AUGUSTA, GEORGIA — Rory McIlroy retained the Masters title at Augusta National on Sunday, winning by one shot to claim his sixth major championship. The 36-year-old Northern Irishman produced four birdies in seven holes during his final round to pull clear of the field.

McIlroy had not won a fifth major between 2014 and 2025. He had previously won the Masters in 2020 — a tournament held in November that year — in which he tied for 52nd in driving accuracy among players who made the cut, hitting 31 of 56 fairways. Sunday's win made him a back-to-back Masters champion and gave him at least one victory in each of the four major golf championships.

The final round was far from straightforward. McIlroy established a six-shot lead during the round but lost that entire advantage as the back nine unfolded. He three-putted the fourth hole from nine feet, and Justin Rose moved two shots ahead of him on the back nine. McIlroy then hit a nine-iron close to the flag on the 12th hole, part of the birdie run that swung the tournament back in his favor.

With half a hole remaining, McIlroy moved galleries back 50 yards to visualize a recovery shot from a forest. He did not play safe for his second shot into the 18th hole, and the ball landed in a greenside bunker. He secured the one-shot victory despite the late drama.

"I don't make it easy," McIlroy said. "I used to make it easy back in my early 20s when I was winning these things by eight shots."

The Masters has been won by five shots only once during McIlroy's career. Nick Faldo handed him a note about joining the back-to-back Masters-winning club after the victory. Retaining the title placed McIlroy in company with Faldo, Phil Mickelson and Lee Trevino as golfers with six major wins. In 1996, Faldo overcame Greg Norman's six-shot lead to win the Masters.

McIlroy's sixth major moved him three behind Gary Player's record of nine major championship wins for a non-U.S. golfer. Harry Vardon and Arnold Palmer each won seven majors.