Rory McIlroy: ‘The 2022 Masters was the first in a long time that I felt joy’

Finishing with a holed-out bunker shot at Augusta in 2022 fired up McIlroy but he can still keep life and golf in perspective

A reasonable case could be made that the breathtaking major moment of 2022 was not produced by a champion. Rory McIlroy's club toss and leap for joy as his ball rolled, rolled and rolled into the hole from a greenside bunker on the 18th during last year's Masters reverberated far beyond the grounds of Augusta National. McIlroy's reaction was of an exuberant, care-free child as opposed to a globally famous sportsman.

Scottie Scheffler won the 86th Masters, but four-putted when doing so. Justin Thomas eased home in a playoff to claim the US PGA Championship. Matt Fitzpatrick's fairway bunker shot at the 72nd hole of the US Open was sensational and Cameron Smith breezed through the Open field on a St Andrews Sunday.