The greatest battles Rory McIlroy has fought over the last 10 years have been with himself. This was never going to end any other way. At times on Sunday, it seemed like the only thing standing between McIlroy and victory was the space between his ears.

Not rattled, McIlroy clubbed down at 17 and rifled a 248-yard tee shot to 196 yards away, and a superb 8-iron landed and trickled to only two feet, drawing more thunderous cheers. Once again, McIlroy had one hand on the green jacket.

Rory McIlroy turned another major collapse into his grandest performance of all, hitting a wedge into 3 feet for birdie in a sudden-death playoff Sunday to finally win the Masters and take his place in golf history as the sixth player to claim the career Grand Slam.