Rory McIlroy fended off the threat of Cameron Young in the final group of The Masters to retain his title.
Young had surged into the lead of the tournament with an incredible 65 on Saturday and took the solo lead early on Sunday. It was reminiscent of last year’s matchup between McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau, and once again the Northern Irishman got the better of the long-hitting American.
One of the prevailing stories from the 2025 Masters was McIlroy and DeChambeau’s rivalry, as the American said McIlroy didn’t say a word to him during the final round. Cameron Young said something similar, but took it in a completely different way.
While DeChambeau seemed slightly bemused and perturbed that McIlroy didn’t talk to him during last year’s final round, Young did not take it that way at all.
He understood that the goal was to win The Masters, not make friends. When asked how much interaction he had with McIlroy, he said, “There is not much. I mean, I’m not one to talk a ton to begin with, and I don’t think he really wanted to talk to me today.
“Sunday at the Masters in the final group, you know, don’t wish anything poorly on the guy, but we’re playing against each other. Not trying to be best friends out there. Just one of those times that either you leave each other be, and if there is a moment — there were one or two, but not many.”
That was exactly the attitude McIlroy had towards DeChambeau last year, so it’s nice that he’s taking a grown up approach to this.
Young, who won his first PGA Tour event last year and won The Players a month ago, played with McIlroy for three rounds at this year’s Masters.
The 28-year-old was asked what he learned watching McIlroy’s win, and he said, “I don’t know. He’s obviously a great player. I watched him play three rounds this week. I think if you asked him he would admit that he didn’t drive it particularly straight the first two days and did some incredible scoring.
“Some of that is down to the randomness of golf. Sometimes you hit a bunch wedges close in a row. Sometimes you don’t.
“So sure, yes. There is plenty to learn from him. At the same time, I would like to look back on this week more in the sense of I played great, well enough to win, and it just didn’t quite fall my way this time.”
It’s a great learning experience for Young, who looked ready for the moment. His time will surely come.
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