For a lot of us 90s kids, Rory McIlroy has been the guy for most of our golf-watching lives. That\u2019s why it\u2019s no surprise when many golf fans and members of the media (at times, present company included) today are prone to hyperbole when it comes to the world No. 2. That said, it\u2019s not an exaggeration to state that, on consecutive days, on the same hole, McIlroy hit two of the best, most dramatic shots in the history of the Masters that will surely be talked about and replayed for decades to come.\u00a0<\/p>\n
On Saturday afternoon, McIlroy held the solo lead by two shots as he stood over his ball in the fairway on the par-5 15th hole. Two days earlier in the opening round, he made the first of two closing double bogeys on No. 15 to wipe out a 4-under round to that point and seemingly derail his chances at a Green Jacket and the career Grand Slam. Resiliency was the word of the week for McIlroy, who birdied the 15th on Friday and mashed the upgrade button on Saturday thanks to a towering 6-iron that found the green just six feet from the hole to set up a clutch eagle that extended his lead to four shots.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
My esteemed colleague Will Knights had this to say of the second shot on the 15th in the Fried Egg Golf Newsletter on Saturday night<\/a>:<\/p>\n \u201cIf this were a Sunday newsletter, Rory\u2019s shot would be seen as the shot of the tournament, the one that earned him the major title he\u2019s been searching for his entire career. Instead, it stands as the shot of the tournament so far. It\u2019s the shot that completed his Saturday turnaround after he stalled in the middle of an otherwise brilliant round. If you\u2019re a romantic, this 6-iron may just serve as foreshadowing. Rory is seemingly 1-1 in big moments when pitted against the 15th hole so far during the 2025 Masters. The winner of the best-of-three series could determine who enters Butler Cabin Sunday night.\u201d<\/p>\n Man, did he nail that call. Faced with a more difficult approach to the green on Sunday, around the trees lining the left side of the fairway, McIlroy\u2019s booming 7-iron found the green<\/a> and once again left a six-footer for eagle. Sure, he missed the eagle attempt this time, but he did tap in for a crucial birdie to stop the bleeding following a double bogey and bogey on Nos. 13 and 14, respectively.\u00a0<\/p>\n