Can Rory McIlroy win a Masters? He didtwo years ago.
Can McIlroy repeat? in April, he didbecoming only the fourth player to do so.
You know the next question. Three-peat, which no one has done. Oh, how far we’ve come. One player who returned to Augusta National thinks McIlroy can do it – but Jack Nicklaus wonder about one thing.
This week, the Golden Bear is front and center as its Muirfield Village Golf Club hosts its own Memorial Tourwhere McIlroy is tied for 12th midway through the suspended third round. And in Nicklaus’ visit to the CBS booth during Saturday’s third-round play, the conversation turned to the 2024 and ’25 Masters winner. What did Nicklaus think of his latest victory? He said it was “very good” – then he watched McIlroy play.
“If you look at the leaderboard here this week,” Nicklaus said, “everything that kills Rory is his double bogeys and more. He has a tendency to put himself in spots where you can make more than bogey. I know he doesn’t like that; nobody likes that.
“I told him this week, Rory, you’ve got a lot of places to drive the golf ball. But there are times when maybe that little chip shot or that little 3-wood or whatever it is, puts the ball in play. I told him, you hit it so far, it’s not going to make a difference. But put yourself in a position where you’re not going to make high scores.”
Analyst Trevor Immelmanhimself a Masters winner, then asked Nicklaus if McIlroy sometimes plays too aggressively because of his strength and driving ability – and Nicklaus said McIlroy has “as good and strong a swing as there is in the game of golf.” He then spoke of the village of Muirfield. Some holes you can “hit”. Others, you just want to get the ball in play. “Places where you’re going to give yourself a chance to make birdies,” Nicklaus said on the broadcast, “and if you make a mistake, it’s not going to be a double bogey.”
At this point, the announcer Jim Nantz then asked about three-peat.
And Nicklaus began his answer with a question of his own.
“I think he’s got every chance in the world to get it three times. Again, Rory’s going out there with a bit of discipline?” Nicklaus said on the air.
“Because he’s such a good player. And there’s so many great shots he can play. I mean, you’ve seen the shots he played a couple of years ago — 15, 17, 7. Some of the shots he hit to win that golf tournament, he’s got it in the bag. But you don’t have to have those shots, if he wants to play the ball all the time. He plays smart, he has a very good chance. good for being a three-peat.”
