After a topsy-turvy final round, Rory McIlroy held on to win the 89th Masters Tournament in a one-hole playoff Sunday, earning his fifth major championship and his first since 2014.
The victory ends an 11-year major championship drought for the second-ranked golfer in the world. McIlroy had not won one of the sport’s premier tournaments since 2014, when he took the U.S. Open.
Previously, McIlroy’s best finish at the Masters was second in 2022. In addition to a green jacket, McIlroy will take home $4.2 million as the Masters winner.
Entering the day with a two-shot lead over Bryson DeChambeau for first place, McIlroy somehow found himself neck and neck with Justin Rose after 15 holes.
Needing only par on the 18th hole to win, McIlroy bogeyed to set up the playoff against Rose. Playing the same hole again to determine a winner, McIlroy recorded a birdie while Rose shot for par.
It was nearly a massive come-from-behind victory for Rose, who shot a final-round 66, nine strokes better than he shot on Day 3. He finished his day tied with McIlroy for the lead at 11 under par despite having started seven strokes behind.
McIlroy, who was 12 under par after three rounds, was only 10 under after 14 holes. But he birdied both 15 and 17 to take back the lead. On the 18th, he still had a chance for par after a shot into the bunker, but he missed a relatively short putt.
The day got off to an inauspicious start for McIlroy, who hit a double bogey on his first hole. After he hit three birdies between holes 3 and 10, his lead began to slip away, as holes 11-14 went bogey, par, double bogey and bogey.
The lull set the stage for the dramatic finish, but McIlroy was ultimately able to avoid a collapse similar to the one at the 2011 Masters, when he started the final round with a four-shot lead but shot an 80 on Day 4.
Golf’s next major will be the PGA Championship, which begins May 15 at the Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, North Carolina.
