CARNOUSTIE, SCOTLAND – OCTOBER 06: Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland plays hsi second shot on teh second hole during the second round of the 2017 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship on the Championship Links at Carnoustie on October 6, 2017 in Carnoustie, Scotland. (Photo by David Cannon/Getty Images)

By Christopher Powers

With over 20 worldwide victories and four majors to his name, Rory McIlroy is already considered by many to be one of the top European players of all time. Completing the career grand slam at the Masters in 2018 would only further solidify that fact, but the Northern Irishman is setting much higher goals for next season and beyond.

Earlier this week at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, McIlroy’s final event of the year, he spoke with Golf Channel about his ambitions.

“The Grand Slam is, that’s probably the next reasonable goal on the agenda,” he said. “And try to become the best European golfer ever. I’m trying to surpass Nick Faldo in that.”

A victory at Augusta, or in any of next season’s four majors, would get Rory one major closer to Faldo’s career total of six. But the 28-year-old also has his eyes focused on another International player’s career major count.

“If I had a career goal, it would probably be to be the best International golfer ever, you know, Gary Player has nine majors,” he said. “I’d like to think I’m going to give myself a chance to get close to that tally.”

“Obviously the Americans have sort of dominated the world of golf for the last 100 years, with Jack Nicklaus and Tiger [Woods], Walter Hagen and all those guys, but I think that the next goals on my radar are obviously the Grand Slam, try and get the green jacket, and then try and set my sights on becoming the best European ever.”

McIlroy’s comments come on the heels of what he considered a lost season, one that prompted a former major champion to call his drive into question after a missed cut at the U.S. Open. Clearly, McIlroy believes he has plenty left to accomplish in his already hall-of-fame worthy career.