Rory McIlroy didn’t make things easy on himself during the final round of The Masters did he?
McIlroy is now a member of the Grand Slam club, following his win at The Masters last month.
However, it seemed like he had thrown his chance to win away on numerous different occasions.
Tiger Woods congratulated McIlroy after his Masters win simply by saying, ‘welcome to the club, kid’.
McIlroy’s ridiculously good second shot on the 15th hole ended up being a huge turning point for him in his round.
He was going through a really bad spell at the time, but it wasn’t the first period where he struggled during the final round at Augusta National.
Rory McIlroy responds after disastrous start on Masters Sunday
McIlroy got his final round off to the worst start possible, after he made a double-bogey six on the first hole.
The Northern Irishman looked very nervous, and that was more than understandable, given what was at stake.
However, the way in which he bounced back was hugely impressive.
And McIlroy has now lifted the lid on exactly what he said to himself as he walked off the first green at Augusta National three weeks ago.
He said, “The reason that, as athletes, we practice and work so hard is to be in those situations, to see what you’re made of. You know, I certainly don’t want to coast through my career and never…you know, I want it to be hard. I want to know if all that practice has paid off, that’s something that’s important to me. And I think for me, when you’re in those situations, everyone’s got a target in mind. Whether good things are happening or bad things, I don’t think that should ever take away from what that target is. So for me going out in the final round of The Masters, I wanted to go out and shoot four-under-par that day. And I knew that if I shot four-under-par, the likelihood was that I was going to win The Masters. But I didn’t make winning The Masters a big thing, I made, you know, ‘can I play this golf course in four-under-par today’. So I think I try to simplify it, I try to just think about that one thing.
“So I double bogied the first hole on Sunday, and my target was still four-under. I reminded myself that the previous two days I had shot six-under and I could still shoot six-under over the last 17 holes. So my target didn’t change. Yes, did I get off to a bad start, absolutely, but I didn’t let it change my attitude to the rest of the round.“
That is an elite mentality from McIlroy, and perhaps a sign that his work with well-renowned mental coach Bob Rotella is paying off.
What tour pros are saying about McIlroy after Masters win
The win at Augusta was vitally important for McIlroy.
When that final putt dropped in the play-off against Justin Rose, it must have felt like a huge weight was lifted from his shoulders.
And players on the PGA Tour have supposedly been saying behind closed doors that McIlroy’s Masters win will free him up to go out there and dominate for years still to come.
Some are even suggesting that the calendar year Grand Slam could be on for the 35-year-old this season.
One thing’s for sure, as incredibly difficult as that will be to do, he certainly has the talent, and the mindset, needed to get the job done.
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