McIlroy Credits Augusta Rehearsal and a Nicklaus Blueprint for Repeat Masters Triumph

Rory McIlroy was not joking when he said Augusta National felt like home. A month of deliberate, solitary preparation at the course he would go on to conquer for the second consecutive year has been dissected as the real secret behind his successful Masters defence.

With a back injury limiting his tournament play in the weeks beforehand, McIlroy chose a different path. Rather than competing in PGA Tour events to shake off rust, he headed to Augusta and played it the way Jack Nicklaus always recommended — with one ball, simulating the pressures of a full tournament over four days.

On at least one of those rehearsal rounds, it is understood he carded 29 on the front nine. Playing alone or with minimal company, chasing a score with a single ball on the line, McIlroy replicated the mental and emotional texture of tournament day. "I joked last week that this place feels like my home course," he said after accepting the Green Jacket for the sixth time as a major champion. "I have not played anywhere else in the last two or three weeks really. I felt prepared in that way. I felt prepared that wherever I hit it on the golf course, I sort of know what to do. I know where to miss. I am pretty comfortable with all the shots around the greens."

The Nicklaus influence runs through the strategy. McIlroy revealed that over the years he had spoken at length with the 18-time major winner about how the Golden Bear structured his major preparations. Nicklaus would arrive at a venue the week prior, play one ball for four consecutive days, and shoot scores as though the tournament had already begun. By the time the real event started, it felt automatic. McIlroy adopted the same model and believes it will inform how he approaches the remaining majors of 2026. "It is a good blueprint," McIlroy said. "I am not going to take three weeks off before every major, but to get to the major venues early, do your preparation, play. And not just play and look at things, but actually play."

His nearest challenger, Scottie Scheffler, stopped short of direct criticism but raised an eyebrow at the course conditions on Friday afternoon — the stretch of holes where McIlroy made his move, birdying six of the last seven. "I would have liked it to have been a little bit more equal in terms of the firmness on Thursday and Friday," Scheffler said. "I was a bit surprised at how soft things were on Friday afternoon, especially as it got late in the day." The world number one added, diplomatically, that weather is part of the sport and he was not in charge of setup.

For McIlroy, the psychological shift since completing the career grand slam at last year's Masters is perhaps the most significant factor of all. The weight of that chase — eight years of trying to become only the sixth golfer to win all four modern majors — is gone. "I was glad last year that the whole grand slam thing was done, because that was what I was chasing," he said. "And now going forward, everything is icing on the cake or a cherry on top, all gravy, whatever you want to call it. I feel like I can just go and play my game and have a chance to win a lot more majors."

That freedom showed. With the grand slam finally his, McIlroy played with a looseness that Augusta had rarely seen from him. The result was a sixth major and a Green Jacket he earned not just with talent, but with methodical, Nicklaus-inspired preparation that left nothing to chance.