Rory McIlroy wins The Masters: Sir Nick Faldo says victory tops Tiger Woods' in 2019 as Butch Harmon revels in 'one of golf's greatest days'
Rory McIlroy seals career Grand Slam with nerve-shredding Masters victory after years of heartache; Sir Nick Faldo says victory eclipses Tiger Woods' in 2019 as Butch Harmon revels in one of golf's "greatest days" - "It had an ebb and flow a Hollywood producer could not have come up with"
Monday 21 April 2025 07:13, UK
Sir Nick Faldo said Rory McIlroy's Masters triumph tops Tiger Woods' Augusta National victory back in 2019 as Butch Harmon hailed the Northern Irishman for completing the career Grand Slam on "one of the greatest days in golf we will ever see".
Eleven years on from claiming his previous major title - the 2014 PGA Championship - and 14 from squandering a four-shot lead ahead of the final round at The Masters, McIlroy secured his maiden Green Jacket with a play-off win over Justin Rose.
He had led Bryson DeChambeau by two strokes before teeing off only to then double bogey the first, setting up a nerve-shredding day on which he held a four-shot advantage at one stage and then missed a short par putt at the 18th to win in regulation time.
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The world No 2 held his nerve on the first play-off hole to become the sixth man - and first European - to win all four majors at least once, joining Woods, Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player.
Three-time Masters champion Nick Faldo told Sky Sports: "When Tiger won here in 2019 [earning his first major title in 11 years] I said that scene would never be topped but I was wrong.
"For a man to do that after what he went through for 11 years - Rory is a legend now. He is 35 years old and a legend. How about that?! It is a remarkable achievement."
Harmon: Gladiator McIlroy never quit
Sky Sports pundit Harmon said: "I think we saw one of the greatest days in golf we will ever see. It had an ebb and flow that a Hollywood producer could not have come up with. If you wrote a script like this, they would say it wasn't believable.
"Double-bogeys, birdies, missing three-footers, hitting it in the junk. I will never forget this day. I have never seen emotion like it on a golf course.
"He was like a gladiator in the way he came back. Did he quit? No. Did he hang his head? No. Did he feel sorry for himself? No. Now he has a Green Jacket.
"I have known Rory since he was 16, done a little work with him at times, and this is one of the most amazing victories I have ever seen."
McIlroy looked poised to end his long wait for a fifth major during last year's US Open, only to be overhauled by DeChambeau after three bogeys across his last four holes, which included missed putts from two feet and three feet at 16 and 18 respectively.
There were wobbles at Augusta National on Sunday, too - the double-bogey to start, another at 13, a bogey at 14 and then that fluffed putt from close range at 18 - but a lasered approach to the first play-off hole then set up McIlroy's history-making win.
McGinley: Rory showed so much heart
Former European Ryder Cup captain Paul McGinley said of McIlroy: "It is good for the game to have another Grand Slam champion but there is also the human element of resilience and bouncing back.
"He has been battered at times in the last 11 years, letting opportunities slip, and today was a microcosm of those last 11 years, falling down and getting back up, falling down and getting back up.
"He did it four times today and that takes so much energy, so I am full of admiration for him showing so much strength. That human story."
McGinley later added: "The reslience, the toughness that he showed; this is a different Rory, a new evolution of Rory, a better, more mature Rory, a more rounded golfer and tougher mentally.
"He's got the pointy elbows back and he certainly had it today. There didn't seem to be a lot of love lost in the body language with him and Bryson on the golf course.
"When he when he got knocked on the canvas and knocked down, he found a way of getting up and throwing punches again. That shows so much heart, so much character."
So, are more major victories likely to come for McIlroy now?
Dame Laura Davies added: "He might win five or six more majors now as he will never feel pressure like that again, trying to get the Grand Slam. He came through and won.
"It was one of the most amazing sporting moments I have witnessed."
Hole-by-hole breakdown of McIlroy's dramatic finish
Hole 13 - Leading by four going into the hole, McIlroy elects to lay up on the par-five but knocks a wedge into Rae's Creek - from under 90 yards - with his third shot, resulting in a fourth double-bogey of the week. Further along the course, Rose's back-to-back birdies from the 15th give suddenly earn him a share of the lead.
Score - 11 McIlroy, -11 Rose (16), -9 Åberg (14)
Hole 14 - McIlroy's tee shot leaks wide and towards the trees, and misses the green with his second shot, then fails to get up and down from off the green for par. It leaves Rose, playing the 17th hole, a one-shot lead.
Score - 11 Rose (16), -10 McIlroy, -10 Åberg (14)
Hole 15 - McIlroy produces a contender for shot of his career with a stunning approach from the pines, leaving him within eight feet for eagle, although he settles for the two-putt birdie. It's enough for the outright lead after Rose bogeys the 17th.
Score: -11 McIlroy, -10 Rose (17), -10 Åberg (16)
Hole 16 - McIlroy hits a great tee shot into the final par three on the course but misses the birdie putt to extend his advantage, which drops him back into a share of the lead after Rose finishes his round with a long-range birdie at 18.
Score - 11 McIlroy, -11 Rose (F), 10 Åberg (16)
Hole 17 - McIlroy restores his solo lead after drilling a stunning iron shot to within three feet of the flag and converting the putt, taking him back to level par the round. Rose heads to the practice area in the hope for a play-off.
Score - 12 McIlroy, -11 Rose (F), -9 Reed (17)
Hole 18 - McIlroy sends a wedge from the middle of the 18th fairway into the greenside bunker but splashes out to five feet, only to miss his putt for par and fall into a play-off with Rose.
Score - -11 McIlroy, -11 Rose, -9 Reed
Play-off hole - Rose and McIlroy both find the fairway off the par-four 18th tee. Rose knocks his ball onto the green but misses his birdie attempt, as McIlroy nails his approach to within two feet and converts the career-defining putt.
Score - Rory McIlroy wins the career Grand Slam!
The numbers behind McIlroy's Grand Slam glory
One - McIlroy is the first European player to complete the career Grand Slam. Jim Barnes is the only other European golfer to win each of the other three majors, with those victories coming before The Masters was launched in 1934.
Three - McIlroy is the third player to win The Masters and The Players in the same season, following on from Woods in 2021 and Scottie Scheffler in the 2024 contest. It's also his third win of the year, having started his campaign with AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am victory.
Four - No four player had previously posted four or more double bogeys during their tournament week and gone on to win the Green Jacket. McIlroy made two in his opening round and two on the final day to end that record.
Five - The end of McIlroy's drought puts him as a five-time major winner, the same number as Brooks Koepka and European legend Seve Ballesteros. It lifts him within one of Sir Nick Faldo's all-time tally.
11 - Eleven years equals the longest gap between major wins in history, Julin Boros, Hale Irwin, Ben Crenshaw and Tiger Woods are the others to go the same time between major wins. It was also McIlroy's 11th attempt to complete the career Grand Slam, whereas each of the previous five player to manage it took three attempts or less.
17 - McIlroy's success came in his 17th start at Augusta National, the second most appearances required to claim a maiden victory at The Masters and just two fewer than Sergio Garcia needed before his 2017 success.
3,899 - That's the number of days between McIlroy's 2014 PGA Championship success and his major glory at The Masters. A win well worth the wait.
Tiger welcomes Rory to the club: How world reacted to Masters win
YOUR VIEWS: 'A golfing great' | 'Too nervous to watch'
Nick: "Sport is magical and moments like this are etched into the pantheon of greatest achievements in all of sport. Nobody more deserving than Rory. What a man, what a story, what an unforgettable Sunday at The Masters."
Antony: "I had to turn it off, as he went to the playoff. I just couldn't take it anymore. And I'm just sat at home watching on TV. So how he held it together to win it, when I thought he was gonna choke again, I'll never know. Absolutely made up for Rory, if anyone deserves it, it's him."
Studs81: "So happy for Rory, to get that stigma off his back, but can't help but feel gutted for Justin Rose. To play himself back into that position after a nightmare round 3, was nothing short of amazing. Hopefully he can do it next year. Well done Rory. Enjoy every moment."
M Lacey: "Wow, never been as stressed watching a final round! Must have hid behind the sofa so many times, but finally he has done it. Well done Rory now go on and lead the team to Ryder cup victory this year as a Grand Slam Champion!"
John: "Well done to Rory. I've watched all of his major appearances over the years, as well as the majority of his PGA tour appearances, and there's no doubt a talent like that deserves to be remembered as a Grand Slam golfing great. So humble throughout, as well."
What's next for McIlroy?
McIlroy will sit out of the RBC Heritage this week, the latest Signature Event on the PGA Tour, before returning to action - alongside Shane Lowry - as defending champions of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans from April 24-27.
He also returns as defending champion at the Truist Championship - previous called the Wells Fargo Championship from May 8-11, an event he has already won four times and cruised to a five-shot victory at last year.
That event is being played away from the Quail Hollow Club due to it hosting the PGA Championship the following week, where he will look to win the Wanamaker Trophy for a third time and claim a second successive major.
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