The haunting Masters meltdown that changed Rory McIlroy's career
Editor’s Note: This story was originally published in April 2023. Slumped on his club, head buried in his arm, Rory McIlroy looked on the verge
Editor’s Note: This story was originally published in April 2023. Slumped on his club, head buried in his arm, Rory McIlroy looked on the verge of tears. The then-21-year-old had just watched his ball sink into the waters of Rae’s Creek at Augusta and with it, his dream of winning The Masters, a dream that had looked so tantalizingly close mere hours earlier. As a four-time major winner and one of the most decorated names in the sport’s history, few players would turn down the chance to swap places with McIlroy heading into Augusta this week. Yet on Sunday afternoon of April 10, 2011, not a golfer in the world would have wished to be in the Northern Irishman’s shoes. Flying A fresh-faced, mop-headed McIlroy had touched down in Georgia for the first major of the season with a reputation as the leading light of the next generation of stars. An excellent 2010 had marked his best season since turning pro three years earlier, highlighted by a first PGA Tour win at the Quail Hollow Championship and a crucial contribution to Team Europe’s triumph at the Ryder Cup. Yet despite a pair of impressive top-three finishes at the Open and PGA Championship respectively, a disappointing missed cut at The Masters – his first at a major – served as ominous foreshadowing. McIlroy shot 74 and 77 to fall four strokes short of the cut line at seven-over par, a performance that concerned him enough to take a brief sabbatical from competition. McIlroy (L) races England's Ian Poulter (R) during the Par 3 Contest prior to the 2011 Masters. Harry How / Getty Images But one year on in 2011, any lingering Masters demons looked to have been exorcised as McIlroy flew round the Augusta fairways. Having opened with a bogey-free seven-under 65 – the first time he had ever shot in the 60s at the major – McIlroy pulled ahead from Spanish first round co-leader Alvaro Quirós with a second round 69. It sent him into the weekend holding a two-shot cushion over Australia’s Jason Day, with Tiger Woods a further stroke behind and back in the hunt for a 15th major after a surging second round 66. And yet the 21-year-old leader looked perfectly at ease with having a target on his back. Even after a tentative start to the third round, McIlroy rallied with three birdies across the closing six holes to stretch his lead to four strokes heading into Sunday. McIlroy drives from the 16th tee during his second round. Andrew Redington / Getty Images The youngster was out on his own ahead of a bunched chasing pack comprising Day, Ángel Cabrera, K.J. Choi and Charl Schwartzel.
After 54 holes, McIlroy had shot just three bogeys. “It’s a great position to be in … I’m finally feeling comfortable on this golf course,” McIlroy told reporters. “I’m not getting ahead of myself, I know how leads can dwindle away very quickly. I have to go out there, not take anything for granted and go out and play as hard as I’ve played the last three days. If I can do that, hopefully things will go my way. “We’ll see what happens tomorrow because four shots on this golf course isn’t that much.” McIlroy finished his third round with a four shot lead. Timothy A. Clary / AFP via Getty Images Falling The truth can hurt, and McIlroy was about to prove his assessment of Augusta to be true in the most excruciating way imaginable. His fourth bogey of the week arrived immediately. Having admitted to expecting some nerves at the first tee, McIlroy sparked a booming opening drive down the fairway, only to miss his putt from five feet. Three consecutive pars steadied the ship, but Schwartzel had the wind in his sails. A blistering birdie, par, eagle start had seen him draw level at the summit after his third hole. A subsequent bogey from the South African slowed his charge, as McIlroy clung onto a one-shot lead at the turn from Schwartzel, Cabrera, Choi, and a rampaging Woods, who shot five birdies and an eagle across the front nine to send Augusta into a frenzy. Despite his dwindling advantage and the raucous Tiger-mania din ahead of him, McIlroy had responded well to another bogey at the 5th hole, draining a brilliant 20-foot putt at the 7th to restore his lead. The fist pump that followed marked the high-water point of McIlroy’s round, as a sliding start accelerated into full-blown free-fall at the par-four 10th hole. His tee shot went careening into a tree, ricocheting to settle between the white cabins that separate the main course from the adjacent par-three course. It offered viewers a glimpse at a part of Augusta rarely seen on broadcast, followed by pictures of McIlroy anxiously peering out from behind a tree to track his follow-up shot. McIlroy watches his shot after his initial drive from the 10th tee put him close to Augusta's cabins. Andrew Redington / Getty Images Though his initial escape was successful, yet another collision with a tree and a two-putt on the green saw a stunned McIlroy eventually tap in for a triple bogey. Having led the field one hole and seven shots earlier, he arrived at the 11th tee in seventh.
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