Shanghai: Rory McIlroy said yesterday that Tiger Woods is reaping the benefits of a more "mellow" approach to life after the American secured a historic 82nd US PGA Tour win this week. Woods, 43, reached another milestone with victory on Monday at the Zozo Championship in Japan, equalling Sam Snead's 54-year-old record of Tour triumphs.

McIlroy, who finished tied third, said he had seen up close how Woods has changed as a person during a brilliant career punctuated by some high-profile personal problems. "He's opened up a lot in the last few years," the Northern Irishman and current World No. 2, said on the eve of the WGC-HSBC Champions in Shanghai. "I'm in a fortunate position that I live quite close to him and we've been able to develop quite a good relationship. I've seen in the private moments who he is as a person and what a great dad he is, how seriously he takes that side of his life as well. It's been great to see."

Rory McIlroy