Rory McIlroy was the surprise face tagged on to the end of the first teaser for Netflix’s Full Swing last month.
The Northern Irishman and world number one was not originally expected to take part, with McIlroy having joined the series midway through production. His starring role was only fully revealed when the first trailer for the series dropped.
McIlroy’s involvement has ramped up excitement for the first season of the docuseries, which saw camera crews follow the golfers of the PGA Tour during the 2022 season.
Ahead of this weekend’s Phoenix Open, McIlroy spoke publicly on his involvement in the show, and said that he was excited by its potential.
The world #1 did, however, say that he had kept his guard up during filming for the series.
Rory McIlroy kept guard up while filming Full Swing
Rory McIlroy had not initially planned to take part in season one of Full Swing, but was ultimately convinced after a summer chat with the show’s executive producer Chad Mumm.
One of the defining storylines of Full Swing will no doubt be the controversy surrounding the breakaway LIV Golf series. The divisive Saudi-backed invitational series has caused a split in the world of golf, with some of the sport's biggest names defecting to LIV.
From the creators of F1: Drive to Survive, FULL SWING comes to Netflix 15 February. 👀 pic.twitter.com/rhw3xB2i4p
— Netflix UK & Ireland (@NetflixUK) February 6, 2023
With McIlroy one of the most vocal in the world of golf against the breakaway LIV series, his voice was always going to be in high demand for the Netflix show, and he said it was that which convinced him to take part.
McIlroy did say, however, that he drew the line at involving any of his family, or his personal life, in the Netflix series:
I sort of took the attitude of see how the first season works out, see if I like it, like the idea, feel comfortable letting cameras get into my life a little bit more. But I had a good chat with Chad in the summertime.
Obviously with everything that's going on in the world of golf, he just said having my voice in there in some way could just add a layer of context that wasn't there already.
I made sure that the parameters were very much like, look, you can film me at -- you're not coming to my house, you're not coming in my car, you're not coming anywhere near my family, but you want to do some stuff with me at golf tournaments, totally fine.
They were the ground rules that were sort of set, and here we are.
The PGA Tour will hope to replicate the success of Netflix's Formula 1 documentary series Drive to Survive with the release of Full Swing. The F1 series has led to an explosion of following for the sport, though some drives have raised issue with the production methods.
Now two-time world champion Max Verstappen refused to take part in filming for season four, due to what he saw as fabricated storylines on behalf of the producers.
Rory McIlroy started this weekend's 2023 Phoenix Open in underwhelming fashion, carding a two over 73 to lie eight shots off the pace. Despite this, McIlroy will no doubt be in the hunt for golf’s biggest prizes in 2023.
The Holywood native stands atop the world rankings after a dramatic win at the Dubai Desert Classic in January, and feels he has earned that title:
I'm playing well. I feel like consistency-wise, I've been as good as I have been ever in my career.
I said at the end of last year, I feel like as complete of a player as I ever have. If you just look at my statistical categories, there's no real glaring weaknesses there. I've worked really hard on that, to try to become a more well-rounded player.
I think the results speak for themselves, as well, over not just the past six months but really the past 18 months post-Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits, I feel like I've been on a really good run of form since then.
Brimming with confidence, Rory McIlroy will be the star attraction when season one of Full Swing drops on Netflix next Wednesday.
SEE ALSO: Graeme McDowell Has Been Whinging About LIV Golf Affecting His Potential Ryder Cup Captaincy
