Rory Mcilroy Attacks Augusta As Champion With Big Grin And Hell Of A Swing | Andy Bull

Can Rory McIlroy triumph back-to-back Masters titles? Jack Nicklaus will show you that McIlroy’s already done nan hardest part. “Well, nan cardinal is to triumph 2 years successful a row,” Nicklaus said pinch a grin aft hitting nan honorary tee changeable connected Thursday morning, “and I deliberation Rory’s nan only 1 that’s sewage a chance to do that this year.” Nicklaus did it backmost successful 1965 and ’66. “Rory’s talented enough,” he added. “Now he’s sewage that monkey disconnected his back, I deliberation he has a very, very bully chance to repeat.”

In his first 17 years coming here, McIlroy played Augusta National conscionable astir each which measurement he could deliberation of: he’s attacked it, endured it, and overthought it, played it carelessly, played it cautiously, and played it consideredly. The 1 point we had ne'er seen was really he would spell astir it erstwhile he had yet won nan thing. Turns retired nan reply is he would do it pinch a large grin and a hellhole of a swing. His very first changeable astatine Augusta arsenic Masters champion, astatine 10.30am connected a bright, bluish and barren Augusta morning, was a whistling 332-yard thrust that carried nan full elevation and changeable disconnected into nan assemblage complete nan near broadside of nan fairway.

Rory McIlroy connected nan 17th hole, pinch nan scoreboard showing him tied for nan lead connected 5 nether par. Photograph: Brian Snyder/Reuters

Earlier successful nan week McIlroy said he’d picked retired 1 aliases 2 spots astir nan people wherever he felt he could beryllium a small much fierce disconnected nan tee. He wasn’t kidding. The 1 aliases 2 spots he was reasoning of were nan 1st, nan 2nd, nan 3rd and each different spread astir present that requires a driver.

Back successful 2011, Phil Mickelson told McIlroy that nan logic he loved playing Augusta was that he felt he could beryllium truthful fierce here. McIlroy said he ne'er really understood what Mickelson meant. “I retrieve thinking: ‘I consciousness nan opposite,’” McIlroy explained. “I consciousness I can’t beryllium fierce present because there’s truthful galore bad places to miss.”

In caller years he’s been truthful frightened of blowing his chances by making nan large miss that astatine times it was for illustration watching a man effort to transportation a Ming vase crossed a bedewed marble floor. Well, now he’s made it to nan different side, he yet understands what Mickelson meant each those years ago. “Phil has truthful overmuch religion successful his short crippled that if he does miss an attack changeable by being aggressive, he still feels he tin get that shot up and down.”

Which was beautiful overmuch really McIlroy played connected Thursday. At nan 2nd, McIlroy deed 1 377 yards good complete nan large fairway bunker and into nan conifer straw beyond it; astatine nan 8th he clobbered 1 361 yards into nan 2nd trim astatine nan ft of nan elevation – “You spot nan flames coming disconnected that thing?” nan man opinionated adjacent to maine said arsenic it went flying by. He didn’t deed a full batch of fairways. It didn’t overmuch matter. As he said himself: “If I’m going to deed 5 wood aliases 3 wood into nan trees anyway, I whitethorn arsenic good deed driver and get it adjacent to nan green.”

He did find a fairway astatine nan 7th. Trouble was it was nan fairway of nan neighbouring 17th. No matter. He arrived a fewer moments later and stood complete nan ball, squinting, past smiling, arsenic he sought a statement backmost done nan trees earlier he went striding disconnected towards nan greenish to measurement retired nan yardage. Augusta was meant to beryllium a problem-solver’s play people and McIlroy’s adjacent peerless expertise to get himself into a hole is matched by his knack for getting backmost retired of it again.

From that unpromising spot connected nan 17th fairway, he popped his 2nd changeable betwixt nan trees and down connected to nan slope to nan acold broadside of nan 7th green, conscionable 12 yards from nan pin for a well-earned up-and-down par. It wasn’t paying disconnected successful birdies, but fixed nan struggles his playing partner Cam Young was having astir those aforesaid 7 holes, which he covered successful 4 over, moreover par suited McIlroy conscionable fine. And different instruction of Augusta is that if you wait, nan birdies will commencement to travel soon enough. There was 1 astatine nan agelong uphill 8th and past a full formation of them astatine nan 9th, 13th, 14th and 15th.

By nan extremity of it all, McIlroy was 5 nether and playing truthful good nan only wonderment was that it had taken him truthful agelong to triumph nan point successful nan first place.

Rory McIlroy pinch nan 18-year-old amateur Mason Howell, who had pinch him a signed shot nan champion gave him successful 2016. Photograph: Andrew Redington/Getty Images

Amazingly enough, nan 3rd personnel of their group, Mason Howell, was calved nan twelvemonth McIlroy turned professional. Howell, 18, is simply a spindly, stoop-shouldered high‑school graduate, who qualified by winning nan US Amateur Championship past year.

His high-school play coach is carrying his container for him this week. Packed successful on pinch Howell’s ain kit is an autographed shot McIlroy gave him erstwhile they met astatine nan Tour Championship successful 2016. Howell’s a hellhole of a player, and made it done nan first 3 holes successful moreover par earlier he picked up his first Masters scar by taking 3 putts from wrong 5 feet astatine nan 4th.

“Rory was 1 of my idols increasing up, truthful it’ll beryllium ace typical for me,” said Howell beforehand. “I conscionable can’t ogle astatine his crippled excessively much.” Truth is, location are worse ways to walk your clip erstwhile nan sun’s retired astatine Augusta and McIlroy’s playing for illustration this.