Augusta, Ga. – Eventually, when Rory McIlroy walked onto the final fairway, it wasn’t just twice, with a chance to win the Masters, defend against multiple players, overcome multiple players and overcome his mistakes in the thrilling 19 golf holes, when he fell to his knees and allowed his emotions to surpass him, standing near the Augusta National Club Club and furnishings.
He finally conquered his Mount Everest. Now, there is only one thing to do. He blushed and tears were waving, and he turned to his friend and said what he had hoped for for more than ten years:
“I have to buy a green jacket.”
Augusta’s roar was ready to serenade for McIlroy during the breakout due to pressure from 11 years of major drought on his shoulder on Sunday. But there are also lots of whispering grounds as he walks through what he calls the golf course.
“Oh my goodness,” said a customer after McIlroy had a double bogey in the first hole.
“It’s the nerve.” Another McIlroy handed Bryson DeChambeau to the second time.
A customer covered his face with his hands: “He did it again.”
After McIlroy donated the ball to Rae’s Creek, the double boat ranked 13th in the 13th hole, adding another bogey on the 14th and burning 17 birdies with taboos in the last hole, which is what it looks like: on the biggest stage to date, another opportunity was wasted. Even McIlroy thought of it.
“Today, what I thought of was ‘the last nine points,’ Did I let it slip again?'” McIlroy said. “My fight today is with me. It’s not with other people.”
This is a feat in the past decade. There may have been close calls and heartbroken in the past, but scar tissue lingers in the space between victory and failure. So that’s what happened, and that’s how it happened, six with eight holes wasn’t enough, and every shot McIlroy hit felt like it had earthquake gravity with narrative power, putting him in the loss side again, or after the playoffs, he’d find relief here.
“It’s the best day in my golf life,” McIlroy said. “I literally fulfilled my dream.”
The victory in St Andrews in 2022 was originally poetic. In 2023, a U.S. Open victory at Los Angeles Country Club will be a practical way for his game to evolve. Last year’s victory at Pinehurst could have been an epic way to end his major drought.
However, none of these wins will answer the question that remains: Can McIlroy win at Augusta?
For McIlroy, the meaning of this game is personal, as it marks his golf journey. His only 7-year-old father and father poured into his head memories again as he spoke again on Tuesday and Sunday evening.
“I think all of this is back to me,” McIlroy said. “Remember why I fell in love with the game.”
Two years after turning to professionals in 2007, McIlroy made his debut at the 2009 Masters and finished 20th. Since then, he has participated in everybody’s competition – 17 years old in total – and has continued close calls and unshared. Over nearly two decades, the world of golf and the big ticket tournament have changed. The same goes for McIlroy.
When he was 17, he had his face wrapped around him and drove along Magnolia Lane. McIlroy replaced it with a tighter look. He wore the passage of time in the grey temple, which showed how long he had been working around the sport and reminded him how many times he had had the opportunity to do what he did on Sunday as he finally arrived at the sport’s Apogee: Career Grand Slam.
“I think I’ve taken that burden since August 2014,” McIlroy said. “It’s very difficult. It’s hard today.”
McIlroy talked in detail about his nerves throughout Sunday. He talked about the stress, whether self-imposed, both exerted, and how he felt when greats like Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods predicted McIlroy would win the master.
However, Sunday’s performance was once again shown in crazy snapshots, which is that McIlroy was never Nicklaus or Woods. That’s not to say McIlroy’s game isn’t that great. But his journey looks a lot like this week’s four double taboos and mysterious ways of swinging: Fall and Fall are part of his allegorical structure, just like anything else.
“You have to be a timeless optimist,” McIlroy said. “I really believe I’m better now than I was a decade ago.”
Faced with repeated disappointments, his patience, belief and resilience creed put him in trouble at Pinehurst. Failure has left McIlroy’s career in the near future unresolved and needs to look like a hard reset. McIlroy had to make time to walk around New York City alone, eventually hitting the ball into a simulator while his swing.
Technical adjustments, psychological replenishment and the new year bring an updated version of McIlroy. He then won the Pebble Beach victory again in the Players Championship, acknowledging how Scottie Scheffler’s historical year inspired him and demonstrated an amazing balance of control and aggression.
However, the question now is more important than ever: Can he do it in the Masters? On Sunday, he offered the long-awaited proof that he could. It also made McIlroy show how much he wanted.
1:56
Rory shed tears after winning the 2025 Masters
Overwhelmed Rory McIlroy won the 2025 Masters against Justin Rose in the playoffs, becoming the sixth golfer in history, winning a professional grand slam.
“This is my 17th time, I [had] McIlroy said: “Start wondering if this will be my time. What happened to me in the last green playoffs, at least 11 years (if not 14 years) of emotion.
“I finished the work.”
McIlroy was seen being asked about his coat size in a video released earlier on Sunday. He said he was 38 or 40 depending on how much he ate per week.
“I prefer the European style,” McIlroy said in the video. “A little bit of mounting, a little bit of conical and pinched in.”
Schefler helped McIlroy slip into the green jacket on Sunday. The size is 38 regular, slightly larger, and has not been tailored to McIlroy’s preferred measurements. But as his shoulders embraced the wool fabric, McIlroy closed his eyes, raised his hands and leaned his head towards the sky.
Suitable does not need to be perfect. The others are already.
