Tranlate this title Rory McIlroy: «Prepared better than any other» in spanish

Rory McIlroy isn’t playing golf. He’s composing music. While everyone else is trying to survive at Augusta, the defending champion has racked up 12 under par through the first two days and is on track to challenge the Masters’ all-time records. He already holds the record for the longest distance after 36 holes.

Friday afternoon was out of this world. Six birdies in the last seven holes, including the chip shot on the 17th that went in blind. «I just saw the fans jump up in the stands and knew it was in,» the Northern Irishman admitted with that almost irritating coolness that now characterizes him. «I wanted to leave the ball at least level with the bunker, no further, because I knew the angle was better from there. Harry (his caddie) and I talked it over.»

Rory McIlroy, statements

But the most revealing thing isn’t the score. It’s his mindset. McIlroy has been living in Augusta for three weeks, commuting daily from his rented house to hit putts, practice his short game, and learn every nook and cranny of this course that treated him so cruelly for years. «I’ve prepared for this Masters better than any other,» he says. And it shows. He feels it on the greens too: «I’ve been on this course so much these last few weeks that I’ve simply gotten a feel for the greens. I’ve ended up in places you never expect and had to figure things out.»

The Rory of 2011, the one who flew from the start and crashed out of the sky on Sunday with an 80, is a thing of the past. He’s a different player now. A superstar who, on the 13th, weaves his way through the trees and finds a birdie anyway. One who, on the 15th, repeats the same feat. Only Davis Riley, who finished last, 30 strokes behind Rory, has a worse fairway-hitting record: just 46.43%. «There are many ways to skin the cat,» he said with a smile. His goals define everything. «I want to keep hitting long, even if I don’t hit fairways. Just go far.»

Six strokes away, with a tee time almost at lunchtime, he plans to watch the Monte Carlo Masters 1000 semifinals—»they’re two good ones: Sinner-Zverev and Alcaraz-Vacherot,» he says without hesitation—and finish Zootopia 2 with his daughter Poppy before thinking about golf, about the tournament that already feels like a one-man show. But Rory already knows that Augusta has its own rules. «I don’t want to protect the lead. I want to keep playing freely, keep trying for birdies, stay true to myself and committed.» The course might roar. He prefers not to hear it: «I know I have the lead, so I don’t need to be constantly looking at the scoreboard. My world is my own.»

Jack Nicklaus told him this week not to make double bogeys. Fred Couples, meanwhile, pointed out that he couldn’t see him losing this tournament «ever.» McIlroy takes Nicklaus’s advice to heart: «Freddie’s advice is nice, but it doesn’t help, even though it’s great. Jack’s does.» The one person he needs to listen to is himself. That will be enough.