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golf as a teenager when he lived for a while in Hawaii. He remains tight-lipped concerning his golf game but rumour has it that he is somewhere around the 17 handicap mark.
    The word is that he is desperately trying to get that mark down and has been criticised in some quarters for playing too much golf. It is not always possible but, weather permitting, he tries to get in one round of golf a week.
    In fact, President Obama played his 200th round of golf on October 12th 2014 when he got in a Sunday morning game at Fort Belvoir Golf Club in Alexandria, Virginia. But he has some rounds to go before getting anywhere near two former ‘Commander-in-Chiefs’.
    President Woodrow Wilson is documented as having played 1,600 rounds of golf and Dwight Eisenhower played around half that – 800. Eisenhower was such a fanatical golfer that he was a member of Augusta National.
    Fittingly, after Washington, Rory’s next golfing port of call a fortnight later was 2604 Washington Road in Atlanta, Georgia, and a drive up through the splendour of Magnolia Drive to Augusta National. It was all systems go for the US Masters.
    But as Rory prepared to be driven up there for the 2012 event, there is little doubt that his heart would be pumping fast. He would be a bundle of nerves as he recalled memories from an unbelievable, unforgettable and ultimately forgettable tournament in 2011.
    Almost exactly a year before, as Rory was driven through there, he was leaving with his tail between his legs after one of the most infamous collapses in US Master’s history. The whole episode gave rise to a well-known euphemism: ‘Rory’s Masters Meltdown’.

Chapter 3
Augusta – A Sobering Return
    W hen Rory McIlroy returned to the scene of his infamous collapse at Augusta the previous year – now euphemistically known as ‘Rory’s Masters Meltdown’ – he was quite engaging, relaxed and full of fun at the pre-Masters press conference.
    The nightmarish memories of squandering a four shot lead and shooting 80, which included a triple bogey at the 10 th , seemed to have been put firmly in the past. He also revealed that earlier, he had ventured out on the course to take a look at that 10 th hole.
    Rory revisited the exact location where his ball came to rest between cabins in 2011. His drive ricocheted from a tree branch and came to rest in woods between cabins. In living memory, no golfer had ever ended up in there before. An incredulous McIlroy said: ‘I can’t believe [now] how far off the tee the cabins are. They must be only 50 yards away.’
    Rory also revealed that he had received a very generous, heart warming and inspiring phone call from Greg Norman. The Australian suffered a fate similar to Rory when he lost a huge final round lead to Nick Faldo.
    Having not played competitively since the Cadillac event almost three weeks before, the comments about his lengthy breaks were doing the rounds again from fellow pros. One player to offer his opinion on the matter was none other than Lee Westwood.
    When asked what he thought about Rory going into the Masters after a three week break, he said: ‘I’d much rather be going into the Masters having not played for three days competitively than for three weeks.’
    Granted it is an unusually long period for a golfer to take off before a major. Using the British Open as an example, most professionals will play the Scottish Open or a US Tour event the week before, or even practise a few rounds on a links in the UK or Ireland.
    McIlroy countered this argument by saying that if you look at his record between breaks then you will see a pattern emerge. Before the break he was playing for many weeks and after returning, he would be a far fresher player and would get better by the round.
    Just as the session was about to end, his phone rang out its ring tone. Rory quickly silenced it and said, ‘Oops, no phone calls [mobile phones] at Augusta!’