{"id":605363,"date":"2026-04-14T02:46:10","date_gmt":"2026-04-14T02:46:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/605363\/"},"modified":"2026-04-14T02:46:10","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T02:46:10","slug":"rory-mcilroy-win-sparks-fairness-controversy-after-augusta-national-practice-rounds-via-private-jet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/605363\/","title":{"rendered":"Rory McIlroy win sparks fairness controversy after Augusta National practice rounds via private jet"},"content":{"rendered":"

Debate over whether Rory McIlroy gained an unfair advantage at the Masters continues to swirl on Tuesday after he clinched his second-straight green jacket<\/a>. <\/p>\n

At the centre of the furore is the Northern Irishman\u2019s revelation that he skipped three-straight weeks on the PGA Tour in favour of flying his private jet to Augusta National for practice rounds. <\/p>\n

FOX SPORTS, available on Kayo Sports, is streaming The 2026 PGA Tour LIVE & Exclusive | New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1.<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The trip between his home in Jupiter, Florida and the Georgian home of the Masters is almost 700km each way \u2014 about two hours by plane.<\/p>\n

McIlroy revealed mid-tournament that there were days in the build-up that he would fly to Augusta in his private jet, play a practice round, and be home in time for dinner. <\/p>\n

That is despite UK reports <\/a>that his jet \u2014 worth a reported A$70m \u2014 costs around $5,700-an-hour to operate, making a single day of practice at Augusta for McIlroy worth about A$23k. <\/p>\n

Debate over whether Rory McIlroy gained an unfair advantage at the Masters continues to swirl.Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n

But it was a sacrifice that McIlroy was willing to make, telling reporters on the weekend: \u201cI honestly just don\u2019t like the three tournaments leading up to this event.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d rather come up here. I had a couple of days where I dropped (daughter) Poppy to school, flew up here, played, then landed back home and had dinner with Poppy and (wife) Erica.<\/p>\n

\u201cI did a couple of day trips like that where I felt it was a better use of my time than going to Houston or San Antonio. It wasn\u2019t really about conserving energy, but I felt the more time I could spend up here, the better.<\/p>\n

\u201cI joked last week and going into this week, this place feels like my home course. I haven\u2019t played anywhere else in the last two or three weeks, really. So I felt prepared in that way.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not going to take three weeks off before every major, but to get to the major venues early, do your preparation, actually play. Go out there with one ball, shoot a score, and try to do it that way. <\/p>\n

\u201cI did a little bit of that leading up to here, and I think that\u2019s certainly a good way to prepare going into the next majors.\u201d <\/p>\n

READ MORE MASTERS<\/p>\n

TALKING POINTS: Genius act that won Masters… and 17-yr history behind it; No.1 stirs fairness debate<\/a><\/p>\n

RORY: The event that \u2018kicked McIlroy in the teeth so many times\u2019 may now define him. And it\u2019s just the start <\/a><\/p>\n

MAGIC McILROY: Fresh Rory thrillride stuns as Masters history sealed in final hole epic <\/a><\/p>\n

Those words stuck for the remainder of Masters week, especially as the dust settled on McIlroy\u2019s historic one-shot win over Scottie Scheffler. <\/p>\n

Though it made him the first back-to-back winner of the green jacket since Tiger Woods in 2002, some commentators and golf fans have lined up to question the fairness of McIlroy\u2019s win. <\/p>\n

After the round, Scheffler stirred the pot by questioning whether the course set-up on Friday torpedoed his own chances \u2014 but the most controversial point remains McIlroy\u2019s choice of preparation. <\/p>\n

Masters Immortality – Rory reacts to win | 02:29<\/p>\n

Renowned ESPN pundit Stephen A Smith said on First Take that an \u201cunfair advantage\u201d was at play. <\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m like, wait a minute now, were you over there practising for two, three weeks getting set for The Masters when nobody else got to do that? I don\u2019t know how anybody else feels about it,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe didn\u2019t break any rules, he didn\u2019t violate anything, I\u2019m not saying that, please don\u2019t get me wrong.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut what I am saying is, that does give you an advantage – not only familiarity with the course because you\u2019ve been playing there for years, but you\u2019ve been there over the past three weeks. That\u2019s what he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd saying that, I mean you have some people that would believe from a gentleman\u2019s perspective, that was an unfair advantage.\u201d <\/p>\n

One of the leading voices to spark the controversy was OutKick <\/a>commentator Jon Root, who called out McIlroy mid-tournament.<\/p>\n

In an opinion piece, he wrote that McIlroy\u2019s reveal about his practice rounds made him \u201ccome across as arrogant and demeaning\u201d. <\/p>\n

He further argued that though McIlroy had not broken any rules, he did gain an advantage at Augusta that demands further scrutiny. <\/p>\n

\u201cAccess to the course is open from mid-October to mid-May, so winning does undoubtedly provide the champion special access to the course, which in some sense is earned,\u201d he wrote. \u201cIn other ways, it creates a fairness issue, if left unchecked and unregulated. While we\u2019d hope that Augusta wouldn\u2019t allow past champions like Rory to abuse his special access, it is obviously subjective what constitutes \u201cabuse.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnother important factor is that players who have qualified for The Masters may be invited to arrange practice rounds in the weeks\/months leading up to the tournament, but it\u2019s not guaranteed or even a standard option for those that qualified. These practice rounds are only if the club\u2019s schedule allows and if they receive special admittance through an invitation.<\/p>\n

AUGUSTA, GEORGIA – APRIL 12: Rory McIlroy lifts the Masters trophy during the Green Jacket Ceremony.Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n

\u201cNow it\u2019s time for the PGA Tour to get clear answers on how often Rory played beforehand, how often players should be allowed to play beforehand…\u201d <\/p>\n

Multiple players past and present have since confirmed that anyone who has qualified for the Masters has the right to play Augusta National in the build-up.<\/p>\n

Even so, it would appear not all players are equal.<\/p>\n

Responding to unfairness claims on X, tour golfer Michael Kim appeared to confirm Root\u2019s claim that Augusta National access is easier for a champion, or a big name, than it is for other players. <\/p>\n

Masters thrilling final day review | 00:50<\/p>\n

He wrote: \u201cYes, there\u2019s a number of rounds that ANGC will say \u2018no\u2019 to for me to go by myself and play by myself. That number is prob a little lower for me than a guy like Rory.\u201d <\/p>\n

Nonetheless, he noted that if a player finds a member to host them, there is no limit.<\/p>\n

He added: \u201cI had plenty of chances to go to ANGC myself if I wanted to but didn\u2019t go. Better use of my time practising at home or wherever I am to get my game in better shape for my next tournament. Course knowledge only gets you so far. <\/p>\n

\u201cPlenty of golfers have even more experience at Augusta than Rory like Justin Rose.\u201d<\/p>\n

Other golfers and pundits have been far more brutal in their reactions to the unfair advantage claims. <\/p>\n

PGA Tour veteran Kevin Kisner said it was the \u201cdumbest argument\u201d he had ever heard.<\/p>\n

That is despite also suggesting that an unspoken limit to practice rounds exists \u2014 and it\u2019s likely different depending on who you are. <\/p>\n

\u201cAs soon as you get your invitation, you\u2019re a welcome guest. Obviously you just have to call and set it up with the pro shop,\u201d Kisner told the Fore Play <\/a>podcast. <\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve heard they\u2019ve told you how many times you can come. Like, if someone is coming every day, they\u2019re like, \u2018alright bud, like you\u2019ve been here 15 times. That\u2019s enough\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cI can guarantee you they\u2019re not going to tell a defending champion, \u2018hey, you can\u2019t bring your jet up here on a Tuesday morning and leave Tuesday afternoon every day this week.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think it really matters. Who cares how many times he went? Everyone else can go as much as they want, they just can\u2019t beat him<\/p>\n

\u201cI look at him this week and he still won the Masters with a B-minus game. <\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think it matters at all. I thought it was the dumbest argument I\u2019ve ever seen in my life.\u201d <\/p>\n

It\u2019s worth noting that some of McIlroy\u2019s biggest rivals on the final day \u2014 Scheffler, Cameron Young and Justin Rose \u2014 all missed the same tournaments as the champion between the Players Championship and the Masters. <\/p>\n

As such, many golf experts are not buying into the claim that McIlroy\u2019s win only came after a significant leg-up. <\/p>\n

\u201cEvery single professional player who qualified for the Masters could go early and play as many practice rounds as they wish,\u201d Golf Channel analyst Brandel Chamblee said.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust as so many others, including Jack Nicklaus, have done in the past.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe only advantage Rory had over the field was his considerable skill.\u201d <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Debate over whether Rory McIlroy gained an unfair advantage at the Masters continues to swirl on Tuesday after…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":605364,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[2095,64,11537,63,208965,108977,294657,42346,294663,294656,224643,294660,294654,294649,16271,293873,2755,11775,294655,108973,143867,31534,5145,294651,24415,42328,294652,17264,6920,31671,42326,294664,184150,2041,2067,294653,265601,64928,208533,756,12837,294662,294659,85,42307,41711,3370,294658,9244,145367,294650,294661,2614],"class_list":{"0":"post-605363","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-au","10":"tag-augusta-national-inc","11":"tag-australia","12":"tag-back-to-back-winner","13":"tag-brandel-chamblee","14":"tag-course-knowledge","15":"tag-course-set-up","16":"tag-day-trips","17":"tag-dumbest-argument","18":"tag-elite-company","19":"tag-fairness-controversy","20":"tag-fairness-debate","21":"tag-fairness-issue","22":"tag-final-day","23":"tag-final-hole-epic","24":"tag-florida","25":"tag-golf-channel","26":"tag-golf-experts","27":"tag-golf-fans","28":"tag-green-jacket","29":"tag-home-course","30":"tag-houston","31":"tag-ignited-fairness-storm","32":"tag-jack-nicklaus","33":"tag-jacob-polychronis","34":"tag-jonathan-edward-root","35":"tag-jupiter","36":"tag-justin-rose","37":"tag-kevin-kisner","38":"tag-michael-kim","39":"tag-mid-tournament-answer","40":"tag-multiple-players","41":"tag-north-america","42":"tag-northern-america","43":"tag-opinion-piece","44":"tag-paul-gow","45":"tag-practice-rounds","46":"tag-private-jet","47":"tag-rory-mcilroy","48":"tag-san-antonio","49":"tag-second-straight-green-jacket","50":"tag-single-professional-player","51":"tag-sports","52":"tag-state-of-georgia","53":"tag-stephen-a-smith","54":"tag-texas","55":"tag-thrilling-final-day","56":"tag-tiger-woods","57":"tag-unfair-advantage","58":"tag-unfair-advantage-claims","59":"tag-unfairness-claims","60":"tag-united-states-of-america"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/605363","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=605363"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/605363\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/605364"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=605363"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=605363"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=605363"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}