A truly thrilling Sunday at Augusta National saw Northern Ireland native Rory McIlroy win his first Masters and the coveted green jacket. McIlroy’s victory was a historic and emotional culmination of a decade-long pursuit of the career grand slam.
This triumph places McIlroy among an elite group of golfers, including Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods, who have won all four major championships (Masters, PGA Championship, the U.S. Open, and the Open Championship [British Open]).
McIlroy won the Open Championship in 2014, marking his third major championship and putting him just a Masters victory away from legendary status in the game of golf. The last decade has been marked by near-misses and heartbreaking Sundays at Augusta. Each year, the pressure intensified, and many, including McIlroy, wondered if he would ever get it done.
While at times it looked like he had squandered his opportunity yet again, McIlroy prevailed dramatically, defeating Englishman Justin Rose in a playoff. His victory tells a tale of persistence, resilience and redemption – and now nobody can deny his place amongst golf’s legendary figures.
Entering the final round, McIlroy held a two-shot lead over his final pairing partner and American Bryson DeChambeau. A rocky start saw McIlroy finish the first hole with a double bogey, his lead gone in a flash.
He was able to right the ship with birdies on holes three and four, then extended his advantage with two more on the ninth and tenth, building a comfortable lead heading into the final eight holes. It finally seemed like his moment had arrived.
That was until he made a colossal error on the par-5 13th hole. After a slightly wayward teeshot, McIlroy had played his second shot as a layup, staying short of the creek that threatened anyone who failed to reach the green. From no more than 85 yards out, McIlroy took a lazy swing and watched as his ball landed on a slight down slope and carried into the water hazard.
It was an unthinkable error from McIlroy, who was cruising to a comfortable victory. He ended up making double bogey and would bogey the 14th hole shortly after, falling back to a tie for the lead at -10.
His next birdie opportunity was the par-5 15th hole, where he eagled the previous round. His tee shot was slightly left, and presented a tough angle to the green. Nonetheless, McIlroy squared up to the ball with his 7-iron, and flushed a beautiful high draw that cleared the water hazard short of the green and rolled up near the pin. Jim Nantz captured the moment perfectly, calling it “the shot of a lifetime.”
McIlroy would go on to hit an incredible shot on the 18th hole in the playoff, landing his ball just beyond the pin on the down slope, which allowed it to feed back and set up a four-foot putt to win. When he rolled in his tournament-winning putt, he collapsed to the ground and was overcome with emotion. The tears were flowing, and he was as animated as any Masters champion has ever been on the 18th green.
It was an incredible moment for an incredible golfer, and a great day for the sport as a whole. In his victory speech, McIlroy gave a heartfelt reminder to his daughter Poppy and the rest of the world to “never give up on your dreams.”
While McIlroy stole the headlines, there were three former Demon Deacons that played in the Masters this year: Will Zalatoris, Cameron Young and 31-year-old amateur Evan Beck. Unfortunately, none of these Demon Deacons were able to make the cut. Zalatoris finished at +8, Young finished at +7 , and Beck finished at +9, all well short of the +2 cutline.
It was a disappointing outing for these Demon Deacons, particularly Zalatoris, who finished inside the top 10 just last year. As for Beck, it was his first-ever major championship start, and while he did not make the cut, he called the experience the “coolest thing [he’s] ever done.”
