Rory McIlroy can breathe a sigh of relief.
McIlroy won his second straight Masters Tournament on Sunday — joining Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus and Nick Faldo as the only golfers who’ve won the sport’s most prestigious tournament two years in a row.
McIlroy led by six strokes after 36 holes, but he entered Sunday tied for first after a disastrous third round. In danger of blowing the biggest two-round lead in Masters history, McIlroy rebounded under pressure, shooting a final-round 71 to secure his second green jacket.
Scottie Scheffler finished second. Cameron Young — who was in the final pairing with McIlroy — finished tied for third with three others, including last year’s runner-up, Justin Rose.
“I just can’t believe I waited 17 years to get one green jacket, and I get two in a row,” McIlroy said on the CBS telecast. “I think all of my my perseverance at this golf tournament over the years has really started to pay off."
McIlroy was dominant to start at the course in Augusta, Georgia. Picking up where he left off last year — when he defeated Rose in a playoff to win his first Masters — McIlroy was 12-under after two rounds, having shot a blistering 65 in the second round to open a six-stroke lead over the rest of the field. But he stumbled in the third, shooting a 1-over 73 to fall to 11-under and into a tie with Young for first place.
Amid whispers that McIlroy could repeat some of his worst losses at Augusta, he came back with a vengeance Sunday. He was brilliant as his final round went on, hitting three birdies from holes eight to 13 to give himself a cushion he would never relinquish down the stretch.
“I’m absolutely delighted to get it done,” McIlroy said. “Having a six-shot lead going into the weekend, would have been a bitter to pill to swallow if I didn’t get it done.”
McIlroy had a tortured career at Augusta before the last two years. He lost as part of the final pairings in both 2011 and 2018. A loss Sunday would have echoed some of the lowest moments of his otherwise storied career.
Instead, it was a repeat of his most impressive accomplishment as a pro. And now, instead of an historic loss, McIlroy has entered a new, rarefied tier as one of golf’s all-time greats.
“I thought it was so difficult to win last year because of trying to win the Masters and the grand slam,” McIlroy said. “This year I realized it’s just really difficult to win the Masters.”
He added: “I don’t make it easy.”
