Rory Mcllroy: Eternal Optimist of the Masters Mind
By Terry Moore
Rory Mcllroy
When asked on Tuesday of Masters week about all of the expectations heaped upon him in his quest for the career Grand Slam, Rory Mcllroy said: "It's just narratives. It's noise. It's just trying to block out that noise as much as possible. I need to treat this tournament like all the other tournaments that I play throughout the year."
Good luck with that, Rory, I thought at the time.
The Masters is like no other tournament and its historic weight can't be reduced by psychological ploys and mantras. On Sunday, Mcllroy had to fight back and resist a series of "narratives." Was he collapsing under the pressure? Was the title slipping away once again? Why can't he close the deal?
In one of the most popular Masters victories since Tiger Woods' triumphant win in 2019, Mcllroy finally persevered and donned his first green jacket, joining Woods and five other illustrious golfers in achieving the coveted career Slam—winning the Masters, U.S. Open, the PGA and the Open Championship.
Sunday at the Masters was riveting, with so many emotional high and lows, with sensational shots and blunders. Mcllroy double-bogied the first hole and all of the sudden he's tied with Bryson Dechambeau. Oddly enough, the start calmed him down. "In a funny way, I feel like the double bogey at the first sort of settled my nerves," said Mcllroy in the press conference afterwards. "Walking to the second tee, the first thing that popped into my head was Jon Rahm a couple years ago making double and going on to win. So at least my mind was in the right place, and was at least thinking positively about it."
Well, some self-talk mantras do come in handy. And in a topsy-turvy final round, they were employed over and over.
Every time Mcllroy incurred a setback including another unlikely double bogey (his fourth of week, the most for a Masters champion) on 13, he bounced back with a clutch shot to right his ship. Meanwhile, Justin Rose was in hot pursuit, carding 10 birdies on Sunday and making up six shots during the final round. Seemingly, after a birdie and a one-shot lead heading to the 72nd hole, Mcllroy was in control. But again, the tables turned when he found the bunker and missed the par-save, sending it to sudden death.
It took one playoff hole to crown the champion as Mcllroy rolled in a two-foot birdie putt, setting off a wave of emotion. This time his collapse was purely physical— from his knees to the green in sheer relief— and leading to tears of joy.
When asked by a reporter how he managed to "keep the faith" after so many disappointing finishes at the Masters, the new champ said: "Look, you have to be the eternal optimist in this game."
On Saturday, Mcllroy got off to hottest start in Masters history, burning the rubber with six consecutive threes which included three birdies and an eagle. On two of those birdies, on holes 5 and 7, he found the green by finding a narrow window from the second cut and tall pines.
Statistically for the week, he was terribly errant off the tee, but overall he managed to consistently find the putting surface. He was T-16 in the all-important Greens Hit in Regulation stat. At times, it was Houdini-like how he got out of manacled situations.
On Sunday, he admitted he was inspired to escape a similar lie in the pines on the 7th hole by his success there the day before. It was shot that his long time caddie and boyhood friend Harry Diamond wasn't confident of. But Mcllroy pulled it off.
The other question to explore is why Mcllroy's Masters victory resonates so soundly with the golf populi. Certainly, he possesses a likeable and well-grounded personality, one that the public has readily embraced. He's been a prodigy who has matured well and without incurring any scandals that plagued his hero, Tiger Woods. As importantly, he stood his ground and defended the PGA Tour when the LIV Tour emerged. For sure, he could have cashed in big time (at least a half-billion dollars) and defected to the Saudi Arabia-backed Tour. But like Woods, Mcllroy appreciated and respected the deep history of the Tour and its place in the game. Besides, it didn't seem broke and in need of a major fix. Money wasn't the end-all. So he became an effective spokesman for the merits of staying with the PGA Tour as is, with a few modifications.
The average golf fan liked what he heard from Mcllroy. And with few exceptions, he didn't dodge tough questions—hey Rory, why haven't you won at Augusta?— and instead answered them with candor, patience and humor.
Optimists get knocked down and have their hopes dashed every day. Rory knew all about them for the last 11 years.
But on Sunday at the Masters, Rory Mcllroy changed the narrative. "I've literally made my dreams come true today.