The world’s top ranked golfer challenged fellow PGA Tour pros on Peloton.
There’s a common phrase thrown around when describing professional golfers: “He’s not an athlete. He’s a golfer.” The misconception generates passionate arguments, and it’s one Rory McIlroy spent the weekend completely putting to bed.
As professional golfers around the globe figure out how to spend their free time during this unexpected offseason, the world No. 1 is proving he’s not only a dominant force on the golf course, but also a beast in the gym.
Case in point, McIlroy’s social media posts over the last few days. He has been calling out fellow PGA Tour pros Billy Horschel, Justin Thomas and Charley Hoffman to try and compete with him on Peloton.
After a 45-minute ride, a completely sweat drenched McIlroy revealed his numbers, and they are impressive.
Time: 45 minutes
Total output: 800kj
Leaderboard rank: 69 out of 11,500 riders
His message to the other tour pros? “I beat you again.”
It’s no surprise McIlroy and other golfers are getting their leaderboard fix by competing on the bike. Anyone who has been around McIlroy knows his competitive fire runs deep, and even a global pandemic isn’t going to extinguish that flame.
What comes as a surprise is the strength McIlroy is showing in his workouts. On Sunday, he posted a full workout, presumably from his Florida home, on Instagram. With each step listed out, his followers are now able to do the “Rory Workout” on their own during this time of home isolation.
McIlroy calls this his power/explosive session and told his followers he does this workout twice a week saying it’s, “not about lifting too heavy, more about training speed”.
Here’s what McIlroy’s workout entailed:
-Landmine press (4 each side, 4 sets)
-Landmine press with rotation (4 each side, 4 sets)
-Box Jumps (4 jumps, 4 sets)
-Medicine ball slams with rotation (4 each side, 3 sets)
-Heavy bag (120 lbs.) strong man flips (4 over each shoulder, 2 sets)
-Speed skipping as fast as possible for as long as you can hold it (3 sets)
Tired yet?
McIlroy’s message to his followers was “hopefully this workout can add a few yards to your drives this season.”
So are professional golfers athletes? Maybe try the Rory Workout before you answer that question.
