After Rory McIlroy finally won his elusive first Masters green jacket, his friend Shane Lowry hinted he might be close to hanging things up for good. "This means everything to him," Lowry, 38, told Golf Channel.

“I think, for him, it’s been everything,” said Lowry of McIlroy’s quest to win the Masters Tournament and with it, become the sixth player to achieve the career grand slam, joining Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods.

Rory McIlroy has no doubt had a whirlwind week after winning the Masters. The plan he put forth in this champion’s press conference last Sunday was to fly home to Northern Ireland to celebrate securing the career Grand Slam with his parents.