McIlroy defends Masters

Rory McIlroy won the Masters again on Sunday, taking a second straight green jacket at Augusta National by one shot. (pgatour.com) McIlroy closed with a 1-under 71 and finished at 12 under par in the 90th Masters Tournament on April 12, 2026. Scottie Scheffler finished second at 11 under after a Sunday 69. (usatoday.com) The turn came at Amen Corner, where McIlroy made back-to-back birdies at the par-3 12th and par-5 13th after his lead had narrowed on the back nine. The PGA Tour’s live report said those two holes gave him back control of the tournament. (pgatour.com) Cameron Young, the 54-hole co-leader with McIlroy, stayed in the chase into Sunday, and Justin Rose also moved into contention during the final round. The Athletic’s live coverage said McIlroy had to hold off all three names — Young, Rose and Scheffler — over the closing stretch. (nytimes.com) The win put McIlroy in a club that had been unchanged for 24 years. Before Sunday, only Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods had won the Masters in consecutive seasons. (azcentral.com) Woods was the last man to do it, winning at Augusta in 2001 and 2002. Nicklaus defended in 1965 and 1966, and Faldo did it in 1989 and 1990. (golfmonthly.com) McIlroy is 36 and from Holywood, Northern Ireland, and NBC Sports counted Sunday as his sixth major championship. NBC’s report said his final two rounds were 73 and 71 after he had built a large lead through 36 holes. (nbcsports.com) The victory also came with the biggest winner’s check in Masters history. CBS Sports reported that Augusta National raised the purse to $22.5 million, and McIlroy earned $4.5 million for first place. (cbssports.com) A year after ending his long wait for a Masters title, McIlroy returned to Augusta and left with the same jacket again. This time, the margin was one shot, and the company was Nicklaus, Faldo and Woods. (espn.com)