Rosie McIlroy is 3up on her four-time Major winning son in whale spotting!

This statistic ‘surfaced’ after McIlroy posted a third round 68 to retain second place heading to the final round of the Sentry Tournament of Champions.

McIlroy attended the Kapalua Media Centre and near the end of his interview he was bizarrely asked that in walking the Plantation fairways did he find himself looking more at the hole or the Pacific Ocean.

“The ocean,” McIlroy said.

Rory McIlroy with his mum and dad, and the famed Claret Jug.

“I still haven’t seen a whale. But it’s hard with the white caps.  My mum said she saw three yesterday.

Qn: Where they white caps or whales?

“Yeah, maybe. But yeah, the ocean,” said McIlroy laughing.

“Usually it’s the hole as that’s all you have, that’s all you have to look at. So it’s nice. It’s a nice distraction. There’s no way I could think about golf or think about my shot in between shots that whole time, I need something to distract me and usually it’s hairy and I talking about football or sport or whatever and this week it’s just —

“So, I’m looking out at the white caps.”