Rory McIlroy winning The Masters would be "all his life’s work finally reaching its full potential," Sky Sports' Andrew Coltart says, while predicting that we'd see the same tearful player we saw at the 2021 Ryder Cup if he managed to secure a Green Jacket.
The Northern Irishman heads to Augusta National this week looking to once again capture the career grand slam, with the Masters the only Major, and just about the only thing left in sport, that he is still yet to win. McIlroy was 2nd last year, his best ever Masters finish, after a holed bunker shot on the 72nd green secured a final round of 64 and his first ever runners-up finish at Augusta.
Coltart, who will be there commentating for Sky Sports this week, fears that McIlroy might not be able to handle the pressure but still thinks that the four-time Major winner will secure a Masters victory in his career.
"I think that's the right way to approach it [around 10 chances left], isn't it? Because the longer it goes on the harder it is going to get," Coltart said.
"It's tough. Look at the preparation. He’d already played there before the match play. He said last week in an interview I think when he was finally beaten that he's going to go up there again this week. He'll play at least one or two practice rounds next week. I hope he doesn't sort of fall into the trap that I think befell Colin Montgomerie where you put it up on a precipice and it almost becomes unachievable.
"You allow the pressure to build by doing things like that, rather than approaching it as maybe you should do as just a sort of 'a normal week’ even though we all know, it's not a normal week. He's got to find ways of lowering that level of pressure, because there is no doubt his game should be perfectly suited to Augusta.
What is it seven top-10s in the last nine years. A lot of those admittedly have have come after an early drop off, and then rallying at the weekend when that pressure, that palpable pressure, that we can all feel seems to have dissipated.
"Last year it was quite good. I think there was a gradual sort of build up and he just came up a couple of shots, well it was five shots in the end, shy of Scheffler but at least he was building towards it, which was quite encouraging.
"I do think he'll win it. But there is no doubt that the longer it goes on the much more pressure has been applied because it's about the grand slam for him really at this stage.
"Make no mistake about it and you guys understand it, a lot of these guys they cover up these emotions, it’s part of their job. They have to cover it up. They have to downplay it to not build it up into something that becomes all-consuming.
"So you talk to them yeah they’ll allude to the fact ‘Of course, it would mean a lot. It's another Major it's, you know, it's The Masters’ and from Rory's point of view, you know, it's the chance to fall into that incredibly unique category, another chance to get in there again with the likes of Tiger as well, and he will use everything he possibly can and has done to sort of play it down as much as possible.
"But should that situation ever arise, you will see the type of character that broke down in tears at the Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits, when he felt he let his team down for the four matches prior to the singles.
"All that type of emotion I'm sure would come to the fore. That would be all his life’s work finally reaching its full potential when he would step off that green and slip his arms into that jacket. So I'm sure there would be an incredible release of emotions and it would be quite some site for everybody.
"It would be amazing. Everybody would love to see it even his colleagues, his fellow pros would love to see him make that because they know how talented he is and it’d be such a shame to go through his career and not win something like that. But then again, you know, situations like that have befallen other players before."
Watch the opening major of the year live from April 6-9 exclusively live on Sky Sports Golf and NOW. Live coverage starts at 2pm on Thursday.
