McIlroy has downplayed history all week but now he can join immortals

Rory McIlroy uses a tablet ahead of the final round from the Tournament Practice Area during the 2025 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club on April 13, 2025 in Augusta, Georgia. (Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)

One of the greatest things about the Masters is it’s the only major played at the same venue every year, creating a continuous thread that builds a tapestry the golf world comes to know by heart.

That familiarity can also be a curse, as Rory McIlroy can attest. Like so many tragic Augusta figures before him, McIlroy has long stood out like a blister on Augusta’s quilt. Heartache and longing have been staples of his Masters story almost from day one, and it’s been a long and painful process trying to erase that blemish.