Rory McIlroy adds Valero Texas Open to schedule in bid to get sharp for The Masters

Rory McIlroy will have one extra tournament to hone his game for The Masters after entering next week's Valero Texas Open.

It was believed that this week's Shell Houston Open at Redstone would be the Northern Irishman's final warm-up for the year's opening major.

But shortly after signing for a second round two-under 70 at Redstone, world number two McIlroy revealed that he'd signed up for the Valero Texas Open - the final tournament before the Augusta showpiece.

The announcement comes as no real surprise given that the two-time major champion is still struggling to find his game after a poor start to the season.

McIlroy told the Golf Channel: "I just think that a few more competitive rounds under my belt will do me a world of good going into Augusta.

"I just feel like it's the best preparation fore me right now."

The 22-year-old had also admitted after his opening 73 in Houston that he wasn't bringing his best golf to the course despite hitting it well in practice.

McIlroy had said: "I think I'm still a little bit tentative out there on the golf course and not committing to my shots fully.

"But I think that just takes time and takes rounds. Hopefully another three rounds this week and some good scores will give me confidence going into The Masters."

McIlroy's 73-70 one-under total in Houston has left him nine shots off the lead going into the weekend.

That's sufficient to make the cut and presuming he plays all four days in the Texas Open, that gives him another six competitive rounds before he tees it up at Augusta.