Northern Irishman sharing at The Masters exactly what he does before a round and how much time he likes to set aside to complete the tasks in a relaxed manner.

Speaking after working his way to the top of the leaderboard before the final round in 2025, McIlroy explained how his extremely successful career has long featured a tried-and-tested preparation itinerary.

He said: "I try to get to the golf course three, three-and-a-half hours before I play, and then I feel like those three hours when I get here go pretty quick from locker room, up to the gym, warm up, back here, back in the locker room, food, shower, get ready, go to the range. I feel like that three hours goes really, really quickly.

"It's just that trying to fill that time between sort of 7:00am and 10:30am before heading to the golf course. You know, thankfully there's some good options. But the one thing I've tried to do a good job of this week is just not being on the phone and just trying to stay clear of that and do other things."

Although perfectly refined now, there was a famous incident prior to the 2012 Ryder Cup Sunday Singles session in which McIlroy's warm-up more closely reflected that of a mid-handicapper.

Having overslept, thinking his tee time was an hour later than it actually was, the Northern Irishman was raced to Medinah in a police car and was left with less than 15 minutes to inhale an energy bar, hit a few putts and quickly make his way over to the first tee.

In the end, everything worked out perfectly for McIlroy. He met his wife Erica Stoll as a result of his error and went on to beat Keegan Bradley 2&1 to help Team Europe pull off a miraculous comeback.

Fast forward over a decade and the former World No.1 has learned his lesson. Plus, he has Erica or daughter Poppy as failsafe alarms at home.

Not every pro enjoys a long and intense warm-up, though - just ask DP World Tour pro, Joe Dean. The Englishman revealed in 2024 that he never hits balls on the range before a round, instead preferring to simply hit a few chips and putts before making his way over to the first.

Asked to explain his methods before the final round of the KLM Open, at which Dean lost out in a playoff to Guido Migliozzi, the Yorkshireman said: "It's just something that I've worked on over the last couple of years.

"It's just been something where I've played well after not going to the range. If anything, I almost feel too loose [after the range], if that makes sense. I'm just trying to get more feel from coming straight here [to the short-game area] and seeing what I've got."