Rory McIlroy was far from perfect in his final round of The Masters, but his efforts were enough to secure the green jacket for the second successive year.
After defeating Justin Rose in a playoff at The Masters in 2025, the defending champion battled to a one-shot victory this week.
He saw off a fierce challenge from world number one Scottie Scheffler, who was followed in second place by Tyrrell Hatton, Russell Henley, Cameron Young and Rose.
McIlroy now finds himself among the exclusive group of multiple Masters champions, which has just earned him very high praise from six-time winner Jack Nicklaus.
Sharing images of McIlroy’s latest triumph at Augusta, Nicklaus posted on his Instagram: “What a wonderful [Masters] win for [Rory McIlroy]!
“Congratulations, Rory, on back-to-back Green Jackets! You played like a guy who has already won a Masters championship, which is relaxed, free, and confident.
“The monkey came off your back last year, and now, all of a sudden, you are the only guy who has a chance to three-repeat.
“People asked me all week how difficult it must be to win back-to-back Masters. Honestly, I don’t think winning back-to-back Masters is nearly as difficult as winning your first.
“What Rory did last year was the toughest thing for him. This week, Rory played like a guy who has already won a Masters.
“Perhaps Rory played today as if he might’ve been a little nervous at times – I don’t know. Maybe he didn’t have his A game, but Rory did what he had to do with his A-minus game.
“Rory did the things he had to do to win the tournament and that is what is important. He did what he had to do, WHEN he had to do it! And that’s how you win!
“It’s another big step in his maturation. Rory had a long time between major championships four and five, but six came pretty quickly.
“Rory is in the prime of his career. Now let’s see if there are some more majors for him on the horizon! I’m very happy for Rory.
“It’s great for the game of golf to see really special players win, because it stimulates the game for everyone.”
Nicklaus certainly knows the feeling of winning The Masters back-to-back, having done so in 1965 and 1966.
Sir Nick Faldo followed him in 1989 and 1990, with Tiger Woods the only other player to achieve the feat, doing so in 2001 and 2002.
Paul McGinley thinks McIlroy is different to Nicklaus and Woods, and it’s fair to say that verdict on the latest champion holds up given how he approached this week’s tournament.
An aggressive style that involved hitting big off the tee but hitting very few fairways worked in his favor early on, helping him to a healthy lead.
He carded rounds of 67 and 65 to claim a six-shot lead after 36 holes of the event, a record at the halfway stage of The Masters.
But McIlroy’s weekend started in disastrous fashion, with that commanding lead completely vanishing after a third round 73.