Resilient Rory finally achieves the Grand Slam

The closer Rory McIlroy came to fulfilling his lifetime dream — winning the Masters — the more it kept slipping away. Sunday at Augusta National felt like his last 11 years in the majors, blunders mixed in with sheer brilliance.

A two-shot lead gone in two holes. A four-shot lead gone in three holes with a shocker of a mistake. A five-foot putt on the final hole to win narrowly missed.

And then McIlroy turned what could have been another major collapse into his grandest moment of all, hitting a wedge shot to just under three feet for birdie in a sudden-death playoff against Justin Rose to — finally — become a Masters champion and take his place in golf history as the sixth player with a career Grand Slam.

"There were points in my career where I didn't know if I would have this nice garment over my shoulders," McIlroy said, his Masters green jacket looking like a perfect fit. "But, I didn't make it easy today. I certainly didn't make it easy. I was nervous.

"It was one of the toughest days I've ever had on the golf course."

The reward was greater than he imagined, and it showed. He rapped in that final putt, raised both arms in the air and let the putter fall behind him. He covered his head, dropped to his knees, and before long, his forehead was on the green as his chest heaved with emotion.

That was 11 years of pent-up emotion from his last major, when he began to carry the burden of getting the final leg of the Grand Slam. It was 14 years of remembering the time he wasted a four-shot lead with an 80 on the final day as a 21-year-old.

"I started to wonder if it would ever be my time," he said.

The thought could have easily crossed his mind during the final round.

What could have been a coronation for McIlroy along the back nine turned into a heart-racing, lead-changing, jaw-dropping finish at golf's greatest theater, which ended with McIlroy sobbing with joy and disbelief.

It was also more heartache for Rose, who lost to Sergio Garcia in a playoff in 2017, and forced this one with a clutch 20-foot birdie on the 18th hole for a 6-under 66. He wound up joining Ben Hogan as the only players to lose twice in playoffs at Augusta National.

"It's the kind of putt you dream about as a kid, and to have it and hole it, it was a special feeling," Rose said. "And, unfortunately, the playoff, they always end so quickly. If you're not the guy to hit the great shot or hole the great putt, it's over. But there's not really anything I could have done more today."