Rory McIlroy Officially Signs For Nike Golf

Nike Golf have finally officially announced that Rory McIlroy has signed a multi-year agreement with them. 

While the fee wasn’t confirmed, it has been reported that the deal is worth around £156 million over 10 years, or over £40,000 per day.

The world number one will use the clubs, ball, footwear, glove, apparel, headwear and accessories when he makes his Nike debut this week at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship.

A self professed sports nut, McIlroy has been a fan of the Nike brand since he was a child and is excited to continue his career with the number one sports brand in the world.  “I chose Nike for a number of reasons,” said McIlroy.  “It’s a company and a brand that really resonates with me. 

“It’s young. It’s athletic. It’s innovative.  They are committed to being the best, as am I.  Signing with Nike is another step towards living out my dream.”

“Rory is an extraordinary athlete who creates enormous excitement with his on-course performance while, at the same time, connecting with fans everywhere,” said Cindy Davis, President of Nike Golf. 

“He is the epitome of a Nike Athlete, and he is joining our team during the most exciting time in Nike Golf’s history.  We are looking forward to partnering with him to take his remarkable career to the next level.” 

The 23-year-old Northern Irishman, who is known for his length off the tee, will be playing with the Nike VR_S Covert Tour driver. He said,  “The new VR_S Covert driver, is completely different. It’s the first cavity back driver. It’s striking, it looks cool and it performs unbelievably well.”

Rounding out McIlroy’sbag are the Nike VR Pro Limited Edition fairway woods, Nike VR Pro Blade irons, Nike VR Pro wedges and a Nike Method prototype putter. 

McIlroy will play Nike’s new 20XI golf ball featuring RZN technology and will wear apparel from the Nike Golf Tour Performance Collection and the new Nike Lunar Control footwear.

In switching to exclusively play and wear Nike Golf products, McIlroy is making his first manufacturer change during his six-year career as a tour professional.  “I visited The Oven and I was seriously impressed with both the craftsmanship of the Nike club engineers and also how much R&D and product innovation goes on there,” said McIlroy.

“To be honest, I’ve been blown away by the attention to detail when it comes to product.  Nike Golf is clearly committed to being the best and that gives me a lot of confidence in what we can achieve together on the golf course.”

So far he has already seen an improvement of around 5mph in dwing speed with his new Covert Tour driver over his old Titleist 913.

McIlroy had a standout year in 2012 with a dominating season filled with becoming the world’s number one, securing five global wins (including a major), a Ryder Cup victory for Team Europe and taking countless season titles across the PGA and European PGA Tours. 

In McIlroy’s bag:

Driver:  Nike VR_S Covert Tour 10.5-degree with a Diamana shaf
Fairway Wood:  Nike VR Pro Limited Edition 3-wood/15-degree and 5-wood/19-degree
Irons:  Nike VR Pro Blades (3-PW)
Wedges: Nike VR Pro (54 & 60)
Putter: Nike Method 006 Prototype
Ball: Nike 20XI X
Apparel:  Nike Golf Tour Performance Collection
Footwear:  Nike Lunar Control

Watch the unveiling press conference below: