WASHINGTON -- The banged-up Washington Capitals could be getting a couple of their most important players back in time for the start of the playoffs or at least sometime in the first round.

Goaltender Logan Thompson has resumed skating, and forward Aliaksei Protas is on track to get back on the ice this week, coach Spencer Carbery said Sunday before the home finale against Columbus.

Thompson has been out with what the team is calling an upper-body injury, after leaving a game on April 2 at Carolina following a shot from Sean Walker that knocked off his mask. Carbery said Thompson skated on his own but did not face shots, which is a step in the process of returning.

Protas got an inadvertent skate cut on the top of his left foot April 4 against Chicago and has been walking around in a boot with the aid of crutches.

"He'll be a little bit longer," Carbery said. "Hoping that he touches the ice at some point this week."

Washington is locked into the top spot in the Eastern Conference and visits the New York Islanders on Tuesday night and Pittsburgh on Thursday night to finish the regular season. The Capitals will begin the postseason at home either next Sunday or Monday, April 21, against the Montreal Canadiens or the Blue Jackets.

Who starts in net for that Game 1 remains a question. Charlie Lindgren has shouldered the load since Thompson was injured. He has an .866 save percentage since replacing Thompson against the Hurricanes, though much of that has been a result of mistakes and missed coverage in front of him.

"Right now just from a results standpoint, I want to let in less goals, 100 percent," Lindgren said last week. "I don't like letting in three goals every single game. I want to get that number down. ... Just trying to figure out ways to work on my game and better myself because as we know goaltending in the playoffs goes a long way, and I want to make sure I'm doing my job and doing the best I can to put the team in the best situation possible."

Thompson is having a career season, winning 31 of his 42 starts with a 2.49 goals-against average and a .910 save percentage. In late January, the 28-year-old signed a six-year, $35.1 million contract extension through the 2030-31 NHL season.

Protas is under contract through 2029 at a rate of $3.375 million annually. The 24-year-old has also shattered his career highs with 30 goals, 36 assists and 66 points, after putting up 55 points in his first 173 regular-season and playoff games in the league.

Carbery is trying to balance resting some older players versus getting the Capitals, who have lost six of their past nine games, ready for the postseason. Alex Ovechkin was a healthy scratch Saturday after getting honored Thursday night for breaking Wayne Gretzky's career goals record, and No. 1 defenseman John Carlson got the night off Sunday.

"We're just looking at it from an individual preparation standpoint," Carbery said. "John, a veteran player. [He has] played a lot this year. I think he's played every single game. We're playing a back-to-back. I feel like it's important for him to not play both and take today off."

The Original Six teams based in the United States have a rich history, combining for 27 Stanley Cup titles.

And now, they share an unwanted distinction.

Detroit, Boston, Chicago and the New York Rangers will all miss the playoffs in the same year for the first time in NHL history.

The Red Wings have won 11 league championships to trail Montreal's 23 and Toronto's 13 and the Canada-based franchises have earned spots in the playoffs that start Saturday.

Detroit was slowly improving under general manager Steve Yzerman until this season. The Hall of Fame player was hired from Tampa Bay in 2019 and the patience he asked for is running thin.

A year after losing a tiebreaker for the last spot in the Eastern Conference, the Red Wings took a step back this season and were eliminated from postseason contention Saturday.

The Blackhawks are the last-place team in the Central Division for the third straight season and will finish ahead of only San Jose in the NHL. Earlier this century, Chicago was a league power with three Cups from 2010 to 2015 to give the franchise four.

Though the Red Wings and Blackhawks were predicted to have another lackluster season, the Rangers and Bruins were expected to be playoff teams.

A season after winning the Presidents' Trophy with an NHL-high 114 points and reaching the Eastern Conference final, the Rangers were hoping to hoist the Cup for the first time in more than three decades and fifth time in franchise history. Peter Laviolette's second season as coach in New York didn't pan out, guiding a team that was hovering around .500 and out of contention during the last week of the regular season.

Boston started the season with high hopes and will finish it with the fewest points in the Eastern Conference, missing the playoffs for the first time since 2016. The rebuilding franchise traded captain Brad Marchand last month at the trade deadline, dealing the last remaining member of its sixth championship team in 2011.

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- The Minnesota Wild signed defenseman Zeev Buium to a three-year, entry-level contract on Sunday, adding their 2024 first-round draft pick to the roster right before the NHL playoffs.

The 19-year-old Buium just completed his sophomore season with 13 goals and 35 assists for Denver, which lost in the semifinals of the NCAA Frozen Four on Thursday. Buium was one of the three finalists for the Hobey Baker award that goes to the nation's top player.

The native of Laguna Niguel, California, was the country's highest-scoring defenseman and ranked second among all NCAA players in assists. He won a gold medal with Team USA at the world junior championships.

Buium was the 12th overall pick last year by the Wild, who control the first wild card spot in the Western Conference entering their final regular season game against Anaheim on Tuesday.

There's a chance he may even dress and skate with the team against the Ducks. Though nothing was announced on Sunday, Wild general manager Bill Guerin, in an interview on KFAN last week, said, with regard to Buium's status this season and postseason, that "he will play. ... These kids, they're different man. They're made for this stuff. They're ready."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

WINNIPEG, Manitoba -- The Winnipeg Jets secured the first Presidents' Trophy in franchise history Sunday night, when the East-leading Washington Capitals lost earlier in the day.

The Jets, atop the Western Conference most of the season, then went out and lost to the Edmonton Oilers 4-1 on Sunday night at home, but with the prize for the league's most regular-season points in tow, coach Scott Arniel rested several key players.

"It definitely felt great," Jets forward Nino Niederreiter said when asked how the team reacted when the news was announced inside Canada Life Centre during the loss. "Everyone wants to be on top at the end of the day. And obviously, it was a great feeling to hear the cheer."

The Jets, who will be the No. 1 overall seed in the postseason, are the first Canadian franchise to win the award since the Vancouver Canucks in 2011-12. The Canucks did not win the Stanley Cup that season, and in many cases, the trophy winner does not even make the Cup Final. Last season, the New York Rangers cruised to the Presidents' Trophy only to lose to the Florida Panthers in the Eastern Conference finals.

"It's nice. To be able to have that ability to have home-ice [advantage] throughout the whole playoffs, and hopefully we can go on a long run, and use that to our advantage," Jets defenseman Dylan DeMelo said. "It's not the trophy we're after, but it is a nice accomplishment. It's been a fantastic year, it really has."

The Jets, according to ESPN Research, are the eighth Canadian team to win the award that was first handed out in 1985-86. The Edmonton Oilers, in 1985-86 and 1986-87, were the first Canadian winners.

"It's really appreciated," Arniel said when asked about the fans giving the club a standing ovation for the award. "They've been great fans, and they've been real loud, and supporting us all the way, and believe me, it is felt."

For Edmonton, Corey Perry had a goal and an assist, Connor McDavid had two assists, and Connor Brown, Adam Henrique and Viktor Arvidsson also scored in the victory. The Jets sat star goaltender Connor Hellebuyck along with captain Adam Lowry and defensemen Josh Morrissey, Neal Pionk and Luke Schenn in the loss.

Winnipeg will end the regular season at home against the Anaheim Ducks on Wednesday night.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Inter Miami coach Javier Mascherano credited Lionel Messi for impacting the growth of Major League Soccer since signing with the club in 2023, but quickly added that more progress can be made.

"In the summer, Messi will have been here for two years, and I think he's changing how the world sees MLS in one way or another," Mascherano said after a 0-0 draw with Chicago Fire. "There's no doubt about that. In the end, we're talking about a player who's capable of achieving all of that, of giving maximum visibility to a league like this."

Messi's influence on the league could be seen on Sunday as he led the Herons into Soldier Field and helped make history at the iconic venue with an all-time attendance record for the Fire with 62,358 fans in attendance.

Though Inter Miami had previously played at Soldier Field against the Fire, Sunday marked Messi's first time playing in a match there.

"We saw it today, and it's one of the many examples of everything he generates. The people came to see him, that's the reality," said Mascherano.

It's not the first time Inter Miami helped another club break their attendance record. The New England Revolution and Sporting KC both had record-breaking numbers in 2024 in games against Messi. The game against the revolution was played at Gillette Stadium, home of the New England Patriots, while the match with SKC was held at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.

Other MLS clubs have also chosen to move their games against Inter Miami to larger venues to satisfy the demand for tickets, with the Columbus Crew, for example, moving their upcoming match against Inter Miami to Huntington Bank Field in Cleveland, Ohio.

Still, the Miami manager emphasized the league is responsible for maximizing the efforts of Messi on and off the field.

"Now, MLS has the responsibility to continue advancing," Mascherano said. "It's made progress, but it's necessary to continue supporting the fact that I'm here to continue developing soccer in this country. He's a unique, unrepeatable player. Everywhere he's been, he's marked a before and after."

The 0-0 result dropped Inter Miami to third place on the Eastern Conference, but the team remains just one point away from leaders Charlotte FC and having played one game less. The Herons struggled to generate chances against the Fire, managing just 10 shots and three on goal in comparison to the opponent's 16 overall shots and seven on goal.

Mascherano mentioned his team's busy schedule as a potential reason for the lack of goals, emphasizing the excess of games in the last two months. In addition to MLS play, Miami is in the semifinals of the Concacaf Champions Cup.

"We have to remember that, in our case, we've been playing every three or four days for almost two months, and the wear and tear is very high," Mascherano said. "And despite everything, the team continues to compete. There are days when the team performs better and other days when it doesn't, but in the end, the team competes."

Mascherano went on to applaud his team for maintaining a clean sheet and getting the hard-fought draw.

The team will now prepare to face the Columbus Crew on Saturday night, and begins a two-legged semifinal with the Vancouver Whitecaps in the Champions Cup on April 24.

Karenna Groff, a former MIT soccer player named the 2022 NCAA woman of the year, died Saturday along with six other people -- including members of her family -- in a plane crash in upstate New York.

The twin-engine Mitsubishi MU-2B went down shortly after noon in a muddy field in Copake, New York, near the Massachusetts line, killing everyone on board, according to authorities and a family member who spoke to The Associated Press.

Shortly before the crash, the pilot had radioed air traffic control at Columbia County Airport to say he had missed the initial approach and requested a new approach plan, officials with the National Transportation Safety Board said at a Sunday briefing. While preparing the new coordinates, air traffic controllers attempted to relay a low altitude alert three times with no response from the pilot and no distress call, officials said.

Investigators obtained video of the final seconds of the flight, which "appears to show that the aircraft was intact and crashed at a high rate of descent into the ground," NTSB official Todd Inman told reporters.

Among the victims were Groff; her father, Dr. Michael Groff, a neuroscientist; her mother, Dr. Joy Saini, a urogynecologist; her brother, Jared Groff, a 2022 graduate of Swarthmore College who worked as a paralegal; Alexia Couyutas Duarte, Jared Groff's partner who also graduated Swarthmore and planned to attend Harvard Law School this fall; and Karenna Groff's boyfriend, James Santoro, another recent MIT graduate, according to a family statement Sunday.

Santoro's father, John Santoro, told the AP that his son first met Karenna Groff as a freshman studying at MIT. Groff, who grew up in Weston, Massachusetts, was an All-American soccer player studying biomedical engineering. Santoro, a math major from New Jersey, played lacrosse for the school.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Groff co-founded openPPE, helping to create a new design of masks for essential workers. In 2023, she received the prestigious NCAA woman of the year award for the previous year for her on- and off-field accomplishments.

"Really, this recognition is a testament to my MIT women's soccer family and all of the guidance, support and friendship they have provided for me over the years," she said in an interview at the time.

After graduating, Santoro and Groff moved to Manhattan, where Groff enrolled in medical school at New York University and Santoro worked as an investment associate for Silver Point, a hedge fund based in Greenwich, Connecticut.

On Saturday morning, the family headed to Westchester County Airport in White Plains, a suburb of New York City, where they boarded Michael Groff's private plane. They were set to land at Columbia County Airport but crashed roughly 10 miles to the south. The plane was "compressed, buckled and embedded in the terrain" of a muddy agricultural field, Inman said.

The pilot was flying under instrument flight rules, rather than visual flight rules, but it was too soon to determine if reduced visibility from weather conditions was a factor, he said.

The plane had been sold a year ago and had an upgraded cockpit with newer technology that was certified to Federal Aviation Administration standards, according to the NTSB.

Investigators expect to be at the crash site for about a week, and a full accident report could take 12 to 24 months to complete, Inman said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Projected No. 1 WNBA draft pick Paige Bueckers is signing a three-year deal with the 3-on-3 league Unrivaled, sources told ESPN on Sunday.

Bueckers' first-year salary for the 10-week Unrivaled season will exceed what she would make in four years of her WNBA rookie contract, sources said. If Bueckers is the top pick in the draft, she is set to earn $78,831 in her first year, according to the WNBA's collective bargaining agreement.

Last year, Bueckers signed an NIL deal with Unrivaled, which gave her equity in the league. She didn't play in Unrivaled while finishing her college career with the UConn Huskies, winning her first national title in the NCAA tournament championship April 6.

Bueckers averaged 19.9 points, 4.9 assists and 4.4 rebounds while shooting 53.4% from the field, including 41.9% from 3-point range, in her last season at UConn. She can be a franchise-altering player for the Dallas Wings, who have the top pick in the draft.

After Unrivaled concluded its inaugural season in March, sources told ESPN that signing Bueckers, as well as making a push for Caitlin Clark and A'ja Wilson, were top priorities as the league looked to take its next step forward.

Founded in 2023 by WNBA players Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart, Unrivaled is coming off an inaugural season in which it exceeded $27 million in revenue, more than double what it projected to investors, sources said.

Instead of focusing on expansion through adding teams, the league wanted to build on what it felt made it so successful in Year 1: signing the best women's basketball players and providing them with premier resources and financial support.

Bueckers brings another star name to a league that has prided itself in tapping into the top WNBA talent. Her multiyear deal is part of the league's effort to build a sustainable offseason playing opportunity for WNBA players.

Former LSU receiver Kyren Lacy, who was found dead Saturday night in Houston, died in an apparent suicide in his car while being pursued by authorities, according to a Harris County (Texas) sheriff's report released Sunday.

According to Harris County authorities, police responded to a call from a female family member who said Lacy had discharged a firearm into the ground during a verbal argument late Saturday night. When they arrived on the scene, they learned that the suspect, Lacy, had fled in a vehicle.

Authorities say their pursuit of Lacy ended when he crashed. They say that when officers approached the vehicle to extract Lacy, he had died from what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Lacy, 24, was pronounced dead at the scene by emergency responders. He had been facing criminal charges stemming from a fatal car accident in Louisiana in December.

"We're saddened to learn of the tragic passing of former LSU football student-athlete Kyren Lacy," LSU said in a statement. "Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and loved ones, as well as his former teammates and coaches impacted by his passing."

In a social media post Sunday, Lacy's father, Kenny Lacy, urged parents to check on their children's mental health from an early age.

"Our lives have changed forever and this will never be ok, but God needed my baby more than he was needed here," Kenny Lacy wrote on Facebook. "This has to be the biggest pill our families have had to swallow but I know the love and compassion in our families will get us through."

Kyren Lacy was accused of causing a crash that killed a 78-year-old man Dec. 17 and then fleeing the scene without rendering aid or calling authorities. On Jan. 12, he turned himself in to authorities, was jailed and then released on $151,000 bail, according to police records.

Lafourche (Louisiana) Parish Sheriff's Office records indicated that Lacy was charged with negligent homicide, felony hit-and-run and reckless operation of a vehicle. A grand jury was to begin hearing evidence in the case Monday.

"It is with profound sorrow that we confirm the tragic passing of Kyren Lacy. First and foremost, we ask that the public and the media give his family the space and time they need to grieve this unimaginable loss in peace," Lacy's attorney, Matthew Ory, said in a statement to ESPN's Mark Schlabach.

Ory added that he was "very confident the evidence, after being fully collected and reviewed, would lead to a declination of charges" and that "we will be demanding a full and transparent review of how this investigation was conducted and why."

Lacy declared for the NFL draft Dec. 19, two days after the crash, and did not play in LSU's win over Baylor in the Texas Bowl. He participated in March at LSU's pro day and was ranked as high as the No. 6 receiver prospect in the draft by ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. in December. Lacy was not ranked among the top 10 available wide receivers in Kiper's most recent Big Board, which was published last month.

Lacy played three seasons at LSU after starting his career at Louisiana. Lacy had his best season last year when he caught 58 passes for 866 yards and a team-leading nine touchdowns.

Information from ESPN's Chris Low and Adam Schefter and The Associated Press was included in this report.

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Rory McIlroy's long, painful wait for the career Grand Slam is finally over.

And the greatest achievement of his career was as nerve-racking and dramatic as the near misses that came before it.

The 35-year-old from Northern Ireland overcame a shaky start -- and even more perilous finish -- in the final round of the 89th Masters at Augusta National Golf Club on Sunday to defeat Justin Rose in the first hole of a sudden-death playoff to win a green jacket and become only the sixth golfer to complete the career Grand Slam.

McIlroy joins Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods as the only golfers to capture the four major championships in the Masters era.

"This is my 17th time here, and I started to wonder if it would ever be my time," McIlroy said. "I think the last 10 years coming here with the burden of the Grand Slam on my shoulders and trying to achieve that, yeah, I'm sort of wondering what we're all going to talk about going into next year's Masters."

In the playoff on the par-4 18th, both players hit their tee shots in the fairway. Rose's approach from 187 yards nearly hit the hole on the fly, and his ball bounced 15 feet past. McIlroy's second shot was even better, landing on the slope above the hole with his ball rolling back 4 feet from the cup as the patrons surrounding the green chanted his name.

After taking several minutes to read the putt, Rose's birdie attempt failed to break and stayed right. With a second chance to capture his first green jacket after he missed a 5-footer on the 72nd hole, McIlroy didn't miss again.

McIlroy threw his putter in the air and put his head in his hands. He fell to his knees and wept before hugging his caddie, Harry Diamond. McIlroy found his wife, Erica, and daughter, Poppy, and was still crying as he made the long walk from the 18th green to the clubhouse as thousands of patrons cheered him on.

Later, as McIlroy walked to the practice green for the trophy presentation, he hugged his putting coach, former PGA Tour player Brad Faxon, and told him, "What a roller coaster."

"I would say it was 14 years in the making, from going out with a four-shot lead in 2011, feeling like I could have gotten it done there," McIlroy said. "Yeah, there was a lot of pent-up emotion that just came out on that 18th green. A moment like that makes all the years and all the close calls worth it."

McIlroy thanked his family and team while accepting the trophy just before he slipped on his green jacket.

"They've been on this journey with me the whole way through," McIlroy said. "They know the burden that I've carried to come here every year and try and try and try again."

Woods knows the pressure as well, and the five-time Masters winner congratulated McIlroy on social media.

"Welcome to the club @McIlroyRory," Woods posted to X. "Completing the grand slam at Augusta is something special. Your determination during this round, and this entire journey has shown through, and now you're a part of history. Proud of you!"

Welcome to the club @McIlroyRory. Completing the grand slam at Augusta is something special. Your determination during this round, and this entire journey has shown through, and now you're a part of history. Proud of you!

Tiger Woods (@TigerWoods) April 14, 2025

McIlroy did just enough in the final 18 holes to join that exclusive club, posting a 1-over 73 to finish 11 under. Rose, who also finished 11 under, chased him down with a 6-under 66 -- including a 20-foot birdie putt on his 72nd hole -- to force the first playoff at the Masters since 2017.

Rose also competed in that playoff, falling to Spain's Sergio Garcia on the first hole.

On Sunday, Rose was six strokes behind McIlroy through the 10th hole, but he had six birdies and two bogeys in the final eight holes, including the huge putt on No. 18, to erase the deficit.

"It's the kind of putt you dream about as a kid, and to have it and hole it, it was a special feeling," Rose said of the putt that ultimately forced the playoff. "And unfortunately, the playoff, they always end so quickly.

"You know, that's sudden death. You don't really get an opportunity. If you're not the guy to hit the great shot or hole the great putt, it's over. But not really anything I could have done more today."

McIlroy had a chance to capture a green jacket on the 72nd hole. His tee shot safely found the fairway, but his approach flared to the right and landed in a greenside bunker. He calmly chipped out to about 5 feet. His par putt slid past the hole on the low side, sending him into a playoff against Rose.

LIV Golf's Patrick Reed, the 2018 Masters champion, finished third at 9 under with a 3-under 69 on Sunday. World No. 1 golfer Scottie Scheffler, who was trying to win a third green jacket in four years, finished fourth at 8 under after posting a 69. Bryson DeChambeau (3-over 75) and Sungjae Im (69) tied for fifth at 7 under.

It was McIlroy's 11th attempt at finishing the career Grand Slam, most among those who have done it, and for a while Sunday, it seemed like he'd have to wait another year after he squandered a four-stroke lead in a thrilling second nine.

On the verge of collapsing at the Masters again, McIlroy delivered one of the most memorable shots of his career on the par-4 17th. Rose was already in the clubhouse as the co-leader at 11 under, so McIlroy needed to birdie one of the last two holes to avoid a sudden-death playoff.

After hitting a 248-yard drive down the right side of the fairway, McIlroy smacked an iron and urged his ball to "go, go, go!" as he followed it up the fairway. His ball bounced on the green and rolled 2 feet from the cup. He made the birdie to go to 12 under, one in front of Rose.

It seemed to be enough -- until McIlroy missed the short putt on the 18th.

It's McIlroy's fifth major championship victory and first in more than a decade. He also won the 2011 U.S. Open, 2012 and 2014 PGA Championship and 2014 Open Championship.

McIlroy made the turn at 1-under 35 and was the first golfer to reach 13 under. He added another birdie on the par-4 10th to maintain a four-stroke lead.

But McIlroy gave the golfers chasing him a prayer of coming back when he struggled at two of the holes at Augusta National's iconic Amen Corner. On the par-4 11th, McIlroy's approach nearly went into the pond in front of the green. His ball stopped on top of the bank. He chipped to 10 feet and missed the putt. A bogey dropped him to 13 under.

After making par on the par-3 12th, disaster struck on the par-5 13th. McIlroy took a conservative strategy after hitting a 300-yard drive down the fairway. Instead of going for the green, he laid up his approach to 86 yards. Then, he hit one of the worst wedge shots of his career. His ball sailed nowhere near his target, bounced twice on the bank and fell into a tributary of Rae's Creek.

"I wanted to cry for him," said DeChambeau, who was playing with McIlroy. "I mean, as a professional, you just know to hit it in the middle of the green. I can't believe he went for it or must have just flared it. But I've hit bad shots in my career, too, and it happens.

"When you're trying to win a major championship, especially out here, Sunday of Augusta, the Masters, you have to just do it and get the job done and do it right. There were times where it looked like he had full control and at times where it's like, 'What's going on?'"

After a one-stroke penalty, McIlroy chipped to 11 feet. He missed the putt and carded a double-bogey 7. His lead over Rose was down to one.

Then, on the par-4 14th, McIlroy pushed his tee shot into the trees on the right, and his approach was short of the green. He chipped to about 10 feet. His par putt seemed to be breaking into the hole but stopped about an inch from the cup. Another bogey dropped him to 10 under and in a three-way tie with Rose and Ludvig Åberg.

McIlroy took a two-stroke lead over DeChambeau into the final round, but it was gone after he made a double-bogey on the first hole.

McIlroy is the first Masters champion to card four double-bogeys in a tournament (he had two in the first round).

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- In the end, when Rory McIlroy had walked up the final fairway not once but twice with a chance to win the Masters, fending off multiple players and overcoming his mistakes during an emotional 19 holes of golf, when he had dropped to his knees and let his emotions overtake him, he stood near the Augusta National clubhouse and paused.

He had finally conquered his Mount Everest. Now, there was only one thing to do. Red-faced and teary-eyed, he turned to his friends and uttered the words he had been hoping to say for over a decade:

"I got to go get a green jacket."

On Sunday, with the pressure of an 11-year major drought on his shoulders, Augusta's roars were prepared to serenade McIlroy during his breakthrough. But as he made his way through what he called a roller-coaster round of golf, plenty of whispers peppered the grounds, too.

"Oh my God," a patron said after McIlroy made double bogey on the first hole.

"It's the nerves," said another, as McIlroy handed Bryson DeChambeau the lead on the second.

One patron covered his face with his hands: "He's doing it again."

When McIlroy double-bogeyed the 13th hole after donating his ball to Rae's Creek, added another bogey on 14 and countered his birdie on 17 with a bogey at the last hole, that's what it looked like: another opportunity squandered on the biggest stage yet. Even McIlroy thought it.

"There were points on the back nine today when I thought, 'Have I let it slip again?'" McIlroy said. "My battle today was with myself. It wasn't with anyone else."

This was a feat over a decade in the making. The close calls and heartbreaks may have occurred in the past, but the scar tissue lingered in the space between victory and defeat. It was fitting, then, that this is how it happened, that a six-shot lead with eight holes to play was not enough, that every shot McIlroy hit felt like it carried a seismic gravity that contained the narrative power to place him once again on the losing side or that in the end, it was here, after a playoff, where he would find relief.

"It's the best day of my golfing life," McIlroy said. "I've literally made my dreams come true."

A win at St. Andrews in 2022 would have been poetic. Victory in the U.S. Open at the Los Angeles Country Club in 2023 would have been a tangible testament to the evolution of his game. Triumph at Pinehurst last year could have been an epic way to end his major drought.

Yet none of those wins would have answered the question that remained: Could McIlroy win at Augusta?

For McIlroy, this tournament's meaning is personal because it has marked his golfing journey. Memories of watching the tournament when he was just 7 years old with his father flooded into his head when he spoke Tuesday and again Sunday night.

"I think all that sort of comes back to me," McIlroy said. "Remembering why I fell in love with the game."

Two years after turning professional in 2007, McIlroy debuted at the 2009 Masters and finished tied for 20th. He has played in every one since -- 17 in total -- and endured close calls and no-shows. Over nearly two decades, the golf world and its marquee tournament have changed; so has McIlroy.

The overgrown and dark curly hair that framed his face when he was 17 years old, driving down Magnolia Lane, is gone. In its place, McIlroy has a tighter cut. He wears the passage of time on his graying temples, an indication of how long he has been around the sport and a reminder of how many times he has had a chance to do what he did Sunday by finally reaching the sport's apogee: a career Grand Slam.

"I think I've carried that burden since August 2014," McIlroy said. "It's very difficult. Today was difficult."

McIlroy talked at length about the nerves he felt throughout Sunday. He spoke about pressure, both self-imposed and what he has felt when greats such as Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods have predicted that McIlroy would win the Masters, speaking about it as if it was a matter of fact.

Yet, what Sunday's performance showed again in a frenzied snapshot was that McIlroy has never been Nicklaus or Woods. It's not that McIlroy's game isn't as good. But his journey has looked a lot like how this week transpired with its four double bogeys and enigmatic swings: The ups and the downs are as much a part of the fabric of his fable as anything.

"You have to be an eternal optimist," McIlroy said. "I truly believe I'm a better player now than I was 10 years ago."

His creed of patience, belief and resilience in the face of repeated disappointment reached its nadir at Pinehurst last year. The defeat left the immediate future of McIlroy's career unsettled and in need of what seemed like a hard reset. McIlroy obliged, taking time off and walking around New York City by himself, eventually hitting balls into a simulator as he worked on his swing.

A technical tweak, a mental recharge and a new year brought an updated version of McIlroy. He won at Pebble Beach then again at the Players Championship, acknowledging how Scottie Scheffler's historic year had motivated him and showcasing a striking balance of control and aggression. It was as if a superhero's powers became evident for the first time.

And yet the question remained, now more than ever: Could he do it at the Masters? On Sunday, he delivered the long-awaited proof that he could. It also allowed McIlroy to show how much he wanted it.

"This is my 17th time here, and I [had] started to wonder if it would ever be my time," McIlroy said. "What came out of me on the last green there in the playoff was at least 11 years, if not 14 years, of pent-up emotion.

"I got the job done."

In a video posted by the PGA Tour earlier Sunday, McIlroy is seen being asked about his jacket size. He is a 38 or 40 short, he says, depending on how much he is eating each week.

"I like it a little more European style," McIlroy says in the video. "A little more fitted, a little more tapered and pinched in."

On Sunday, Scheffler helped McIlroy slip into the green jacket. The size was 38 regular, slightly big and not tailored to McIlroy's preferred measurements just yet. But as his shoulders hugged the wool fabric, McIlroy shut his eyes, raised his hands and tilted his head to the sky.

The fit didn't need to be perfect; everything else already was.