Rory McIlroy made an excellent start to the defence of his Masters title as he shot a five-under-par 67 to hold a share of the first-round lead alongside Sam Burns at Augusta National.

So much has changed in 12 months as Rory McIlroy gets ready for the defence of his Masters title he famously won down Magnolia Lane to cement his legacy as one of the all-time greats in the game.

Tee-times for the 2026 Masters were released earlier today, and it doesn’t take too much scrolling to find the marquee groups that will have us on the edge of our sofas for the opening round of the first Major of the year.

Roganstown teenager Mark Cadden said it was dream come true as he claimed the Connolly Motor Group West of Ireland Men’s Amateur Open Championship at Co Sligo Golf Club following a thrilling one hole victory over Warrenpoint’s Ireland international Colm Campbell.

Leona Maguire had it all to do to catch overnight leader Lauren Coughlin in the final round of the 2026 Aramco Championship at Shadow Creek in Las Vegas and ultimately had to settle for a tie for second alongside American Nelly Korda.

Maria Jose Marin set a new championship record by two strokes with a 14-under 202 to win the 2026 Augusta National Women's Amateur. With this win, Marin becomes the first champion to represent Latin America in the history of the event as well as the first Colombian to win at Augusta National Golf Club.

In a week when Tiger Woods turned down the US Ryder Cup captaincy role for Adare Manor in 2027, European captain Luke Donald appointed Edoardo Molinari as his first vice captain when the biennial takes place at the Limerick venue from September 17-19, 2027.

This County Down family has already produced a European gold medal in athletics, and All-Ireland titles in GAA, while this week they dream of glory down Magnolia Lane as Beth Coulter attempts to win the Augusta National Women’s Amateur.

Tiger Woods last evening announced he will ‘step away for a period of time’ to seek treatment and focus on his health following his recent crash near his home on Jupiter Island in Florida.