Rory McIlroy outshines AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am field's driving average, leads others by 17 yards or more

Rory McIlroy has outshined the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am field's driving average by 17 yards. During the tournament, the Irish player averaged an impressive 336.7 yards per drive.

McIlroy's ability to hit long and powerful shots aided his victory in his first PGA Tour tournament of 2025. Other players like Gary Woodland (319.7 yards) and Taylor Pendrith (319.4 yards) also drove the ball well but trailed McIlroy by significant margins. Rasmus Hojgaard and Min Woo Lee averaged 316.4 yards and 314.7 yards, respectively.

Because of the driving average, McIlroy also led the field in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee (+5.97), meaning his driving gave him an advantage of nearly six strokes over the average player.

McIlroy's driving prowess could be witnessed on the 14th hole of the final round of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am when he struck a 339-yard drive and scored an eagle on the hole. As a result, he took the lead by three shots, ending the hope for competitors. Talking about it, he said (via PGA Tour):

"Fourteen was obviously the huge difference, making eagle there. I hit two great shots to put myself in that position. Took advantage of my length … which I haven't done the previous couple of days. I've hit good drives up there and wasn't able to take advantage, and today I was."

Runner-up Shane Lowry also praised Rory McIlroy's driving abilities, saying:

"When I was making birdies, he was throwing birdies back. Then he made eagle on 14 and that was pretty much it."

Last year, McIlroy was second in driving average on the PGA Tour with 320.2 yards per drive. He was also fourth in Strokes Gained: Off The Tee, averaging 0.730 over 62 rounds.

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Rory McIlroy says trying to be the best in the world again is his motivation

In the post-tournament press conference, Rory McIlroy was asked how motivating is it to unseat Scottie Scheffler as the World No.1. McIlroy, who is currently World No.3, said that his focus was on maximizing his potential, not rankings or wins. He said (via Tee Scripts):

"You know, it's not about that. If it so happens that I get close to that, then that would be cool, but this is just really about trying to get the best out of myself. That's really it. I know if I can play to my capabilities and do what I did out there today a little bit more, the world rankings or the wins or whatever will really take care of themselves."

Acknowledging Scottie Scheffler as the best in the last few years, Rory McIlroy further said:

"Scottie is and has been the best player in our game for the last couple years. I feel like I've been close but just not quite there. But that's motivating, that's motivating to try to get the best out of myself and yeah, try to become the best player in the world again."

Scottie Scheffler had seven wins on the PGA Tour. He also won the Olympic gold and the Hero World Challenge. He became the FedEx Champion and was adjudged the PGA Tour's Player of the Year. Meanwhile, Rory McIlroy finished ninth in the PGA Tour's FedEx Cup standings but won the DP World Tour's Race to Dubai title for the sixth time.