Par-5 showing proves McIlroy is making progress at Augusta

Rory McIlroy cleared two tall hurdles at last year’s Masters Tournament, which could set him up for a victory this year and complete the career Grand Slam.

• He got a handle on Au­gus­ta National Golf Club’s greens by placing his second shots below the hole more often, letting him be more aggressive on putts.

• He played the par-5s, which afford scoring opportunities for long hitters like McIlroy, like never before.

The result was his best finish in seven starts – a solo fourth after breaking par in every round for the first
time to finish 12-under-par 276.

McIlroy played the par-5s in 14-under, never making worse than par. He was 3-under on No. 2 (par, birdie, eagle, par), 2-under on No. 8 (par, par, birdie, birdie), 5-under on No. 13 (birdie, eagle, birdie, birdie) and 4-under on No. 15 (birdie every day).

“I feel the biggest thing for Au­gusta with me was playing the par-5s well,” said the 26-year-old McIlroy. “I learned from 2014 where I think I played the par-5s in even par. I feel like if I can go into Augusta knowing what my game plan is and knowing I can attack the par-5s and if I can play them well, it will give me a better chance to win.”

So will avoiding an over-par side in the tournament.

“It’s just been a bad nine holes for the last couple of years,” McIlroy said. “I’ve had a couple of bad nine-hole stretches which has really taken me out of the tournament. And I guess again that’s more mental errors than anything else, and maybe when you find yourself a couple over and not trying to push too hard and trying to stay patient. So I
think there’s a big patience thing in there for me at Au­gusta.”

Overall, McIlroy has shown steady improvement at the Mas­ters since his final-round collapse in 2011.

“I’m very positive and optimistic going back to Au­gus­ta this year, because the last few years, I’ve improved my performance there,” said McIlroy, who shot 71-71-68-66 last year. “I had my best finish last year, and I played the golf course pretty much the way I wanted to.”

“When we go back to Au­gus­ta, you really know what you’re going to be up against,” said McIlroy, who planned to play a couple of practice rounds before the week of the tournament so he didn’t have to arrive quite as early as in the past. He hopes to be on his game when he does get to Augusta.

“I think confidence is a huge thing going into Au­gus­ta,” he said. “If you’re confident with your game and you’ve got good belief in yourself, then that makes the week much easier. … I would love (a victory) to be this year but, if not, I’m going to have plenty more chances, but I feel like I’ve been trending in the right direction.”

Golf commentator David Feherty said McIlroy has the game to dominate the field when he’s on.

“When he plays well, good luck to everybody else,” Feherty said. “I don’t think anybody has ever made the game look more magnificent than that kid in full swing just pouring it out of the heavens. I would expect him to win more
than one Masters, that’s for sure.”

Most of the focus at last year’s Masters was on Mc­Il­roy and Tiger Woods. McIl­roy, ranked No. 1 in the world at the time, was making his first bid for the career Grand Slam and going for his third consecutive major. Woods was returning to the game after last playing in early Feb­ruary 2015, when he withdrew after 11 holes at Torrey Pines. He tied for 17th at the Masters.

This year, the attention is on defending champion Jordan Spieth and new No. 1 Jason Day.

“I don’t think it makes much of a difference at all, whether I’m going in there and being talked about or if I’m not, because I’m still feeling the same things that I’m thinking about,” McIlroy said. “Maybe I’m putting pressure on myself, but I know what it would mean to me and I know what it would mean to my career with the career Grand Slam.”

A Masters victory could move McIlroy back to the No. 1 ranking in the world.

“It’s still a big deal,” he said. “Look, even if you’re a player or a fan, anyone wants to know who the best golfer is in the world. It’s important to me. I’m not really competitive in much other things, but (in) this I’m very competitive and want to try
and get back there as fast as I can.”