Sir Nick Faldo has ranked Rory McIlroy fifth on his list of the greatest golfers of all time, as he claimed the Northern Irishman is “right there” with the icons of the sport. McIlroy has achieved what many sportsmen before him failed to do, by winning a career Grand Slam in golf by securing all four major trophies. Following his emotional Masters win, the 35-year-old has been hailed as one of the best to ever step foot on the fairways, as he joins an elite list of golfers to have won the Grand Slam.

Only six players across the sport’s history – including the likes of Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player – have won all four majors, and McIlroy became the first European star to do so in 2025. Thanks to this win, the golfer has been caught up in the debate on where he ranks among the best in the sport, and one sporting icon has had his say.

Faldo, who is a six-time major winner himself, has weighed in on the McIlroy ranking debate and claimed the Northern Irishman is higher than many people would think.

Despite Faldo being regarded as one of the greatest golfers ever as well, he has ranked McIlroy above himself – and would only put four other athletes ahead of him.

The Englishman told The Times: “It’s a whole different kettle of fish nowadays. He’s done way more than me. He’s won 29 times in America. Of the all-time greats, I’d put him fifth. Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack [Nicklaus] and Tiger [Woods]. Rory is right there.”

Faldo also discussed the issue of different “eras” of golf has on the ranking list, as he named American golfer Gene Sarazen as another great player – but not better than McIlroy.

He added: “No discredit to Gene Sarazen, but that was a completely different era. I’ve hardly seen any footage of him, but achieving the grand slam puts you in a different category.”

Faldo went on to praise McIlroy’s efforts to finally win the Masters on the 17th time of asking, and notes that this long-awaited win might “set him free” to win even more in the future.

The 67-year-old added: “Rory is 35, he’s as fit as a fiddle, and you’ve got to believe he’s really shaken the monkey off his back. I would’ve thought it’ll set him free and he might be the unique one to go on and win [multiple] more majors.

“I did get teary because I kind of know that walk off 18 and realising what he’d done, people don’t appreciate the workload that has gone into that physically, technically, mentally.

“You spend thousands of hours and hit millions of balls to reach your goal, and a heck of a goal it was.”