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Rory McIlroy's final round and his play-off win at the Masters was a rollercoaster, full of huge highs and cavernous lows - an apt way at an apt venue to complete his golfing destiny.
McIlroy's hunt for majors has been filled with displays of brilliance and gut- wrenching body blows as time and again he got his heart broken as he searched for golfing immortality.
His eventual play-off victory over Justin Rose capped a day that served as a microcosm of his 11-year wait for a fifth major as he mixed in some box office Hollywood shots with some Holywood schoolboy errors that kept everyone watching on the edge of their seats.
But we should not really be surprised that he put himself and his fans through the wringer because he has been doing that ever since his first Masters meltdown in 2011.
So, to complete the Grand Slam at Augusta National, 14 years after, was a great full circle moment, as years of resilience and perseverance finally paid off.
And all that heartache just made this victory all the sweeter.
Rory McIlroy claimed four majors in three years and looked set to dominate the sport [Getty Images]
2011 US Open
McIlroy showcased his resilience in his maiden major victory because it came just two months after that epic Masters meltdown. He went to Congressional Golf Club in Maryland and absolutely hammered the field with a dominance only really seen with Tiger Woods.
While lapping the field McIlroy set 11 US Open records at the weekend with an outrageous display of ball striking that saw him win traditionally the toughest of the majors by eight shots on 16 under par.
2012 US PGA Championship
McIlroy broke new ground again at Kiawah Island when he shot 66 on Sunday to win the US PGA Championship by a record eight shots.
At 23 years and three months McIlroy became the youngest multiple major champion since Seve Ballesteros won the Masters in 1980 and the sixth youngest overall.
2014 Open Championship
This was the year McIlroy really showed us all what he could do, starting at Royal Liverpool when he claimed the Open Championship with a wire-to-wire victory, finishing two strokes ahead of Sergio Garcia and Rickie Fowler.
He joined Tiger Woods as the only players to win the Silver Medal as best amateur at the Open and the Claret Jug itself - just one of many similarities people were noticing between the two.
2014 USPGA Championship
Going into the final round at Valhalla with a one-shot lead, McIlroy actually slipped off top spot before fighting his way back and eventually beating Phil Mickelson by a shot to win his second Wanamaker Trophy as dusk fell in Kentucky.
That made it back-to-back majors, four in total and at still only 25 years old it was seemingly just a question of how many McIlroy would win in his career.
"I think Rory has an opportunity to win 15 or 20 majors or whatever he wants to do if he wants to keep playing," was the great Jack Nicklaus' assertion after Valhalla.
It seemed unthinkable that McIlroy would have to wait 11 long years to taste major victory again, but in many ways it was worth the wait.
2025 Masters
So, on to Augusta again and another major that seemed to slip through his fingers a couple of times, with a double bogey start, chip into the water and missed putt on 18 all seeing him stumble into a play-off and almost inevitable heartbreak.
But not this time. McIlroy stood big, stood strong and somehow managed to compose himself time and again, with a final approach to the 18th in sudden death finally getting the job done.
The outpouring of emotion was not just 11 years in the making but 14 years since Augusta first put the boot into him, as after years of trying to break into golf's most exclusive club he finally etched his name into the sport's immortality.
Rory McIlroy's first major heartbreak came at the 2011 Masters [Getty Images]
2011 Masters
Augusta National is where it all began for a then precocious 21-year-old who swaggered into a four-shot lead before the final round of the Masters, with the Green Jacket already getting measured up.
Then disaster struck with tee shots hooking into trees and short putts being missed as McIlroy went round in 80 ,including a second nine of 43, to see a maiden major title slip through his fingers in agonising fashion.
2018 Masters
McIlroy was in the final pairing at Augusta again in 2018, and although three shots behind Patrick Reed, plenty fancied McIlroy to put the record straight at the Masters and complete his Grand Slam in his first big chance.
The big disappointment though was that he never really laid a glove on the leader, missing a four-footer to tie on the second before fading away to a two-over round of 74 to finish sixth.
2022 Open
Despite plenty of top 10s and a brief Sunday lead at the 2018 Open, the next big chance came at St Andrews in the 150th staging of golf's oldest major. He went into Sunday at the Old Course tied with Viktor Hovland at the top of the leaderboard.
This was a tough one to take. McIlroy had a three-shot lead at the start of the back nine but Cameron Smith birdied five holes in a row to shoot 64 and claim the Claret Jug with a fine comeback.
McIlroy did not drop a shot but made just two birdies in his round of 70, in the end paying the price for perhaps not putting his foot on the gas more when Smith came with his late run.
Rory McIlroy suffered more major heartbreak at last year's US Open [Getty Images]
2023 US Open
A similar story came a year later in Los Angeles when McIlroy started the final round a shot behind eventual champion Wyndham Clark and ended the round in the same position.
McIlroy made one bogey and one birdie and, as at St Andrews, was criticised for not being more aggressive as Clark and that elusive fifth major stayed just out of his grasp.
2024 US Open
Many forget McIlroy started the final round of last year's US Open three shots behind Bryson DeChambeau, but after he stormed into the lead he admitted to losing focus and watching what his opponent was doing around Pinehurst No.2.
Three bogeys in his last four holes followed, with missed putts from two feet on the 16th and four feet at the last seeing McIlroy trudge off knowing he had blown another chance, his best chance yet, to add a fifth major.
Being such a champion, though, he would not have to wait long to put it all right.
Continue reading...
McIlroy's hunt for majors has been filled with displays of brilliance and gut- wrenching body blows as time and again he got his heart broken as he searched for golfing immortality.
His eventual play-off victory over Justin Rose capped a day that served as a microcosm of his 11-year wait for a fifth major as he mixed in some box office Hollywood shots with some Holywood schoolboy errors that kept everyone watching on the edge of their seats.
But we should not really be surprised that he put himself and his fans through the wringer because he has been doing that ever since his first Masters meltdown in 2011.
So, to complete the Grand Slam at Augusta National, 14 years after, was a great full circle moment, as years of resilience and perseverance finally paid off.
And all that heartache just made this victory all the sweeter.
McIlroy's magnificent five major wins
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Rory McIlroy claimed four majors in three years and looked set to dominate the sport [Getty Images]
2011 US Open
McIlroy showcased his resilience in his maiden major victory because it came just two months after that epic Masters meltdown. He went to Congressional Golf Club in Maryland and absolutely hammered the field with a dominance only really seen with Tiger Woods.
While lapping the field McIlroy set 11 US Open records at the weekend with an outrageous display of ball striking that saw him win traditionally the toughest of the majors by eight shots on 16 under par.
2012 US PGA Championship
McIlroy broke new ground again at Kiawah Island when he shot 66 on Sunday to win the US PGA Championship by a record eight shots.
At 23 years and three months McIlroy became the youngest multiple major champion since Seve Ballesteros won the Masters in 1980 and the sixth youngest overall.
2014 Open Championship
This was the year McIlroy really showed us all what he could do, starting at Royal Liverpool when he claimed the Open Championship with a wire-to-wire victory, finishing two strokes ahead of Sergio Garcia and Rickie Fowler.
He joined Tiger Woods as the only players to win the Silver Medal as best amateur at the Open and the Claret Jug itself - just one of many similarities people were noticing between the two.
2014 USPGA Championship
Going into the final round at Valhalla with a one-shot lead, McIlroy actually slipped off top spot before fighting his way back and eventually beating Phil Mickelson by a shot to win his second Wanamaker Trophy as dusk fell in Kentucky.
That made it back-to-back majors, four in total and at still only 25 years old it was seemingly just a question of how many McIlroy would win in his career.
"I think Rory has an opportunity to win 15 or 20 majors or whatever he wants to do if he wants to keep playing," was the great Jack Nicklaus' assertion after Valhalla.
It seemed unthinkable that McIlroy would have to wait 11 long years to taste major victory again, but in many ways it was worth the wait.
2025 Masters
So, on to Augusta again and another major that seemed to slip through his fingers a couple of times, with a double bogey start, chip into the water and missed putt on 18 all seeing him stumble into a play-off and almost inevitable heartbreak.
But not this time. McIlroy stood big, stood strong and somehow managed to compose himself time and again, with a final approach to the 18th in sudden death finally getting the job done.
The outpouring of emotion was not just 11 years in the making but 14 years since Augusta first put the boot into him, as after years of trying to break into golf's most exclusive club he finally etched his name into the sport's immortality.
McIlroy's major near misses - the ones that got away
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Rory McIlroy's first major heartbreak came at the 2011 Masters [Getty Images]
2011 Masters
Augusta National is where it all began for a then precocious 21-year-old who swaggered into a four-shot lead before the final round of the Masters, with the Green Jacket already getting measured up.
Then disaster struck with tee shots hooking into trees and short putts being missed as McIlroy went round in 80 ,including a second nine of 43, to see a maiden major title slip through his fingers in agonising fashion.
2018 Masters
McIlroy was in the final pairing at Augusta again in 2018, and although three shots behind Patrick Reed, plenty fancied McIlroy to put the record straight at the Masters and complete his Grand Slam in his first big chance.
The big disappointment though was that he never really laid a glove on the leader, missing a four-footer to tie on the second before fading away to a two-over round of 74 to finish sixth.
2022 Open
Despite plenty of top 10s and a brief Sunday lead at the 2018 Open, the next big chance came at St Andrews in the 150th staging of golf's oldest major. He went into Sunday at the Old Course tied with Viktor Hovland at the top of the leaderboard.
This was a tough one to take. McIlroy had a three-shot lead at the start of the back nine but Cameron Smith birdied five holes in a row to shoot 64 and claim the Claret Jug with a fine comeback.
McIlroy did not drop a shot but made just two birdies in his round of 70, in the end paying the price for perhaps not putting his foot on the gas more when Smith came with his late run.
You must be registered for see images attach
Rory McIlroy suffered more major heartbreak at last year's US Open [Getty Images]
2023 US Open
A similar story came a year later in Los Angeles when McIlroy started the final round a shot behind eventual champion Wyndham Clark and ended the round in the same position.
McIlroy made one bogey and one birdie and, as at St Andrews, was criticised for not being more aggressive as Clark and that elusive fifth major stayed just out of his grasp.
2024 US Open
Many forget McIlroy started the final round of last year's US Open three shots behind Bryson DeChambeau, but after he stormed into the lead he admitted to losing focus and watching what his opponent was doing around Pinehurst No.2.
Three bogeys in his last four holes followed, with missed putts from two feet on the 16th and four feet at the last seeing McIlroy trudge off knowing he had blown another chance, his best chance yet, to add a fifth major.
Being such a champion, though, he would not have to wait long to put it all right.
You must be registered for see images
Continue reading...
