Rory McIlroy offered major PGA Championship lifeline thanks to little-known rule as statement issued

Officials from the PGA Championship have released a statement after Rory McIlroy was given a controversial lifeline thanks to a bizarre rule.

Golf star McIlroy has been aided in his spectacular run of form at the 2026 BMW PGA Championship thanks to a crucial moment in his opening round.

After enjoying five birdies in his opening ten holes, things threatened to fall apart on the 14th as McIlroy's ball landed beside the the out-of-bounds fencing, but a bizarre rule changed everthing.

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PGA Championship statement released after controversial Rory McIlroy moment

The 179-yard uphill par-3 14th hole provided a clear challenge for McIlroy as his tee shot went way off to the left before landing by the fencing.

Typically, this shot would force the Northern Irishman to take a drop shot, but a small strip of grass between the hedges to the left of the course and the cart path blocked him.

This would mean that McIlroy may have to move his ball, costing him a stroke as the hedges are not a movable object, and therefore all but confirming he would bogey the hole at best.

However, because a temporary fence had been put up in front of the hedges, the relief area had been extended, allowing McIlroy to continue without taking a drop.

In a statement given to Sky Sports, tournament officials stated: “It was relief from the path and as it’s such a tight gap between the fencing and path, they have widened the relief area to include some of the grass.”

McIlroy quickly made the most of the ruling as he produced an impressive chip onto the green before finishing the hole with a third shot to meet the par.

He went on to finish his first round three under-par, putting him tied 14th in the leaderboard at the time of writing.

Coming off a a record-setting round of 60 in the BMW PGA pro-am on the same course on Wednesday, McIlroy is expected to continue to improve at Wentworth ahead of the final day of play on Sunday.

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Rory McIlroy makes honest admission that will worry fans

Despite McIlroy's strong start at Wentworth, the Northern Irishman admitted that he's still not playing his best golf - and it will still be a while until he's back where he wants to be.

The Masters champion has spent a lot of time on the range in recent weeks, making technical tweaks to his swing, but he's still not happy with how he's been playing.

Speaking after his round, he said: “I think it’s going to take a long time to get back to where I want to be.

“It feels – I certainly have a playable feeling on the course. It definitely still looks better on the range than what I get out there on the course.

“Over time, if I keep to what I’m doing, you know, it will hopefully start to bed in and it will start to feel and look similar on the course than it does on the range.

“But these things take time. If it’s taking me five or six months to get into this bad habit, it’s probably going to take me, I’d say, a similar time to get back out of it.

"I’m giving myself time. There’s plenty of time until I ramp up for the Masters again next year. But obviously in the meantime, there’s a lot of golf to play and some stuff to win, and hopefully I can still give myself a chance at that as wall.”

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