Rory McIlroy has one item in his bag when travelling for golf, but it's not a lucky charm or a new club, but a fitness device.

During his appearance on episode 4 of Drive With The Green, the five-time major champion revealed that while he didn't know how to name it, “It’s like a fitness tool that releases your psoas, because I get very tight psoas.”

The psoas is a deep core muscle that connects the lower spine to the hips. For golfers, releasing the psoas can improve hip rotation, posture, and lower-back comfort. When the muscle is less restricted, the pelvis can move more freely during the swing, reducing compensatory strain on the lumbar spine and allowing smoother, more powerful rotation through impact.

In 2023, McIlroy injured his lower back, which led to regular spasms.

As McIlroy mentioned back then, "I've had a herniated disc and I've had stuff that would be a lot more worrying than this is, and I've got really good people around me that know what to do. It's fine. I maybe don't heal quite as fast as I used to but it's all good.”

And Rory McIlroy has a history of back issues

In 2023, McIlroy described the discomfort he felt right on the eve of the Tour Championship.

"I was at the bottom of a squat, a body-weight squat, and my whole lower back spasmed, seized up. I couldn’t move. So to get to where I am today is good."

Later, he used a foam roller in the gym as well as time with the physio to work out the issue. However, it has been a persistent problem with his back.

"The muscle spasm is what’s giving me the discomfort. I think when I play a lot of golf, especially the end of the season, I always have to manage my right side. My right side always gets pretty tight, my rib cage, intercostals, lats, like, all the way down, right hip."

Written by

Krushna Pattnaik

Edited by

Siddharth Shirwadkar