Sir Nick Faldo believes Rory McIlroy can end his wait for the career Grand Slam at The Masters, providing he can “clear the past” major disappointments from his mind at Augusta National.
McIlroy already has two victories on the PGA Tour this season and will be among the favourites to win the opening major of the year, live from April 10-13 on Sky Sports, the elusive title missing in his Grand Slam bid.
The world No 2 has registered 21 top-10s in majors since his last victory at the 2014 PGA Championship, which – at the time – was a fourth major in as many years, with McIlroy experiencing multiple near-misses during that winless decade.
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McIlroy said last season that he hoped to become the most successful European player in history, with Faldo – a three-time Masters champion – believing the Northern Irishman’s toughest obstacle to end his major drought will be a mental one.
“History’s not great [for McIlroy],” Faldo told the Sky Sports Golf podcast. “I think there’s only Tiger Woods and Ben Crenshaw that have gone 11 years between two majors in about the last 40 years. He has to forget that and he’s got to rewrite some of those things.
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“He’s 35, playing great. Can he just go to Augusta and absolutely clear all the pictures out from the past? It’s way easier said than done, but he could do it and I’ve got a feeling he might.”
McIlroy won the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am in his opening start of the PGA Tour season and claimed an impressive play-off win at The Players last month, while he impressed during a top five finish at the Texas Children’s Houston Open.
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The former world No 1 has visited Augusta National in the build-up to this month’s major, playing multiple practice rounds, with McIlroy showing impressive consistency this season despite still admitting he has “stuff to work on” in his game.
“He [McIlroy] is looking very good,” Faldo added. “Golf, for me, there’s three main departments when you’re assessing anyone – there’s physical, technical, and mental, isn’t it?
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“Physical, we can just about see. You can see how strong somebody is, but you can’t see an injury. Technical, we can just about see it – you see the swing and what have you. Mental, we can’t see it and that’s purely hidden to the individual.
“For Rory? Physically, he’s got it. Technically, he’s got it. Where is he mentally? That is the key. He has got the battle of trying to delete 10 years of this gap and saying to us ‘I’m actually the best player in the world right now’. Because, let’s face it, he is.”
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Listen to the full Sir Nick Faldo interview on the latest edition of the Sky Sports Golf podcast, hosted every week by Jamie Weir. Subscribe now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Spreaker, while vodcast editions can be found on the Sky Sports Golf YouTube channel.
When is The Masters live on Sky Sports?
Sky Sports Golf will be showing record hours of live coverage from the 2025 contest, where Scheffler returns as defending champion, including more action over the final two rounds than previous years.
Wall-to-wall coverage from the tournament begins at 2pm on Thursday, with Featured Group action and regular updates from around the course available to enjoy on Sky Sports Golf until the global broadcast window begins at 8pm.
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Watch the story of Scottie Scheffler’s final round in 2024, as he claimed a second Green Jacket in three years at Augusta National
The same timings will apply on Friday, while a new addition to this year’s coverage sees a Masters build-up show live from 3pm over the weekend ahead of full coverage starting at 5pm, covering all the action until after the close of play.
On Sky +, Sky Q and Sky Glass there will be lots of extra action via the red button on the Sky Sports Golf channel, providing plenty of bonus feeds and allowing you to follow players’ progress through various parts of Augusta’s famous layout.
Who will win The Masters? Watch from April 10-13 live on Sky Sports. Live coverage of the opening round begins with Featured Groups on Thursday April 10, from 2pm on Sky Sports Golf. Get Sky Sports or stream with no contract on NOW.
