Jack Nicklaus reveals details of conversation with Rory McIlroy to discuss Masters strategy

Jack Nicklaus recently talked about the conversation he had with Rory McIlroy regarding the Masters strategy. In the Honorary Starters press conference, Nicklaus revealed that he had lunch with the Northern Irish golfer last week and went through his shot-by-shot strategy for the Augusta National Golf Club.

The 85-year-old golfer said he wouldn't change with regard to Rory McIlroy's preparation for the Masters. Additionally, all the Honorary starters, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, and Tom Watson, have picked Rory McIlroy as their favorite golfer this week.

Gabby Herzig, one of the most prominent golf journalists, shared this information on X.

"In the Honorary Starters press conference, Jack Nicklaus reveals that he sat down for lunch with Rory McIlroy last week and they went through his strategy for Augusta National — shot by shot. '"I wouldn't change a thing."'

Jack Nicklaus is a six-time Masters champion and has won this tournament more than any other player. Hence, Rory McIlroy, who has achieved all the other accolades in pro golf, has been struggling to win at Augusta National Golf Club, sat down for lunch with the 18-time major championship winner, and discussed strategy for the 89th edition of the Masters.

Coming into the 2025 Masters, Rory McIlroy has been in good form with two PGA Tour wins in five starts. He won the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and the 2025 Players Championship. The four-time major championship winner has made a commanding start to the year and is looking all set for the 2025 Masters.

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When will Rory McIlroy tee off in the first round of the 2025 Masters?

Rory McIlroy is paired with Ludvig Aberg and Akshay Bhatia for the first two rounds of the 2025 Masters. The Northern Irish golfer will tee off with Aberg and Bhatia at 1:12 PM ET for the first round and 9:58 am ET for the second round of the 2025 Masters.

Here's the tee time for all golfers competing in the first round of the 2025 Masters. (In ET).

• 7:40 AM - Davis Riley, Patton Kizzire
• 7:51 AM - Kevin Yu, Jhonattan Vegas, Nicolai Højgaard
• 8:02 AM - Mike Weir, Michael Kim, Cameron Young
• 8:13 AM - Zach Johnson, Joe Highsmith, Chris Kirk
• 8:24 AM - Danny Willett, Nicolas Echavarria, Davis Thompson
• 8:35 AM - Bernhard Langer, Will Zalatoris, Noah Kent
• 8:52 AM - Cameron Smith, J. T. Poston, Aaron Rai
• 9:03 AM - Fred Couples, Harris English, Taylor Pendrith
• 9:14 AM - Corey Conners, Brian Harman, Stephan Jaeger
• 9:25 AM - Patrick Reed, Max Greyserman, Byeong Hun An
• 9:36 AM - Robert MacIntyre, Billy Horschel, Nick Dunlap
• 9:47 AM - Collin Morikawa, Joaquín Niemann, Min Woo Lee
• 9:58 AM - Phil Mickelson, Jason Day, Keegan Bradley
• 10:15 AM - Scottie Scheffler, Justin Thomas, Jose Luis Ballester
• 10:26 AM - Jordan Spieth, Tom Kim, Tyrrell Hatton
• 10:37 AM - Tony Finau, Maverick McNealy, Thomas Detry
• 10:48 AM - Cameron Davis, Rafael Campos, Austin Eckroat
• 10:59 AM - Angel Cabrera, Laurie Canter, Adam Schenk
• 11:10 AM - José María Olazábal, Thriston Lawrence, Brian Campbell
• 11:21 AM - Bubba Watson, Matthieu Pavon, Evan Beck
• 11:38 AM - Tom Hoge, Matt McCarty, Christiaan Bezuidenhout
• 11:49 AM - Charl Schwartzel, Denny McCarthy, Hiroshi Tai
• 12:00 PM - Max Homa, Justin Rose, J.J. Spaun
• 12:11 PM - Dustin Johnson, Nick Taylor, Justin Hastings
• 12:22 PM - Sergio Garcia, Lucas Glover, Daniel Berger
• 12:33 PM - Patrick Cantlay, Rasmus Højgaard, Matt Fitzpatrick
• 12:50 PM - Brooks Koepka, Russell Henley, Sungjae Im
• 1:01 PM - Adam Scott, Xander Schauffele, Viktor Hovland
• 1:12 PM - Rory McIlroy, Ludvig Åberg, Akshay Bhatia
• 1:23 PM - Hideki Matsuyama, Bryson DeChambeau, Shane Lowry
• 1:34 PM - Jon Rahm, Wyndham Clark, Tommy Fleetwood
• 1:45 PM - Sahith Theegala, Sepp Straka, Sam Burns