Rory McIlroy is a Masters champion at last — but his march toward the green jacket was anything but easy.
It started on Thursday when, despite playing beautiful golf for much of the day, two late double bogeys resulted in an even-par round. Nonetheless, McIlroy persevered, firing six-under 66s two days in a row to claim the outright lead heading into Sunday at Augusta National.
“I still have to remind myself that there’s a long way to go,” McIlroy said Saturday evening. “I, just as much as anyone else, know what can happen on the final day here.”
Little did he know how prescient that quote would become.
McIlroy’s final round started about as poorly as it could have. A day after starting with a historic string of 3s on the scorecard, the Northern Irishman three-putted for 6 on the opening hole of the final round to fall into a tie with DeChambeau. After he failed to make birdie at the next, he found himself one behind DeChambeau through two holes.
As McIlroy has shown so many times this week, though, he refused to let a little adversity get him down as he would play the next nine holes in four under par. Standing on the 11th tee, he again held the lead — and this time the margin was four. Just as he predicted the night prior, though, holding onto that lead would be anything but easy.
In the groups up ahead, roars began to swirl around in the pines above Amen Corner. Justin Rose, the 18- and 36-hole leader, began to make his move. He ripped off three straight birdies on Nos. 11-13 to get within striking distance of the lead before giving one back at the 14th, but he bounced back with two more birdies on the ensuing holes to get to 11 under. Just as that was transpiring, McIlroy was falling apart.
With a wedge in hand into the par-5 13th, McIlroy rinsed his ball in the tributary to Rae’s Creek as he carded double bogey. He followed it up with a bogey at the next to fall a stroke off the lead. But on the 15h, he hit a towering, hooking 7-iron to set up a two-putt birdie to once again take the lead. Still though, Rose refused to go away. And after playing the 18th hole to perfection, he rolled in a birdie putt to post the clubhouse lead.
“I just think all week how I responded to setbacks,” McIlroy said. “I think that’s what I’ll take from this week. Couldn’t be more proud of myself for that and being able to back bounce when I needed to.”
Standing on the right side of the 17th fairway, McIlroy hit what may well go down as one of the greatest shots of his career as he dropped in a high, soft wedge to within three feet of the hole. A few moments later, he rolled in the birdie to take a one-shot lead to the final hole.
“If Rory is able to play two solid shots and get on the flat part of that green,” announcer Jim Nantz said. “His win will be all but assured.”
If only it were so simple.
After smoking a driver down the center of the fairway, McIlroy pushed his wedge right and into the bunker. His next shot settled within 5 feet of the hole, but he could not get the putt to fall, forcing a playoff with Rose at 11 under. Once again, the green jacket would have to wait.
On the first playoff hole (the 18th) McIlroy hit a near identical drive to what he’d hit in regulation. This time, he would not miss with wedge in his hand. As the ball trickled back down the slope on the green, the patrons roared with excitement. The decibel level would only get louder when he rolled in his birdie to win moments later.
“It’s his masterpiece!” Nantz said.
As the crowd showered McIlroy with appreciation surrounding the green, all he could do was fall to his knees. When he finally rose from his crouch, he let out a scream 14 years in the making.
“I started to wonder if it would ever be my time,” McIlroy said. “I think the last 10 years coming here with the burden of the Grand Slam on my shoulders and trying to achieve that, yeah, I’m sort of wondering what we’re all going to talk about going into next year’s Masters.”
With the win, McIlroy becomes the sixth player in golf’s history to complete the career Grand Slam. And although it was anything but easy, the journey to the green jacket was well worth the wait.
