Jack Nicklaus raises major Rory McIlroy question mark after weighing in on Scottie Scheffler rivalry

Jack Nicklaus is one of the greatest golfers of all time, and the 18-time major champion has had his say on the differences between Rory McIlroy and Scotie Scheffler

Jack Nicklaus has had his say on fellow Grand Slam champion Rory McIlroy, highlighting the Northern Irishman’s ongoing struggles with his right-to-left miss.

After winning the Masters at Augusta National last month, McIlroy joined Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, Gary Player, Ben Hogan, and Gene Sarazen as the only players to win all four majors. It topped off a remarkable start to the season for the 36-year-old after wins at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and The Players Championship.

In the weeks that have followed, Scottie Scheffler has since taken back the role as the PGA Tour’s main man, following up victory at The CJ Cup Byron Nelson with major No. 3 at the PGA Championship.

Nicklaus has welcomed the healthy competition between the sport’s leading two players, but believes McIlroy still has an area to improve in. “[I see myself more in] Scottie,” Nicklaus told Sky Sports Golf ahead of hosting this week’s Memorial Tournament.

“First of all, Rory, the ball gets away from Rory right to left. Always has in his career. He hasn’t corrected it, but he still has had a great career with it.

“But could he have had a better career if he’d gone a little bit the other way? I don’t know. Maybe yes, maybe no.”

He believes Scheffler, however, has a better ability to keep the ball straight, something that has served him well in recent years. Scottie has learned at a fairly young age that keeping the ball in play [is key],” the golfing legend added.

“He’s long, he’s certainly long enough, as long as the rest of the guys. But he doesn’t try to be. He makes sure that he puts it in play so that he’s got a second shot to play. I think that wins golf tournaments more often than hitting it over the top of trees and so forth.”

For all Scheffler’s brilliance, it is, of course, McIlroy who is the newest member of golf’s most elite group by becoming a career Grand Slam winner.

It was a monumental moment for the 36-year-old, whose name will now go down in history alongside the greats in the sport, including Nicklaus.

Despite the clean sweep achievement, Nicklaus believes ending his wait for a Green Jacket was the most important thing for McIlroy. “I think that getting over the line and winning The Masters is probably more important than winning the Grand Slam,” the veteran added.

“I think that The Masters has been a bugaboo for him for 10 years. And I think that once he got The Masters behind him, the reward was the Grand Slam, so I’m very happy for him.

“It was great golf and I dropped him a note and said a guy who makes four double-bogeys and still has enough talent to overcome that is pretty special.”