I’m Ready to Get Hurt Again

Journalists are supposed to be neutral. No favorites, no rooting interests. Just observing the sport you cover through impartial lenses. We’re all supposed to be Rob Lowe at the 2019 NFC Championship game—I apologize if you’re not chronically online and have no idea what I’m talking about.

But I think that’s bullshit.

One of the special things about sports is having your teams, your guys to back and get behind.

That being said, I’ve been a Rory McIlroy fan since his curly hair poked out from his Jumeirah hat. He’s one of the reasons I picked up clubs when I was a kid and why I ended up covering this sport for a living. Cheesy? 100%. But that’s how I got here.

As you could imagine the Masters has been a source of devastation for me over the years, despite it being my favorite seven days on the calendar. His final-round 80 in 2011 is still a recurring nightmare.

Rory McIlroy. Masters 2011. (Photo: Getty Images)

McIlroy has finished inside the top 10 seven times since that infamous day, but he’s yet to give himself a true chance to win the Green Jacket over the final nine holes on Sunday.

But something feels a little different this time around.

For the first time in his career, the Northern Irishman will head down Magnolia Lane with two wins already on the season. And when he hasn’t won, he’s finished T-17 (Genesis Invitational), T-15 (Arnold Palmer Invitational), and T-5 (Texas Children’s Houston Open).

His game is the most well-rounded we’ve ever seen. He’s ranked first in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee, seventh in SG: Approach, fourth in scrambling, and 12th in SG: Putting.

He’s taken a page out of Scottie Scheffler’s playbook, working his way around with a little more patience, a little more caution, and that’s led to less big numbers. He’s added off-speed pitches with his short-irons, bringing the flight down and adding more control to his game.

To put it plainly, he’s ballin’.

His game won’t be the problem at Augusta—at least everything points to that being the case—it’ll be the six inches between his ears.

The scar tissue, the undivided attention, the expectations. They’re a lot to deal with. Sure, he’s used to it, but if I can put all the puzzle pieces together as to why 2025 might be his year, so can every media member that will be inside the gates next week.

Dampening expectations can be tricky, but when McIlroy told NBC on Sunday that his right elbow has been barking a bit, tinfoil hats went on. Was this an effort to go into next week with a built-in excuse if things don’t go his way? Was he trying to trick his own mind to take a little pressure off?

All I know is I’m ready to get hurt again. I’m all-in. I’m ready to overreact to every birdie, every bogey, every shot.

In 10 days, we go.