For Rory McIlroy to win the 89th Masters and complete the career Grand Slam, he needed to focus on the immediate task at hand and block out all other distractions.
That included any interaction with his primary challenger during the final round at Augusta National.
Bryson DeChambeau, who trailed McIlroy by two strokes after 54 holes and was paired with him in Sunday’s last group, said McIlroy ‘didn’t talk to me once all day.’
The stoicism was quite the contrast to DeChambeau’s outgoing personality. But it paid off as McIlroy shook off a disastrous double-bogey on No. 13 to card a 1-over 73 that got him into a sudden death playoff with Justin Rose for the green jacket.
What Justin Rose said to Rory McIlroy after playoff
Instead of engaging with DeChambeau, McIlroy remained in a bubble with caddie Harry Diamond as he battled his way through the round.
As DeChambeau faltered with a closing 75, Englishman Rose shot the round of the day – a 6-under 66 – capping it with a clutch 20-foot birdie putt on 18 that ultimately forced a playoff.
But when he missed his birdie putt on the first extra hole and McIlroy tapped his in, Rose became the runner-up for a second consecutive major.
Still, he understood what the outcome meant in the golf history books and he let McIlroy know.
‘I just said, listen, this is a historic moment in golf, isn’t it, someone who achieves the career Grand Slam,’ Rose told CBS’ Amanda Balionis. ‘I just said it was pretty cool to be able to share that moment with him. Obviously, I wanted to be the bad guy today, but still, it’s a momentous occasion for the game of golf.’
And after keeping his emotions in check for the entire round McIlroy was finally able to let them out as he collapsed on the green in tears after sinking the winning putt.
The victory came more than decade after he won his last major title and marked the 11th time he’d been to Augusta in an attempt to become just the sixth golfer to complete the career Grand Slam.
‘I’ve carried that burden since 2014,’ McIlroy said, referring to the year he won the British Open to get the third leg of the slam. ‘Thankfully now I don’t have to carry it.’
(This story was updated to fix a typo.)