McIlroy holds nerve to successfully defend Masters title

World No. 2 Rory McIlroy fended off the stiff challenges from several of the world’s best players to become only the fourth man to win successive Masters titles on Sunday.

He also became the first player since Tiger Woods to win back-to-back Masters titles after a captivating final round at Augusta National.

“I've waited so long to win the Masters, and all of a sudden I win two in a row. So I still want to enjoy it. I've got a couple of weeks off before I go back to play competitive golf, but I don't think I'll go through that lull of motivation or the sort of things that I was feeling last year post winning this tournament,” McIlroy, who fired a final round one-under-par 71 to finish on 12-under-par 276, one shot clear of World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler.

McIlroy had earlier let a six-shot advantage slip on Saturday and started the final round tied for the lead with playing partner Cameron Young and one ahead of Sam Burns.

He then had to overcome early stumbles and a late scare to eventually capture his sixth major title.

After making a double bogey on the fourth hole and a bogey on six, he responded with four birdies in the next seven holes and hung on after errant late tee shots to win his second green jacket.

“It was a tough weekend. I did the bulk of my work on Thursday and Friday. But just so, so happy to hang in there and get the job done,” said McIlroy.

Meanwhile, Tyrrell Hatton (66), Russell Henley (68), 2025 Masters runner-up Justin Rose (70) and Young (73) finished in a share of third place.

Ends.