He will be 36 next month and thinks he plays better now than he did 10 years ago. There is not much proof that this is not true.

In his 18 years as a professional golfer, McIlroy had never won three times before May. Now he feels very free and is playing without pressure. This feeling is not because of the large amount of money he has already won this year.

He emerged victorious in the prestigious Masters tournament.

He now has a place upstairs where he will always find a green jacket waiting for him, and a seat at the special dinner.

After winning, McIlroy put his head down on the grass on the 18th hole, breathing heavily. This showed how relieved he was. He said, "The happiness came very soon after that," and you could see this on his face when Scottie Scheffler helped him put on the green jacket.

"What will we all talk about next year?" McIlroy asked, first in a private room and then at his press conference. This shows he feels free and relaxed.

Perhaps we could consider postponing it until next month?

He has won all four major tournaments in his career. Now, it's possible he could win all four in one year, especially because the tournaments later this year seem good for him.

The PGA Championship is next month at Quail Hollow. McIlroy has won there four times before.

Last summer, he was one of the players who answered a fun question. If the best player in the FedEx Cup could pick the place for the Tour Championship, where would it be? McIlroy chose Quail Hollow right away.

The U.S. Open is at Oakmont, a difficult course that is good for players who hit the ball far. This course should be good for him, but last time he played there, he scored 77 in the first round. This round took two days because of rain, and he did not play on the weekend.

The British Open is back at Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland, McIlroy's home.

He returns feeling more free than pressured.

That future is far away, but it shows how the talk about McIlroy has changed. People are now thinking about what else he can do, not what he was missing.

Scheffler, who was with him, said on Tuesday: "I don't know what it's like to be asked about winning all the major golf tournaments, but I understand a little what it's like to be asked, 'You did this, but you haven't done that.' It can be difficult for people sometimes."

Brad Faxon, a friend who helps McIlroy with his putting, thinks that nothing can stop McIlroy now. He also believes McIlroy could win twice as many major championships. Faxon said, "He could easily win 10."

Famous golfers Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus thought that young Tiger Woods was good enough to win ten green jackets, which was the same number they had won together. But Woods only won five.

Before McIlroy won his first major tournament at the 2011 U.S. Open, another player, Padraig Harrington, said that McIlroy was the person who could try to break Jack Nicklaus's record.

Nicklaus is considered the best in golf with 18 major wins. McIlroy has five, the same as Brooks Koepka, which is 10 less than Woods.

It's easy to get excited. This Masters tournament is one of the best at Augusta National, like when Woods won in 2019, 2001, and 1997, Nicklaus won in 1986 and 1975, and Arnold Palmer won in 1960.

But this was hard for McIlroy, on Sunday and for the last 16 years. He hadn't won a major tournament for 11 years. Winning the Masters was his dream, but in 16 tries, he only had a real chance of winning on the last nine holes twice.

Players like Greg Norman, Tom Weiskopf, David Duval, and Ken Venturi seemed more affected by their difficult experiences.

Two years ago, after almost winning the U.S. Open, McIlroy said he would have "100 Sundays like this" to win another major tournament. He would have had 1,000 Sundays to win a green jacket, especially thinking about everything he could have won.

McIlroy is now the sixth player to win all four major golf tournaments in his career, like Woods, Nicklaus, Gary Player, Ben Hogan, and Gene Sarazen. But only four of them really 'won' the career Grand Slam, because the idea of winning all four big tournaments wasn't official until Arnold Palmer said it was in 1960.

The only other player to do this at the Masters was Sarazen in 1935. At that time, the event was new and had a different name. He won the Augusta National Invitation Tournament. Green jackets were given out later, starting in 1949. The Masters Club dinner also started later, in 1952.

McIlroy is truly the only player to win the last part at the Masters. This tournament is held at the same course every year, which makes the memories there very strong.

To understand how big this achievement is, think about the famous golfers he is now with, and also the great golfers who are not considered the very best.

Sam Snead has won 82 times in his career on the PGA Tour, which is the joint record. He didn't win the U.S. Open. Phil Mickelson has done better than McIlroy, except for not winning the U.S. Open, which would complete his Grand Slam.

Tom Watson won 39 PGA Tour events and eight major competitions during his career. Many people believe Palmer had the biggest effect on golf today. However, neither of them won the PGA Championship.

McIlroy began to wonder if he would be someone who almost became a great player. Winning The Masters removed that worry. Now, the question is how much more he can do.