Masters 2026: Rory McIlroy collects second straight green jacket, joining the company of Nicklaus, Faldo and Woods
Rory McIlroy plays his shot from the ninth tee during the final round of the 2026 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club on April 12, 2026 in Augusta, Georgia. (Photo by Hector Vivas/Getty Images) Hector Vivas via Getty Images AUGUSTA, Ga. — Everyone knows that on Masters Sunday, you treat the 12th hole at Augusta National like the heavyweight champion of the world: nothing good comes from challenging it.
Unless, that is, you’re the reigning heavyweight champion yourself. Rory McIlroy stepped to the 12th tee on Sunday afternoon knowing that he was one stroke ahead of Justin Rose, knowing that his lead was as fragile as crystal, and knowing the hole’s diabolical history. So many Sunday hopes have drowned in Rae’s Creek, most notably, for these purposes, the afternoon in 2016 when Jordan Spieth saw his dreams at a Masters repeat die at this same tee.
So with all that pressure, all that history, all those nerves and expectations weighing on him, what did McIlroy do? McIlroy reaches 12 under par with a birdie on No. 12.
#themasters pic. twitter. com/3dYecCog2V — The Masters (@TheMasters) April 12, 2026 Drop the closest approach of the entire day right onto the devious green.
One seven-foot putt later, and McIlroy had a two-shot lead over the field. He increased the lead to three strokes with a birdie on the 13th, playing Amen Corner a full five strokes better than he had on Saturday. He’d blown every bit of his six-stroke lead on Saturday, and he’d fallen two strokes off the lead early on Sunday, yet here he was, five holes to play and a three-stroke cushion on the field.
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