McIlroy defends Masters
Rory McIlroy won the 2026 Masters, holding onto the Green Jacket and becoming just the fourth player ever to win consecutive Masters titles. (sports.yahoo.com) Full 72-hole results and the tournament leaderboard were published immediately after Sunday’s final round (golfchannel.com), and multiple outlets ran replay and highlight packages of the final round (youtube.com).
Rory McIlroy left Augusta National with the Green Jacket again on Sunday, winning the 2026 Masters by one shot. (golfchannel.com) McIlroy finished at 12-under 276 after rounds of 67, 65, 73 and 71. Scottie Scheffler closed with a 68 to finish second at 11 under, and Justin Rose, Russell Henley, Tyrrell Hatton and Cameron Young tied for third at 10 under. (golfchannel.com) The final round turned twice before McIlroy took control on the back nine. He was down by as many as two shots early Sunday, then birdied the 12th and 13th holes and survived a bogey on 18 after driving into the trees. (sports.yahoo.com) The win made McIlroy the first repeat Masters champion since Tiger Woods in 2001 and 2002. It also made him only the fourth player to win consecutive Masters titles, joining Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo and Woods. (espn.com) McIlroy is 36 and now owns six major championships and 30 PGA Tour victories. The 2026 Masters was the 90th edition of the tournament, and McIlroy spent all week at or near the top before closing it out Sunday evening. (pgatour.com) The shape of the week mattered almost as much as the result. McIlroy carried a record six-shot lead through 36 holes, shot 73 on Saturday to fall into a tie with Cameron Young, then rebuilt the margin under pressure in the final round. (sports.yahoo.com) Scheffler’s charge forced McIlroy to finish the job. ESPN reported Scheffler played the final two rounds without a bogey and still finished one stroke short after starting the weekend 12 shots behind McIlroy. (espn.com) Rose also made a late run, posting 70 to reach 10 under, while Young, McIlroy’s co-leader entering Sunday, shot 73 and fell into the four-way tie for third. Henley and Hatton each posted 68 or better on Sunday to join that group. (golfchannel.com) McIlroy said the challenge felt different from his 2025 breakthrough at Augusta. “I thought it was so difficult to win last year because of trying to win the Masters and the Grand Slam, and then this year I realized it’s just really difficult to win the Masters,” he said. (espn.com) He still had to walk off the 18th green with a bogey, not a birdie, after one last escape from the pine straw. It was enough to keep the jacket for another year. (pgatour.com)
