AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) 鈥� Rory McIlroy made that familiar turn off Washington Road and onto Magnolia Lane a year ago, the one that seems to suck in those fortunate enough to make it back in time, and felt as certain as ever that it was his time .
After all, McIlroy had been playing well. His confidence was soaring. He had a belief in himself that was more than just a hunch.
More like a premonition.
Yet by Friday afternoon, when storms would and cause the second round to push into the weekend, all those positive vibes had disappeared. After opening with an even-par 72, and still believing he was oh-so-close to stringing it all together, McIlroy shot a second-round 77 and .
His wait to win the green jacket, and complete the career Grand Slam, had stretched to a full decade.
鈥淣o question, he'll do it at some point. He's just 鈥� Rory's too talented, too good,鈥� said , who along with Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player are the only players to have completed the modern slam.
鈥淗e鈥檚 going to be playing this event for a very long time," Woods added. 鈥淗e鈥檒l get it done. It鈥檚 just a matter of when.鈥�
Might be this week.
Much like last year, McIlroy drove down Magnolia Lane on Tuesday feeling good about his game. He had played well at PGA National and Bay Hill earlier this year, finished in the top 20 at The Players Championship and recently spent time in Las Vegas with renowned coach Butch Harmon, which paid dividends with a third-place finish last week at the Texas Open.
That's not an event McIlroy typically plays before the Masters, but it was part of a plan put in place months ago. The idea was to play more often earlier in the year, getting his game sharp but the rest of the majors as well.
鈥淭his is my 16th start in the Masters, so I feel like I鈥檝e done it quite a few different ways,鈥� McIlroy explained, 鈥渁nd I guess just trying to bring a little bit of normalcy into what I sort of try to do week in, week out. I play 25 weeks a year, and there鈥檚 no point in doing anything different this week compared to other weeks, I guess.鈥�
Even if the Masters is a week unlike any other.
Rather than arriving early and laboring through practice rounds, McIlroy instead popped into Augusta National last week for before heading to Texas. In fact, he skipped Monday's practice round altogether 鈥� even Woods played nine that day 鈥� and was planning to play just nine holes by himself on Tuesday and Wednesday.
鈥淚 feel like I鈥檝e already got most of my prep work done. So it鈥檚 just about going out there and being relaxed and being in the right frame of mind,鈥� McIlroy said, 鈥渁nd the more I can do that, the more I鈥檒l be able to execute on the golf course.鈥�
He鈥檚 come so close so often that nobody would fault McIlroy if his frame of mind these days was as skewed as a snap hook into Rae鈥檚 Creek. He had a four-year streak of finishing in the top 10 beginning in 2014, the year he won the British Open and PGA Championship. He was fifth on , when the pandemic pushed the Masters into the fall. Two years ago, a blistering final-round 64 still left him three shots back of Scottie Scheffler.
Over time, the 18-year-old Northern Irishman with the cherubic face and limitless potential, who ticked off those first four major championships in a four-year span, has grown up. McIlroy is 34 now, leaner and stronger but also wiser, and it's almost hard to believe he has spent spent nearly a third of his life chasing the only major to elude him so far.
鈥淚f I cast my mind back to 18-year-old Rory and I鈥檓 driving down Magnolia Lane for the first time, how would I feel and I think? It鈥檚 just always trying to go back to being grateful and feeling incredibly lucky that you can be a part of this tournament," he said Tuesday. "Thankfully, I鈥檝e improved a bit since my first start here, and I feel like I鈥檝e got all the tools to do well this week.
鈥淏ut, again, to bring those tools out, I think one of the most important things is to enjoy it,鈥� McIlroy added with a smile, "and smell the 鈥� I guess not the roses, the azaleas along the way.鈥�
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AP golf:
Dave Skretta, The Associated Press
