As we saw by Rory McIlroy’s emotional reaction to winning the Masters and completing the career Grand Slam, the guy was under an insane amount of pressure to finally get the job done. McIlroy admitted he felt “pure relief” after winning the playoff against Justin Rose to make (more) golf history.

But the now five-time major champ thinks it might be even more difficult for Jordan Spieth to join the Grand Slam club. And Rory’s reasoning makes perfect sense.

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With all due respect to everyone else, McIlroy and Spieth will be the top two storylines at next week’s PGA Championship. McIlroy will be trying to knock off the next leg of the calendar Grand Slam. And Spieth will be trying to complete the career Grand Slam for a ninth time.

McIlroy needed 11 attempts to become the sixth man to hoist all four pro major trophies in his career so he knows how hard it can be to finish it off. But when asked about Spieth’s chances on Wednesday ahead of this week’s Truist Championship, he explained why it will be particularly challenging for Spieth.

“It’s hard, I think, for Jordan having to do—you have to go back to the same tournament every year for Jordan, but not the same golf course,” McIlroy said. “I think it’s a little bit of a different — it’s a bit of a different proposition for him rather than me having to go back to the same venue every year and trying to, I guess, do that as well.”

Some would point out that it might have been returning to Augusta National—where McIlroy had some scar tissue, in particular from letting the 2011 Masters slip away—that put extra pressure on McIlroy all those years. But at least he knew the course well. And it’s a course that has proven to reward experience through the years.

But Spieth, who made the Masters his first major win back in 2015, doesn’t have that same luxury with the PGA Championship moving from year to year. That being said, this year’s site, Quail Hollow, hosts an annual PGA Tour event and was the site of the 2017 PGA (Spieth finished T-28 that year) so it’s a pretty familiar spot.

Still, McIlroy knows it won’t be like any other major championship start for Spieth.

“You know that you’re not just trying to win another tournament, you’re trying to become part of history, and that has a certain weight to it,” McIlroy continued. “I’ve certainly felt that at Augusta over the years. I’m sure Jordan has felt that a bit going into each PGA that he’s had a chance to do the same thing.”

Also making it difficult for Spieth—at least, this year—is McIlroy’s terrific track record at Quail Hollow. Something Spieth joked about with McIlroy on the range at Philly Cricket Club on Tuesday.

What’s a lock is that fans would love to see either in contention next Sunday to do something special.

Main Image: Kevin C. Cox