The five Sunday shots that won Rory McIlroy the 2025 Masters - ESPN

AUGUSTA, Ga. — There is something about the way that shots at the Masters become etched in our memories more than at any other tournament.

The setting — its green hues and bright azalea pinks free from corporate dressings — gives the tournament's best moments a timeless filter. The camera quality of past video clips is the only clear distinction of the passing of time. Whether a tournament produces a tight finish or a runaway winner, every shot on Sunday carries the gravity of what a victory here, of all places, would mean. History colors every swing.

It's why, even though Rory McIlroy can say that he won the 2025 Masters thanks to his Friday round of 66 or his scorching Saturday start (6 under through six holes), both of which are true, history will remember Sunday. It always does.

Golf demands that every shot during a 72-hole tournament matters. During the final round, however, it felt as though all of McIlroy's shots existed in a vacuum. One moment, it was the best shot he had ever hit; the next, it was the worst. In the end, McIlroy's masterpiece was more Pollock than Rockwell. It was an imprecise feat of letting it fall apart just enough that failure remained as likely as glory. In so many ways, it was fitting for him — the shots that willed him over the line were made more memorable by the shots that nearly produced another heartbreak.

A year removed from his historic win, here is a look at the five shots that won McIlroy his coveted green jacket and the career grand slam.

No. 3: Par 4, 350 yards

• 24 yards to hole
• Key Number: 30
The green is elevated roughly 30 feet from the fairway

Image courtesy of the Masters

The essence of McIlroy's final round played out right away that Sunday. After a listless double