Augusta, GA…For a second time Rory McIlroy was beaming in the golden hour at Augusta National on a Sunday, appreciative applause along with too many hugs to count, another Masters won and another goal accomplished.

“I did want to come back here and prove last year wasn’t a fluke,” McIlroy said at the Green Jacket Ceremony.

That he did, winning his second Green Jacket after a final round that had much in common with the conclusion to last year’s Tournament. As in 2025, McIlroy persevered on a day when his mettle was tested and he lost the lead, briefly as many as three strokes on the first nine, before clawing his way back on top.

“I never make it easy,” said McIlroy, who led by a record six strokes after 36 holes but fell into a tie with Cameron Young after the third round.

A year after Justin Rose pushed him to a playoff, McIlroy shot a closing 71 to finish at 12-under 276 to defeat two-time Masters champion and world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler by one stroke. Rose, Cameron Young, Tyrrell Hatton and Russell Henley tied for third place at 10-under on a day when four golfers had at least a share of the lead.

“Another epic Masters,” said Augusta National Chairman Fred Ridley. It was also historic, with McIlroy becoming only the fourth player to win back-to-back titles, joining Jack Nicklaus (1965-66), Nick Faldo (1989-90) and Tiger Woods (2001-02).

“You’re amazing,” Faldo told McIlroy, who joined the Englishman, Lee Trevino and Phil Mickelson with six professional major-championship victories. Only 11 golfers all-time have won more of the sport’s most coveted titles.

“Good things come to those who wait,” said McIlroy, whose 2025 Masters win broke an 11-year major drought. “Just keep going. I found myself in a very similar position today to where I was in the last round last year, two or three behind, but I played solid golf after that.”

Unlike last year, McIlroy’s parents, Gerry and Rosie, were present to see their only child win, along with his wife, Erica, and 5-year-old daughter, Poppy.

“Mum and Dad, I owe everything to you,” said McIlroy. “You’re the most wonderful parents, and if I can be half the parent to Poppy that you’ve been to me, I know I’ve done a good job.”

McIlroy seized control on Sunday in Amen Corner, hitting a 9-iron to seven feet for a pivotal birdie on the dangerous, water-guarded par-3 12th hole, which has sabotaged plenty of players over the decades. The wind was of many minds as McIlroy was about to play his tee shot on the 161-yard hole. He relied on sage advice he received in 2009, his first Masters, during a practice round with two-time champion Tom Watson.

“He said to me on the 12th tee he always waited until he felt where the wind should be and then just hit it,” McIlroy recalled. “You know, just hit it as soon as you can. That’s what I did on 12. It was all over the place. When I stood up on the tee, it felt like it was off the right, and I looked at the 11th flag, it was blowing right to left. But I was patient, and I waited to feel where the wind should have been coming from, and I knew it was just a perfect three-quarter 9-iron. Absolutely huge, huge shot in the Tournament.”

After that gem, McIlroy capitalized on a beautiful drive on the par-5 13th – his first on that hole in four rounds – for another birdie. That 11-footer, after a hard-breaking downhill approach putt from the fringe, put McIlroy ahead by three.

Video Collection
McIlroy’s success on the most famous part of the course contrasted with the struggles encountered there by Rose, who had closed the first nine with three straight birdies to take a two-stroke lead as he made the turn. But Rose, bidding to become the Tournament’s second-oldest champion at age 45, hit a poor approach to the 11th and flubbed a chip on the 12th for two consecutive bogeys, then he failed to birdie the 13th hole after reaching it in two.

Young, playing in the final pairing with McIlroy and trying to win his first major title, also had a two-stroke lead on the first nine before bogeying the sixth, seventh and ninth holes. He parred in from there, unable to put any pressure on McIlroy.

Scheffler, who trailed by a dozen strokes after 36 holes and was still four back after a Saturday 65, became McIlroy’s primary threat when he birdied Nos. 15 and 16 after a string of 11 straight pars. He was unable to make anything happen on the last two holes.

Video Collection
McIlroy executed nifty par saves from beyond the 16th green and to the right of the 17th green, hitting a gorgeous, curling lag putt followed by a crisp uphill chip. “The up-and-down on 16 and the up-and-down on 17 were huge,” said McIlroy, who relied heavily on his short game throughout the Tournament.

Thanks to that handiwork, the Northern Irishman went to the 18th ahead by two – which turned out to be a good thing. McIlroy hit his drive deep into the trees on the right. He was fortunate to have a clear swing and was able to hit a high, hooking iron toward the green. His ball nestled into a partially plugged lie in the front bunker, but he blasted safely onto the green and two-putted for a winning bogey, the final putt from just a few inches.

“In the moment, I think when the ball trickled by and I marked it there from two inches or whatever, I just looked at the back of the green, and I saw my mom and dad and Erica and Poppy, and I was just like I can’t believe I’ve just done it again,” McIlroy said. “More joy, yeah. Not as emotional, but wow, it’s just amazing.”

Ninety years after Horton Smith became the first with multiple Masters titles, McIlroy’s resilience allowed him to be the 19th man with more than one Green Jacket.

“Just absolutely delighted to be able to get it done,” McIlroy said. “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 myself over the finish line.”

It was nearly midnight in McIlroy’s hometown, where the watch party at Holywood Golf Club had been going on for hours, when he reached his destination.

“I was a little kid with a dream,” he said. “Some people probably thought it was outlandish to dream the things I wanted to do, but I had a lot of support back home.”

As some of those supporters drained pints, McIlroy planned to enjoy his evening too, but, at 36, made clear he hasn’t stopped dreaming.

“It took me 10 years to win my fifth major, and then my sixth one’s come pretty soon after it,” he said. “I’m not putting a number on it, but I certainly don’t want to stop here.”

By Bill Fields