Jack Nicklaus knows a thing or two about winning back-to-back green jackets at Augusta National Golf Club in the Masters Tournament.
So, what was the advice to reach that feat from the six-time Masters champion to Rory McIlroy before Thursday’s first round?
The 2025 Masters Tournament champion shared that piece of advice with CBS Sports’ Amanda Balionis before he teed off in Friday’s second round, which created an instant laugh between the two with Nicklaus listening in from inside Butler Cabin.
“No (expletive) double bogeys,” McIlroy told Balionis. “Apparently, he thought I made too many last year.”REQUIRED READING: Masters payouts: Purse, winner’s share for 2026 Masters Tournament
To Nicklaus’ point, McIlroy finished with four double bogeys last year at Augusta National Golf Club, including a pair on Sunday, which almost cost him winning the first golf major of the season as he had to go into a playoff with Justin Rose.
“When he won the Masters here last year, he now doesn’t have anything more to accomplish. He won the Grand Slam, won all the majors. But he’s got a lot more to prove. He’s still a young guy,” Nicklaus told Terry Gannon inside Butler Cabin after Balionis’ interview with McIlroy.
“He’s a great player. The remark I made to him yesterday was that Rory always makes double bogeys or triple bogeys here, which puts him out of the tournament. But maybe now that you’ve won it, he’s a little bit more relaxed and he’s now ready to go prove a little bit more.”
There hasn’t been a back-to-back Masters champion since Tiger Woods did so in 2001 and 2002.Rory McIlroy Masters scorecard: Round 2 highlights, Friday leaderboard
McIlroy’s chase for a second consecutive green jacket got off to a strong start on Thursday, as he shot 67, which put him at 5-under par and in first place on the leaderboard going into Friday. He recorded six birdies in his first round, with his 67 score tied for the third lowest first round by a defending champion in the history of the Masters.
He’s also double-bogey-free at the time of this writing. He finished with just one bogey in the first round, which came on the par-4 No. 3 hole.
McIlroy will now look to head into the weekend with his spot still atop the leaderboard, as his second round got underway at 1:44 p.m. ET on Friday. He’ll also look to stay double-bogey-free (and keep Nicklaus off his case for one day more) at the same time.
