What golfers have achieved the career grand slam? Rory McIlroy could be next on an exclusive list

Rory McIlroy is at the top of the leaderboard on Sunday at the 2025 Masters at Austa National. The two double-bogeys on the 15th and 17th holes on Thursday didn’t deter the Northern Irishman from trying to achieve the career slam at Augusta National.

McIlroy vs DeChambeau on Sunday

Rory vs Bryson, Europe vs USA, PGA vs LIV, etc. Sunday’s clash will be epic as the two very different golfers face off in the last group of the Masters.

Rory is two shots ahead of DeChambeau and patrons are all in on the emotion and excitement at Augusta National on Sunday.

Few players have achieved golf’s career grand slam

McIlroy has a great chance of acheiving the feat this year after ten years of disappointment. Standing in his way are only DeChambeau and himself.

All eyes in the golfing will be focused on Jordan Spieth later in 2025, who lacks only the PGA Championship to round out a career slam. However, the Texan hasn’t been able to put it all together recently and his short game, although it is great, is not enough to get him to the top of the leaderboards with such tough competition.

The first player to win a career grand slam, and the only player to have done so in a calendar year, was Bobby Jones in 1930. The US Amateur won the original grand slam by claiming the Open Championship, the US Open, the US Amateur, and the British Amateur in the same year.

In the modern era, the career slam consists of winning the four current majors: the Open, the Masters, the PGA Championship, and the US Open. No player has ever matched Jones’ feat of a calendar year slam, but five have managed a career slam: Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, and Tiger Woods.

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Only Woods and Nicklaus have achieved multiple career slams in that select group, and both players have completed the set thrice. Woods also completed the “Tiger Slam” in 2000-01, when the US great held all four majors simultaneously during his pomp.

Which players are still on for a career grand slam?

As well as McIlroy and Spieth, there is one other golfer who lacks only one win to complete the grand slam. Phil Mickelson has three Masters, two PGA Championships, and an Open to his name, lacking only the US Open to claim a career grand slam.