Rory McIlroy’s dramatic Masters win completed a career grand slam for the Northern Irishman, but LIV Golf star Talor Gooch had previously suggested his Green Jacket triumph would carry an asterisk
Rory McIlroy followed up his historic Masters win in 2025 with another historic feat in 2026.(Image: AP)
LIV Golf star Talor Gooch previously claimed that any Masters victory for Rory McIlroy should carry an asterisk. The pursuit of a Green Jacket had famously slipped through the Northern Irishman’s fingers until his dramatic play-off triumph over Justin Rose saw him finally get his hands on Augusta National glory, before backing it up with yet another memorable win on Sunday.
Yet the American golfer’s assertion was that any success in the tournament would be tainted by the absence of competition from the controversial breakaway league. When LIV Golf burst onto the scene in 2021, it proved a deeply divisive distraction during a period marked by a mass exodus of players lured by the vast wealth of the Saudi Arabian-backed circuit.
Some of the sport’s biggest names and most decorated players switched to a format that promised to usher in a new era of golf. Twelve months ago, the 36-year-old finally seized his chance to don the Green Jacket and take his place among the elite at Augusta, completing a career Grand Slam in the process.
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He joined an exclusive club, becoming only the fourth player to achieve the feat, after Jack Nicklaus, Sir Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods.
Gooch’s remarks came amid the bitter dispute between the tour and LIV, with some stars at risk of missing out due to insufficient tournament points. The American argued that claiming the Masters title would be diminished by the absence of those LIV golfers from the field.
“If Rory McIlroy goes and completes his (career) grand slam without some of the best players in the world, there’s just going to be an asterisk,” Gooch told Australian Golf Digest in 2024. “It’s just the reality. I think everybody wins whenever the majors figure out a way to get the best players in the world there.”
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During McIlroy’s first Masters triumph, 12 LIV golfers — including seven previous champions — received invitations to Augusta, though several failed to make the cut, with just two contending for the title on the final day.
This year, 10 LIV players took part in the tournament, among them Jon Rahm, Tyrell Hatton and Tom McKibbin. A stunning final round from Hatton saw him finish on 10-under after carding a six-under 66 on the last day. The Englishman was left nervously watching on, hoping McIlroy might falter from 12-under, but the Northern Irishman held his nerve to claim Masters glory for the second time.
McKibbin endured a difficult week, missing the cut before the third round, while Rahm, the 2023 Masters champion, made it through to the final day but stumbled with three bogeys, finishing one-over par. LIV’s Sergio Garcia grabbed headlines for all the wrong reasons after he damaged the tee box and snapped his driver in a furious outburst following an errant drive at Augusta, leaving him with no choice but to issue an apology.
Hatton’s final round at Augusta on Sunday proved to be the only LIV Golf challenge for McIlroy during his back-to-back Masters success, in light of Talor questioning the credibility behind the success.
McIlroy was amongst those who loudly opposed the breakaway league when it first emerged. The 36-year-old had previously disclosed that he hadn’t been approached to make the lucrative move to the rival format, but when questioned about Gooch’s remarks, McIlroy chose not to pour fuel on the flames of bitterness burning between the two organisations, LIV and the PGA.
Talor Gooch hasn’t qualified for the Masters in each of the last three years.(Image: Getty Images)
Speaking in 2024, McIlroy responded he said: “Look, the Masters is an invitational and they’ll invite whoever they think warrants an invite. “I think to be fair to Talor, if you read the entire – the question and then the answer, it’s not as if he just came out with that.
“I feel like whoever did the interview led him down that path to say that, so I’m giving him the benefit of the doubt there a little bit. He just agreed with what the interviewer asked.
“At the same time, Joaquin Niemann got an invite, and I played with him a few weeks ago in Dubai, and he went down to Australia and won.
“He has been chasing his tail around the world to get this, play his way into Augusta or show enough form to warrant an invite. I don’t know if the same can be said for Talor.”
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