9 Things Rory McIlroy Still Has Left To Achieve In His Career

After Rory McIlroy completed the career Grand Slam by winning The Masters on Sunday, the Northern Irishman bowled into his press conference and asked the media "what are we going to talk about next year?"

A similar question was discussed by some of the staff at Golf Monthly earlier this week - what next for McIlroy in the Majors and can he win any more?

Still only 35 and seemingly returning (if he ever even left) to the peak of his powers, one of the game's greatest ever players has already achieved so much in his 17-year career - from five Majors to a stint as World No.1 and three FedEx Cup wins to six European Tour Order of Merit titles.

However, for all of the significant number of professional trophies and accolades he has accumulated, there is still plenty for McIlroy to do before he puts the clubs away for good.

Below, we've listed nine things McIlroy can still strive for after ticking off one of the three career goals he revealed at the start of 2025.

OLYMPIC GOLD

Nevermind an Olympic medal, although I dare say that would be acceptable to McIlroy, but the Northern Irishman would dearly love to win gold before he retires.

Having previously skipped the 2016 Games in Brazil, McIlroy labelled the Paris Olympics as "unbelievable, amazing, awesome" and is keen to attend every possibly year until he no longer qualifies - maximizing his chances of that gold medal.

The 35-year-old has finished T4th in Tokyo and T5th in Paris, so he's been close, but he's yet to stand on the podium despite a couple of valiant attempts.

The 2028 Olympic Games are scheduled to be in Los Angeles, at Riviera CC, which McIlroy knows quite well. Plus, with the addition of a mixed event to the schedule, the five-time Major winner should have two chances at bringing home the gold for Team Ireland.

ANOTHER AWAY RYDER CUP WIN

Europeans aren't against bringing the subject up, but in case you weren't aware, the 2012 Ryder Cup - a.k.a the Miracle at Medinah - saw McIlroy and co. recover from 10-6 down to 14.5-13.5 ahead and claim a remarkable victory on away soil.

Since then, neither side has really managed to lay a glove on their respective hosts - and that's something which McIlroy would love to change in Europe's favor.

After a dominant display in Italy last time out, the World No.2 said that winning an away Ryder Cup is among the hardest things to do in golf but confidently predicted Luke Donald's dozen could get the job done at Bethpage.

Listed as one of the three career goals he has remaining (alongside a Masters - check and the aforementioned Olympic medal), McIlroy is eyeing up another away Ryder Cup victory, possibly in New York later this year. And with the way the Europeans have begun the campaign, it doesn't seem that unrealistic...

TOP RYDER CUP POINT SCORER

Following a four-point haul at Marco Simone in 2023 (his best to date), McIlroy now has 18 points from seven Ryder Cups. He hasn't failed to score in any, either, suggesting it will only be a matter of time until McIlroy moves past Sergio Garcia's all-time record of 28.5.

Between McIlroy and Garcia remains players like Arnold Palmer (23), Colin Montgomerie (23.5), Billy Casper (23.5), Lee Westwood (24), Bernhard Langer (24) and Nick Faldo (25) - none of whom are likely to play again.

MOST SUCCESSFUL EUROPEAN MEN'S MAJOR CHAMPION

McIlroy's fifth Major arrived at long last via a first Green Jacket, putting him just one behind Nick Faldo. Harry Vardon won seven around the end of the 1800s, with six Open Championships to his name, so another three for McIlroy would leave no question as to who the most successful European male of all time is.

While winning a Major is - for obvious reasons - a particularly difficult task, but McIlroy's generational ability, as well as the mental freedom he may now be experiencing as a result of completing the career Grand Slam, should give him a great chance of adding to his own tally.

WIN AN OPEN AT ST ANDREWS OR PORTRUSH

McIlroy's only Open Championship success to date arrived back in 2014 at Royal Liverpool - potentially an even sweeter win considering the Northern Irishman's loyalty to arch- rivals, Manchester United.

If he could choose to land another Claret Jug in one particular place, surely either the home of golf or his home country would be the perfect place to do it. Royal Portrush is on the rota this year while St Andrews is next hosting in 2027.

THREE MORE EUROPEAN TOUR ORDER OF MERITS

A record that McIlroy has referenced several times over the past couple of years involves the Race To Dubai. Colin Montgomerie is currently the most successful player in terms of the European Tour's Order of Merit with eight season-long titles, but McIlroy has six and has already suggested he will be doing everything in his power to make it nine at some point.

The Race To Dubai champion of the past three years appears to have settled into a nice habit of starting his season in the Middle East and returning to Europe at the end of the year to collect yet more hardware. While the 19-time European Tour winner is unlikely to reach Seve Ballesteros' total of 50, McIlroy is surely going to reel in Montgomerie's record before too long.

BREAK INTO 'MOST PGA TOUR WINS' TOP-10

McIlroy has 29 total PGA Tour wins in his career - made up of 11 regular events, five Majors, two Players Championships, two Signature Events, six FedEx Cup Playoff tournaments and three WGCs - which leaves him T18th on the most PGA Tour wins of all time.

Again, Tiger Woods and Sam Snead's 82 victories might be a stretch too far for the Northern Irishman, but he is certainly capable of surpassing 40 and retiring inside the top-10. A few places ahead, Phil Mickelson and Walter Hagen share eighth spot with 45 wins apiece.

TOP PGA TOUR CAREER MONEY LIST

At the rate McIlroy is going, this is another achievement which could easily be filed under the 'when, not if' category. The 35-year-old recently broke through the $100 million tournament-earnings barrier - which is just wild - and now only trails Tiger Woods, who has banked just north of $120 million.

The 49-year-old's calendar is likely to be much more sparse than McIlroy's moving forward - definitely until the end of the season - so it's safe to assume that the World No.2 will tick this one off at some point soon.

WIN ON EVERY CONTINENT

McIlroy has 44 professional wins in total, with triumphs in North America, Europe, Asia and Australasia. However, he is yet to taste success in Africa.

Should McIlroy get to a point where he wants to diversify his schedule a little more, a handful of events on the DP World Tour in South Africa every year would allow him to set up the chance of winning there and completing golf's World Grand Slam (of sorts).

South America and Antarctica make up the other two official continents in the world, but given there are no elite-level tournaments staged there, we'll forgive McIlroy for not lifting a trophy in either.