Rory McIlroy’s thrilling Masters victory last year seemed to have it all: tears on the 18th green; a triumphant embrace with the caddy and his childhood friend, Harry Diamond; a hearty squeeze with his four-year-old daughter, Poppy.
But there was one notable absence: McIlroy’s parents, Gerry and Rosie, who were watching their son the long-awaited Grand Slam moment almost 4,000 miles away, from their home in Northern Ireland.
So when Rory and Gerry visited Augusta National Last week in what was Gerry’s first trip to the club since his son’s historic victory, spirits were always going to be high. Some of the highlights came in the hallowed champions locker room, which now displays the 7-iron with which Rory hit one of the most indelible shots in Masters history: a high, bent draw around a pine on the par-5 15th hole; from 208 yards away, the ball touched the green softly and curled to within 6 feet of the hole, eliciting screams that all but shook the club. (Needless to say, he caught the eagle attempt.)
On that sacred wood last week, McIlroy also learned the identities of his locker mates: Ben Hogan, who won the green jackets in 1951 and ’53, and Raymond Floyd (1976). Decent company.
There was more fun on the course, with father and son enjoying a round together. (Rory said last month that he and Gerry intended to play with Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley.) When they reached the fairway on the 15th, from where Rory had worked his magic on Masters Sunday, Rory dropped a ball and was able to repeat the putt.
Surely he couldn’t paint another Mona Lisa?
Surely, he can!
“I almost put it in the hole,” Rory said Friday from Bay Hill, where after a second-round 68 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational he sits nine behind leader Daniel Berger. “It was actually a better shot than I hit in the tournament. It was actually incredible. I wish I had caught it on camera.”
More clubbing?
No, the 7-iron again, McIlroy said, adding, “I’m a little bit stronger this year. I’ve been doing some work in the gym.”
McIlroy said his ball landed just inches from the hole before it rolled to the back of the green.
Not to get too sentimental here, but in what other sport can a father and son revisit the site of the son’s greatest triumph and try to recreate the most memorable moment from that victory? Sure, Tom Brady could throw a TD pass to his father, Tom Sr., at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, or the Dodgers’ Will Smith could take the BP off his father, Mark, at Rogers Center in Toronto, hoping to recreate his 2025 World Series-winning home run.
But. . . rekindling the Sunday Masters magic at Augusta National? This is in another league.
Rory summed up the experience in four words:
“A lot of fun.”
