Rory McIlroy experienced a rollercoaster round on the final day of the BMW Championship on Sunday.
The four-time major winner’s problems began on the ninth hole at Castle Pines Golf Club in Colorado.
The Northern Irishman broke his driver in half in a seemingly bizarre accident after hitting his tee shot on a par 4.
The world number three fired an errant shot and the ball came to rest on the bank just above a stream that winds along the right side of the fairway, narrowly avoiding the water.
McIlroy used the club as a crutch as he bent over to pick up his tee, but nearly fell when the piece beneath him gave way, bending and splintering.
Rory McIlroy experienced a rollercoaster round on the last day of the BMW Championship
The Northern Irishman broke his driver in half after missing his tee shot on the ninth hole.
Unfortunately, McIlroy was not allowed to replace the club and had to play the remaining nine holes of his round without a driver.
Under PGA Tour rules, players are allowed to replace damaged clubs without penalty, provided the damage has occurred and the replacement does not cause significant delay.
The incident came after McIlroy had a terrible few days at the BMW Championship, the penultimate tournament of the PGA Tour season and the second event of the FedEx Cup playoffs.
At the start of the tournament on Friday, he was frustrated because his tee shot on hole 17 went wide to the right.
The 35-year-old could not keep his composure, lost it for a minute and threw his golf club into the water directly in front of him, causing a shocked silence from the crowd and a splash into the water.
On Sunday, however, it was the star of the PGA Tour himself who took a trip to the water.
McIlroy was down a club and faced a rather unconventional approach after missing his tee shot to the right and narrowly avoiding the creek, then began to strip.
For his second shot, McIlroy had to take off his shoes and socks and take a bath, balancing with one foot on a rock and the other in the water.
McIlroy had to take off his shoes and socks to play his second shot from the water on the ninth
McIlroy threw his golf club into the water on Friday out of frustration after he missed a shot
The four-time major champion angrily picked up his club from the water before storming off
He managed to get his approach shot onto the green and save par, but reached the turnaround one shot over par and 14 shots behind the leader.
This summer has been difficult for McIlroy, as he came surprisingly close to winning his fifth major golf title, but instead finished second to Bryson DeChambeau at the US Open.
After missing two putts in the closing stages of the competition, the title went to DeChambeau.
McIlroy then failed to make the final cut at The Open before narrowly missing out on a medal at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, finishing fifth.
