Glory not money motivating Rory McIlroy

Former world number one Rory McIlroy said filling a void in his trophy cabinet is a bigger motivation than the riches on offer at the Tour Championship this week.

The Northern Irishman enters the final event of the PGA season still able to lift the FedEx Cup for the first time, but only if he wins the Tour Championship and his rivals from the top five of the standings - Jason Day, Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler, Henrik Stenson and Bubba Watson - fail to perform at their best.

Whatever happens at the East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, Georgia, it will not be the lure of major financial reward driving McIlroy to excel.

"Luckily, that amount of money doesn't sort of mean much to me anymore," he said.

"It will go in the bank and if I want to buy something nice, I will. I mean like it's nice to think that you could win $10million this week, but that's not what excites me. It excites me to play well and to try and win.

"And the FedExCup is one of the only things that I haven't put on my golf CV and that would be more exciting to do that rather than walk away with a cheque."

After winning two majors, The Open Championship and the US PGA Championship last year, the 26-year-old has endured a disrupted 2015, marked by his inability to defend the Open's famous claret jug after injuring himself playing football with friends.

"Interesting. Disappointing," he said when asked about his season.

"You know, unfulfilling. Well no, that's maybe going a bit far. But yeah, it hasn't been the season that I would have hoped for.

"Going without a major, missing arguably the biggest tournament that we have, The Open Championship at St Andrews, it only comes around once every five years, having to sit that one out, there's been a few disappointing moments."

And of the two men who have jostled with him at the top of the world rankings this year, McIlroy believes Masters and U.S. Open champion Spieth has the edge on newly crowned world number one and US PGA winner Day.

"I just feel like majors trump anything else," he said.

"Winning two majors, going 54-under par in the four major championships this year, I mean, there's obviously a ballot at the end of the year, I know who I would be voting for. And that's no disrespect to Jason at all. He's been great."