2020 Masters: Top 10 power rankings at Augusta National
Rory McIlroy and the Masters. It’s been a wild ride.
The four-time major champion has fired plenty of scorching rounds at Augusta National over his decade-plus career. Red numbers have been easy to come by but green jackets not.
The Northern Irishman’s made 10 of 11 cuts and each of the 10 times finished inside the top 40. He famously led going into the back nine in 2011 (65-69-70-80) before collapsing to T-15th.
In 2014, he forged T-8th (71-77-71-69) despite shooting himself out of contention on Friday. A year later he finally avoided the One Bad Round, but was dusted by six by Jordan Spieth en route to solo fourth (71-71-68-66).
Another single bad score cost him again in 2016 as he fired 70-71-77-71 to take T-10th. His top-10 streak continued in 2017 but he wasn’t able to factor in late on a Sunday en route to T-7th (72-73-71-69).
Another year, another big paycheck in 2018 as he earned T-5th (69-71-65-74). He was in the final group on Sunday three back of eventual champ, Patrick Reed. McIlroy spun his tires and faded as the day went on.
The impressive streak of five straight top-10s came to a close last year with a T-21st (73-71-71-68).
It’s clear that McIlroy’s got the game to play well here. He’s one of the best drivers in the world and can overpower Augusta National at times. When the putter’s working, there’s hardly anyone better.
By the same token, his success is almost a double edged sword as he’s had so many close calls without a win. The Masters represents the final leg of his career grand slam, so the pressure is high.
Maybe a patron-less, wet November Masters is just the different type of juju McIlroy, 31, needs to get over the hump.
“I’m very comfortable with this golf course. I think one of the great things about this course is it forces you to be creative and I like that side of the game,” ASAP Sports transcribed McIlroy before the 2019 Masters. “I like to see shots. I like to visualize. So you know, the massive tall pines, the contrast between the green grass and the white bunkers, the yellow flagsticks, there’s so many, you know, so many things to look at and be aware of and it paints a picture for you.”
McIlroy brings in good form into this week, though not by his standards. The good is he hasn’t missed a cut since the 2019 Open Championship and owns five straight top-25s. The bad is he hasn’t won worldwide in 2020 and lacks a top five since February.
He has rest on his side as he last teed it up three weeks ago at the Zozo Championship where he was T-17th.
McIlroy is making his 48th major championship start and 47th as a pro. He’s made 38 cuts with wins at the 2011 U.S. Open, 2012 PGA Championship, 2014 Open Championship and 2014 PGA Championship. He has 17 more top-10s, including a T-8th this year at the U.S. Open.
He’s made the cut in seven of the last eight, all ending T-50th or better.
McIlroy ranked sixth on the PGA Tour last season in strokes gained tee to green (.702). His ability to carry the ball high and far is an asset. Not to mention he was 19th in SG approach (.504) and should have Augusta National well-mapped to where he wants to putt from.
The putter has been cold, but that could all flip when he gets to a place he’ll know better than most of the field.