Rory McIlroy issues advice to Alex Fitzpatrick as he looks to win the Truist Championship on Sunday

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“I think it helps that he has people around him on the leaderboard that he knows. Reitan, Nicolai Hojgaard, so I think that’ll help him a little bit.

“But it’s a massive opportunity for him. We are all rooting for him and hopefully he gets it done.”

It was a surprise to see McIlroy finish so early on Sunday. However, a nightmare round on Saturday put paid to the Northern Irishman’s hopes of winning in successive starts.

McIlroy went on to explain what caused him real problems during the third round, before insisting that he is a lot happier with where his game seems to be coming out of the tournament.

“I struggled yesterday, I started getting the lefts going. Similar to the Saturday at Augusta. I was trying to get a feeling of straightening up the path and matching the path angle. Got a bit of a feel last night and felt better today,” he said.

Rory McIlroy looks ahead to the PGA Championship after a mixed week at Quail Hollow

Of course, McIlroy has won the PGA Championship on two occasions already. And given that he is now seemingly building his schedule around the majors, it should come as no surprise if he is able to contend at Aronimink.

McIlroy suggested that he is optimistic that he can put himself in the mix.

“I think it fits my game pretty well. It seems like there is going to be a lot of drivers and wedges, especially on the front nine,” he added.

“The back nine seems a bit tougher but it certainly seems a course where if you can build your score on the front nine, I can see a lot of guys going out in three or four under. But big sloppy greens, they can tuck the pins away. I am excited to get there tomorrow and have another go at a major championship.”

McIlroy is not used to finishing well outside the top 10 at the Truist Championship. But clearly, he has plenty to be positive about heading into the second major of the season.