Rory Repeat: McIlroy Battles Through Dramatic Final Round To Win Second Masters In a Row

Rory McIlroy is your back-to-back Masters Tournament champion. It didn't always feel like that was going to be the case Sunday at Augusta National Golf Club, but he pieced together just enough to get the win.

A bit of a scare on the 18th hole for McIlroy made things a little more tense than he would have liked, but a bogey was still good enough to win by one shot.

"I can't believe I waited 17 years to get one Green Jacket, and then just one year to get a second. That's just sort of the way," McIlroy said from Butler Cabin after the win. "I think all my perseverance at this golf tournament at this golf tournament over the years has started to pay off."

It wasn't quite the Sunday that McIlroy probably envisioned at the end of the second round of the 90th Masters Tournament on Friday. At that point, McIlroy had the largest lead any golfer has ever had after 36 holes in this tournament's history. He was six shots up on the field, looking about as inevitable a back-to-back champion as one can get. A difficult day on Saturday changed everything, and that set up drama on Sunday.

"It felt pretty similar to last year," McIroy said about his rough start. "Going to the last tee knowing I had the two-shot lead, it was nice to have that two-shot cushion instead of the one like I had last year."

McIlroy fought off a host of challengers, including the top player in the world, Scottie Scheffler, to win his second Green Jacket after a final-round 70 gave him the championship by one shot, finishing at 12-under.

McIlroy didn't have many positive dramatic moments on Sunday. It was mostly uneven play that came together well enough to piece together a win. He did have the closest shot to the pin on the day on the very difficult 12th hole. That gave him a much-needed birdie.

He also had a nice save from off the green on 16 that gave him a par, and set up the breathing room needed to close out the win.

It was Scheffler who created the most heat late in the day on the second nine. He had four birdies on his round, but a steady bogey-free round put him in position to cause a scare. An ill-timed second shot on the 18th hole saw his ball roll back off the green, dashing any hopes of a late miracle. But back-to-back bogey-free rounds, including a 68 on Sunday, landed him at 11-under for the week. He finished second alone overall.

"Over the weekend, I put up a good fight," Scheffler said after his round. "I did a lot of good stuff in order to give myself a chance. But ultimately came up a shot short."

A pack of four golfers finished at 10-under, tied for third. All of them held at least a tie for the lead at some point on Sunday.

Last year's runner-up, Justin Rose, found himself on top of the leaderboard more than once on Sunday. A first-nine score of 32 had him positioned to finally break through for his first Green Jacket. But bogeys on 11 and 12 saw him drop three back of McIlroy at the time. Another bogey on 17 ended any real shot.

Tyrrell Hatton had his moments on Sunday as well, putting together his second round of 66 this year. A run of four straight birdies on 13-16 gave him a shot, but he managed just pars on the final two holes to finish at 10-under.

Russell Henley was the last of the group finishing tied for third at 10-under. He had a final-round 68.

Cameron Young looked like he might just have a real shot to win early in the final round. The co-leader going into Sunday couldn't get much momentum, though, and bogeys on 6, 7 and 9 were enough to keep him chasing. A lipped out birdie putt on 16 zapped most any chance of a miracle finish.

Finishing in the top 12 of the Masters guarantees you a spot in next year's tournament.

That group included Collin Morikawa and Sam Burns, who finished tied for seventh at 9-under. Max Homa and Xander Schauffele finished tied for ninth at 8-under.

Jake Knapp probably needed the exemption most, playing in just his second Masters. He finished in 11th by himself, with a 7-under tournament.

The pack of golfers tied for 12th is filled with notable names: Jordan Spieth, Hideki Matsuyama, Brooks Koepka, Patrick Reed, Patrick Cantlay and Jason Day.er his second round of 66 this year. A run of four straight birdies on 13-16 gave him a shot, but he managed just pars on the final two holes to finish at 10-under.

Russell Henley was the last of the group finishing tied for third at 10-under. He had a final-round 68.

Cameron Young looked like he might just have a real shot to win early in the final round. The co-leader going into Sunday couldn't get much momentum, though, and bogeys on 6, 7 and 9 were enough to keep him chasing. A lipped out birdie putt on 16 zapped most any chance of a miracle finish.