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2025 Masters: Skip Bayless declares Rory McIlroy champion, golfer relinquishes 4-shot lead

Chandler Vesselsby:Chandler Vessels•04/13/25•

ChandlerVessels

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Skip Bayless was a little premature in declaring a winner of the 2025 Masters on Sunday afternoon. The sports commentator took to X during the event to proclaim Rory McIlroy as the winner.

At the time, McIlroy had a four-shot lead on the rest of the competition and was in good standing to do so. However, the golfer has since lost his lead and is now tied atop the leaderboard at -11 with Justin Rose.

“CONGRATULATIONS, RORY, FOR WINNING THE 2025 MASTERS AND COMPLETING THE CAREER GRAND SLAM,” Bayless wrote. “EXTRAORDINARY PERFORMANCE. WAS I EVER WRONG ABOUT TODAY AND BRYSON DESHAMBOGEY.”

But while things got close at the end, McIlroy would go on to win The Masters in 2025 and earn his green jacket in his 17th attempt. It is his 29th career win (third this season) and fifth major win.

McIlroy missed what would’ve been the winning putt on No. 18 to finish his fourth round at 73 (+1). That started a playoff between he and Justin Rose. The pair were tied at -11 for the tournament. He’d go on to win that playoff, though, coming off a second shot back on No. 18 that set up the winning putt within feet of the hole. With that, McIlroy birdied the final hole and fell to his knees in pure elation for the career achievement.

McIlroy would build this win off of a pair of great showings at -6 on Friday and Saturday after shooting par in the opening round on Thursday. That set him up with a matchup with Bryson Dechambeau, who faded on the second nine, with Rose, Patrick Reed, and Scottie Scheffler also looking to contend as the afternoon unfolded. However, McIlroy, despite three bogeys and a double bogey on the second nine himself, was able to hold on by the end and win The Masters.

This win goes beyond just a green jacket at Augusta National. McIlroy now becomes the sixth player in the history of golf to achieve the Grand Slam as he now becomes that group’s sixth addition, and first in a quarter century, alongside Gene Sarazen (1935), Ben Hogan (1953), Gary Player (1965), Jack Nicklaus (1966), and Tiger Woods (2000). That’s as he pairs this first career win at The Masters, where he has played since 2009, with victories at the U.S. Open (2011). PGA Championship (2012, 2014), and The Open Championship (2014).

That in mind, Skip Bayless avoided making a declaration that ended up not happening. He can now rest easy knowing that his post wasn’t what jinxed McIlroy into giving up a big lead.

On3’s Sam Gillenwater contributed to this report.