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AUGUSTA, Ga. -- The journey back to the winner's circle of a major championship took 3,899 days for Rory McIlroy to achieve when he finally completed the career grand slam by winning the 2025 Masters. To claim his next, he only needed to wait 364 more. McIlroy on Sunday became the first player in more than two decades to claim back-to-back green jackets, winning the 2026 Masters by one shot over one of the strongest groups of contenders seen at Augusta National Golf Club.
McIlroy (-12) ensured no other golfer would be present in Butler Cabin just off the 18th green by pulling off in two years what he struggled to achieve in 16 prior trips to Augusta. He is the first golfer since Tiger Woods (2001-02) to win consecutive Masters, joining a historic foursome that also includes Nick Faldo (1989-90) and Jack Nicklaus (1965-66). At age 36, he's the oldest player to defend any major championship since Ben Hogan (then 38) at the 1951 U.S. Open.
"I can't believe I waited 17 years to win one green jacket, and I win two in a row," said McIlroy in Butler Cabin while being awarded his second green jacket. "I think all my perseverance at this golf tournament over the years has started to pay off. … So happy to hang in there and get the job done."
In achieving his landmark feat, McIlroy found the winner's circle despite coughing up the Masters record six-shot lead he held after 36 holes. Seeing his advantage evaporate on Saturday, he entered Sunday's final round tied for the lead with Cameron Young, who finished 10 under. It was the seventh 54-hole lead at a major in McIlroy's career.
That is another way in which McIlroy unknowingly followed in the footsteps of Nicklaus, who has been in McIlroy's ear the last two years, warning him about the dangers of double bogeys at Augusta National.
The Golden Bear watched as a five-shot lead he held in the 1975 Masters evaporated before his eyes when he posted the same 1-over 73 that McIlroy did in the third round. Nicklaus ultimately won his fifth and final green jacket the next day by a single stroke, as did McIlroy, both at 12 under.
"Having a six-shot lead going into the weekend, it would have been a bitter pill to swallow if I wasn't able to get over the finish line," he said after the final round.
With a decade-long odyssey behind him, McIlroy felt more relaxed and confident than ever entering Augusta National this year. He remarked about how he stopped by the course more than a handful of times over the last three weeks, which provided him with an opportunity to get to know the Augusta National more intimately than ever before.
"I did want to come back here and prove last year wasn't a fluke," McIlroy said after the final round.
That paid off, considering McIlroy did not have his best this week. His driving accuracy (.553) was horrific, tied for 52nd of the 54 golfers who made the cut and the worst ever by a Masters champion since the statistic began being recorded in 1990. However, his knowledge of the intricacies of Augusta National allowed him to atone for his mistakes. McIlroy graded his scrambling and work around the greens as an "A+".
Masters 2026: Rory McIlroy secures place as greatest of his generation ... and best of all? He's not done yet
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His 65 on Friday was the stuff of legend, vaulting him to 12 under and firmly in control of the tournament. His 73 on Saturday appeared to be the old Rory leaking through the new facade.
On Sunday, McIlroy again seemed ready to give away the tournament. A double bogey on the 6th seemed to be his undoing, but the Northern Irishman rallied with birdies on the 7th and 8th to make the turn one shot behind Justin Rose, whom McIlroy beat in the 2025 Masters playoff.
As is so often the case at the Masters, the tournament swung as the leaders passed through Amen Corner. Consecutive bogeys on Nos. 11 and 12 from Rose dropped him out of the lead, and he failed to capitalize on the par-5 13th. Meanwhile, McIlroy, two groups behind, seized control of the tournament.
A 13-foot par putt on the 11th seemed to settle down the defending champion after a few misses on the first nine. That secured him the honors on the 12th tee, where he hit arguably the shot of the tournament, carving a 9-iron to 7 feet right of the traditional Sunday hole location that has sunk so many championships in the past. After rolling that in, he finally avoided the right trees on the 13th for the first time all week and put his second to the back left. An up-and-down, capped off with an 11-footer back up the hill, moved him to 13 under for the first time all week and gave him a three-shot cushion over his competitors.
His chief challenger late was 2022 and 2024 Masters champion Scottie Scheffler, who birdied Nos. 14-16 and came excruciatingly close to another on the 17th, moving to 11 under with the clubhouse lead, two back of the defending champion.
McIlroy was unable to go lower, posting pars on Nos. 14-17, but unlike 2025, when he held just a one-shot advantage over Rose entering the 18th (he scored bogey, requiring a playoff), he had a two-shot cushion on Sunday.
A wayward tee shot well right added more stress than he would've preferred, but his miss was big enough that he had a clear window to hit a draw over the tree and patrons short and right of the green to get greenside in two.
From there, he just needed to get up and down in three, and his bogey at the last still allowed McIlroy to finish ahead of Scheffler and claim his historic second straight Masters. He led for six straight Masters rounds dating back to 2025, tied for the second-longest streak in history.
Capturing his sixth major, McIlroy pulls alongside Faldo, Lee Trevino and Phil Mickelson with the 12th most all-time. McIlroy will eye joining Harry Vardon, Bobby Jones, Gene Sarazen, Sam Snead and Arnold Palmer if he can achieve one more.
The reaction from the patrons gathered around the 18th was more muted than in 2025, when McIlroy's win led to a cathartic release of emotion from both himself and those who watched him agonise over close calls for 16 years. This time, it was purely respect shared from the patrons, knowing they were watching the greatest of his generation and one of the best of all-time secure his position in Masters history.
