McIlroy The Master: A Tribute To A Legend
Poor old Justin Rose.
Sport is a funny thing. Comfortable leads can be squandered in minutes. Shifts in momentum can rewrite history. Sometimes, it just isn’t your day.
For all the money in the world however, Justin Rose must’ve thought it was his.
Justin Rose reacts to his tee shot on the 12th hole during the final round of the 2025 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club
Every now and then, an athlete comes around that you just can’t help but love. To so many golfing fans, their rendition is Rory McIlroy.
Having conquered three of golf’s four majors by just 25, it’s hard to leave out the McIlroy name when discussing greats of the game. Yet, that illustrious fourth and final title has eluded him for so many years.
The Green Jacket is more than just a blazer. It’s a symbol of dedication, life-long sacrifice, team-work and testament to triumph. It’s golf’s marquee prize – donned by so few, lusted after by so many. This was McIlroy’s 17th attempt at the big one, his 11th since a last major victory.
Rory McIlroy reacts after his third shot on the 13th hole during the final round of the 2025 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club
From Spieth to Scott, Watson to Willett, my lifetime alone has produced some of the most thrilling finales of this tournament’s rich history. Although this year, in its 89th rendition, we may have just witnessed the best of them all.
After the most enthralling back-nine of the tournament, Justin Rose posted up a valiant -11, a scoreline that most would’ve written off before the day’s play.
Through twists and turns, wonder-strokes and catastrophes, McIlroy let a four-shot lead slip from his grasp in memorable fashion. After bogeying the 18th, he too was poised on eleven under, shooting +1 for the session.
To Rory’s fortune, social media superstar Bryson DeChambeau and defending champion Scottie Scheffler weren’t quite at the races, failing to provoke substantial pressure on the leaders, leaving the British duo level at the top.
Time for a shoot-out.
Rory McIlroy looks at the leaderboard on the first playoff hole during the final round of the 2025 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club
Sunday’s play-off had all the billing for an instant classic. A fitting finale for a fabled weekend in the notorious Georgia sunshine. As the sun began to set over golf’s most famous course, two of Europe’s finest reproached the 18th tee-box, knowing full well the next 15 minutes would define their legacy forever.
The hustle and bustle of Augusta came to a halt as all eyes became fixated on the final two candidates for this year’s jacket. The leader, McIlroy, was chasing destiny, to become only the sixth person ever to boast a career Grand Slam. Rose, the challenger, as familiar as anyone to this predicament, having previously fallen short at this very hurdle. Two veterans of the tournament, trying to write their own magical endings to their long-overdue fairy tales.
As if forged in destiny, the pair made simultaneous, perfect drives. Both balls skimmed gracefully down the fairway as the nerves of a catastrophic first shot were left behind. It didn’t matter how narrow the arching trees made this hole, both parties were more focused in this moment than ever before.
(L-R) Justin Rose and Rory McIlroy poised on the 18th green during the first playoff hole during the final round of the 2025 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club
Rose’s approach was elegant, landing safely on the green but leaving him left with work to do. McIlroy on the other hand… he swung his iron with the purest conviction. A strike drawn from a deep place inside, a shot that showed the crowd exactly how much he wanted this. The Northern Irishman was in the better position, within five foot on the pin, and holding all the marbles.
Up came the Englishman. After scoring a birdie on the hole just an hour prior, you’d put your money on him doing the same again.
Disaster. Rose’s put faded ever so slightly past the hole to the sound of thousands of broken hearts watching on. One of these, was his own. You’d assume he knew exactly what was to come.
And then came Rory’s moment.
A clean, convincing put, followed by a moment of complete silence.
In it went.
Rory McIlroy celebrates winning the 2025 Masters Tournament after the playoff hole on the 18th green during the final round of the 2025 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club
Rory’s emotion after holing his birdie putt in the play-off was the kind that only comes after chasing something for years. You could see the weight lift off his shoulders. Those laser-focussed tiger eyes were suddenly immersed in tears of joy, as an overwhelming pride began to drown out years of frustration that had cloaked him for so long.
On the other side of the green, head held high despite defeat, that familiar feeling of what could have been seemed to once again envelope a despondent Justin Rose. After arguably the round of his life, climbing the ranks from seemingly nowhere as the day three leaders succumbed to Augusta’s wrenching pressures one by one. To draw level with the leader, carrying every ounce of momentum, only to fall short in yet another tie-breaker,
(L-R) Rory McIlroy shakes hands with Justin Rose after the first playoff hole during the final round of the 2025 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club
But back to Rory. What a moment. Years of addiction and frustration to a vicious game which he loved so dearly. A triumph that will long echo around the hallowed turf at Augusta. Only the second person in the last 59 years to achieve career Grand Slam status. You all know who the other one is.
From breaking course records in Northern Ireland as a teen, to wrapping up majors almost a day in advance. This was all that was left for Europe’s most glorified golfer. Oh how Rory deserved these flowers.
Eyes swelled up, still in disbelief, as loose as he’d ever looked, whilst pulling away from the warm embrace of his friends and family, McIlroy uttered a sentence he’d been waiting 17 years to murmer.
“I’ve got to go and get that green jacket.”
Rory McIlroy smiles during the Green Jacket and trophy presentation ceremony with Scottie Scheffler following his playoff victory in the final round of the Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club
Rory McIlroy: Masters Champion. Career Grand Slam. Golfing Royalty.
