){kind=small}
Ligue 1){kind=small}
OM
){kind=small}
B29
){kind=small}
Serie A){kind=logo}
ATA
){kind=logo}
LEC
){kind=small}
NAP
){kind=logo}
TOR
){kind=small}
UDI
){kind=logo}
BOL
){kind=small}
VER
){kind=logo}
CGL
){kind=small}
LAZ
){kind=logo}
PAR
){kind=small}
Premier){kind=logo}
NFO
){kind=small}
BRE
){kind=small}
Bundesl){kind=logo}
HDH
){kind=logo}
BOC
){kind=small}
NICE
){kind=small}
SDR
){kind=small}
VEN
){kind=small}
MCI
){kind=logo}
WOL
){kind=small}
LaLiga){kind=small}
RAY
){kind=logo}
GET
){kind=small}
AVL
){kind=logo}
FUL
){kind=logo}
ALA
){kind=small}
ATM
){kind=small}
COMO
){kind=small}
RBL
){kind=small}
FCB
){kind=logo}
BMG
){kind=logo}
TSG
){kind=logo}
FCU
){kind=logo}
SVW
){kind=logo}
FCP
){kind=logo}
VFB
)
Bryson DeChambeau dramatically crumbled under pressure as Rory Mcllroy bounced back from an early scare to claim victory at Augusta National.
Rory McIlroy finally did it.
After a decade of near-misses, heartbreak, and what-ifs at Augusta National, the Northern Irishman secured the only missing piece of his major puzzle, the Masters title.
With a final-round 73 and a nerve-shredding birdie at the first playoff hole against Justin Rose, McIlroy completed golf’s rarest feat: the career Grand Slam.
)
However, it was hardly straightforward.
Starting the day with a two-shot lead, McIlroy was caught in a swirling storm of pressure, leaderboard chaos, and some would say - personal demons.
Beside him in the final pairing stood Bryson DeChambeau, whose brute-force style posed a serious threat as many considered the 31-year-old American an early favourite on Sunday.
But hole by hole, McIlroy not only fended him off, he absolutely dismantled DeChambeau.
In this article, Pulse Sports highlights the five key things Mcllroy did to outclass Bryson DeChambeau at the 2025 Masters.
5 things Rory Mcllroy did to outclass Bryson DeChambeau at the 2025 Masters
1. Recovered from a nightmare start and kept DeChambeau within reach
)
McIlroy’s charge nearly derailed at the very first hole.
After finding a fairway bunker, the Irishman’s three-putt handed him a double bogey and dropped him back into a tie with DeChambeau, who escaped with par.
When DeChambeau made birdie on the 2nd, McIlroy trailed for the first time all weekend.
But crucially, he didn’t panic.
A birdie at the 3rd, followed by a sharp tee shot and conversion at the 4th, swung the momentum back Mcllroy’s way.
While DeChambeau three-putted and faltered, McIlroy edged ahead with clean execution.
It was sort of a swift psychological blow to the American and ultimately, it set the tone for the rest of the playoff finals.
2. He neutralised DeChambeau by winning the front nine battle
)
By the turn, McIlroy led by four shots.
While DeChambeau drove long, Rory played smart.
His birdie at the 9th, after a precise wedge to inside eight feet was textbook tournament golf.
Meanwhile, DeChambeau failed to convert from a similar range, a theme that haunted him throughout the afternoon.
The 7th hole actually showcased the difference as DeChambeau scrambled for par from the sand.
But McIlroy, having missed the fairway, pulled off a stunning recovery through the trees and very nearly holed it for eagle.
It wasn’t just skill, it was swagger, and DeChambeau just did not have an answer.
3. Composure even as the field and his own round turned uncertain
)
In fairness, things unravelled fast for both men on the back nine.
McIlroy double-bogeyed the 13th after dunking a wedge into Rae’s Creek, and bogeyed the 14th after missing the green.
Before you know it, his lead vanished.
Rose, who was playing four groups ahead, birdied 15 and 16 to draw level.
But while DeChambeau imploded after hitting water on 11, carding a double, and effectively ending his bid, McIlroy heldon.
)
A birdie at 15, courtesy of a laser from the pines, was the rally he needed.
Then came a pure iron into 17 to three feet, helping him retake the lead just when it mattered.
4. Mcllroy didn’t let a missed putt on 18 define him
)
Perhaps, Sunday showed just how much of a ‘mentality-monster’ Mcllroy is afterall.
Standing on 18 with a one-shot cushion, McIlroy’s wedge approach found a greenside bunker.
He splashed out to five feet but missed the par putt.
The groan from the gallery said it all as a playoff loomed, and Rose was already waiting on the practice green.
)
But instead of crumbling in the face of setback, McIlroy reset.
He was not going to allow a repeat of 2011.
This wasn’t the meltdown at the 10th, or the ghosts of missed chances past as Mcllroy would not be denied.
5. Sealed the Grand Slam with a ruthless playoff birdie
)
One hole. One shot at immortality.
On the same 18th hole where Mcllroy had just dropped a shot, the majestic Irishman split the fairway, then rifled a wedge to inside two feet.
)
Rose found the green but left his birdie try short, before Rory tapped in.
)
Alas! A decade-long journey was complete.
"My 17th time here. Started to wonder if it would ever be my time," a delighted Mcllroy said after the win as per talk SPORT.
"Last 10 years coming with the burden of the Grand Slam on my shoulders and trying to achieve that.
"I wonder what we are all going to talk about coming into next year.
"I am so proud to be able to call myself a Masters champion."
Rory Mcllroy is now one of only six men in history to have won all four majors.
What comes next for the grand slam champion?
)
McIlroy will skip the RBC Heritage but returns alongside Shane Lowry to defend their Zurich Classic title later this month.
He will also headline the Truist Championship in May, where he returns as defending champion.
But for now, none of that matters. Augusta is finally his. And the ghosts are gone.
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)