Rory's Rollercoaster

Have you ever been good at something, done just about everything you could at that something except for one last big thing?

Have you felt the frustration of not being able to finish that job?

If so, you can connect with what Rory McIlroy had felt for basically the last 11 years before Sunday's exhausting triumph at the Masters. His emotional response once his birdie putt on the 18th green to beat Justin Rose in a playoff tells you just how much the journey to completing the career grand slam had been weighing on him. Now, no more questions about whether he'll be able to end the drought at Augusta.

But forget the 11 years for a moment. Sunday afternoon was draining enough in itself. His round was filled with poor shots followed by unbelievably great ones. In our Blitz major championship picks I took McIlroy to win just after Dean selected then-defending champ Scottie Scheffler. If I was feeling more angst just WATCHING every swing then I can't imagine what Rory was dealing with on the inside. And to be clear- our picks are only for bragging rights.

After the victory, while wearing his newly-earned green jacket, McIlroy talked a lot about how keeping a positive outlook (even after his opening double bogey) and staying in the moment finally got him over the hump.

Too many times, too many of us get in our own way. We overthink. We question ourselves. We don't believe.

Rory’s final round wasn’t perfect, but belief carried him where doubt never could.