Rory McIlroy has ended Europe’s greatest-ever golfer debate once and for all after defending his title at The Masters.
The pressure piled on McIlroy in his final round at Augusta National, but he remained calm and composed to become the latest back-to-back champion.
It is a phenomenal feat that only Jack Nicklaus, Sir Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods have achieved in the history of The Masters.
All four are undoubtedly among the greatest golfers of all time, but McIlroy has now put forward an undisputable claim that he is the best European to ever take on the sport.
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Rory McIlroy is now undisputedly Europe’s greatest ever golfer
McIlroy was, of course, already well in the conversation for the greatest European golfer ever before this week.
He completed the career grand slam when he won The Masters in 2025, holding his nerve to beat Justin Rose in a playoff.
But he’s now a multiple champion at Augusta National, and has just taken his career major wins tally to six.
It’s the same amount Faldo claimed during his fantastic career, with McIlroy also joining American icons Lee Trevino and Phil Mickelson.
He still has some way to go to catch the 18 of Nicklaus and the 15 of Woods, but he has just edged past Seve Ballesteros, arguably the third player in the greatest-ever European debate.
The Spaniard is joined in the conversation by Faldo, but both have unquestionably been surpassed by McIlroy after another sensational display at the iconic venue.
Importantly, the Northern Irishman is the only one of the three to complete the career grand slam.
Notably, the green jacket holder can, of course, clinch so much more silverware on the course given that he is only 36.
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Rory McIlroy climbs all-time DP World Tour winners list
Trophies are not all that mattered when it comes to ranking the greatest ever, but they definitely play a crucial role.
In that regard on the DP World Tour, McIlroy does at least still have some catching up to do with Ballesteros and Faldo.
With 21 victories, he has just moved to T10 on the all-time DP World Tour winners list, level with Miguel Angel Jimenez and Sam Torrance.
He’s well ahead of the likes of fellow icons Sergio Garcia and Padraig Harrington, but well behind many other legends.
It is Ballesteros who sits at the very top of the leaderboard with 50, while Faldo is in fifth place thanks to his 30 wins.
| Wins | Player |
| 50 | Seve Ballesteros |
| 42 | Bernhard Langer |
| 41 | Tiger Woods |
| 31 | Colin Montgomerie |
| 30 | Sir Nick Faldo |
| 29 | Ian Woosnam |
| 28 | Ernie Els |
| 25 | Lee Westwood |
| 23 | Jose Maria Olazabal |
| 21 | Miguel Angel Jimenez |
| 21 | Sam Torrance |
| 21 | Rory McIlroy |
But again it is another list that McIlroy will both want to climb and is more than capable of climbing given his age and potential to continue shining on the course.
It is, however, worth mentioning that he’s already set to go down as one of the greatest golfers of all time, not just on a European level.
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