President Trump offered a hearty congratulations to Rory McIlroy on Sunday after the Irish golfer defended his title and made consecutive wins at the 2026 Masters Tournament at Augusta National.

McIlroy became the fourth player in history to win consecutive green jackets, joining golf immortals Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods.

Trump praised the two-time defending champion for maintaining composure under intense pressure during the final round, which featured some spectacular shots around Amen Corner and quite a dramatic finish.

Trump wrote on his Truth social media platform, “Congratulations to Rory McIlroy on another great championship, The Masters! He performed tremendously well under extreme pressure, something very few people would even think possible.”

“With each year, Rory becomes more and more of a legend!”

Highlighting the exceptional quality of today’s professional golfers, the President said he looks forward to seeing McIlroy compete at Doral in two weeks for the PGA Tour Cadillac Championship.

Congratulations, Rory McIlroy! 🏆 https://t.co/HeGiIJkI0x pic.twitter.com/YD6wjkQXTq

– White House (@whitehouse) 12 April 2026

Trump praises Rory McIlroy’s historic comeback win at Augusta

McIlroy finished with a 71 in the final round and won by one shot at 12-under par, giving him a dominant week leading after every round.

Still, it was not without drama. Rory saw his 6-stroke lead after his record-setting two-round pace completely evaporated on Saturday. And he had to hold off a hard-charging Scottie Scheffler, who drove his birdie putt on 17 about a half-inch to the right, which might have forced a playoff.

McIlroy’s repeat victory comes a year after completing the career Grand Slam with his first Masters title.

The president also posted a photo of Rory and his father out for a round of golf at the Trump International Golf Club in Florida.

Trump’s message is another sign that McIlroy is getting international attention for his incredible success. The golf phenom will look to continue his quest for a true calendar-year Grand Slam at the 2026 PGA Championship, which begins on May 14.

No golfer has won the modern golf Grand Slam (all four professional majors) in one calendar year. In 1930, amateur legend Bobby Jones achieved what is universally recognized as golf’s only true calendar-year Grand Slam. He won four major championships of his era.

In 2000, Woods won the US Open, The Open Championship and the PGA Championship (three majors in one year). He then won the 2001 Masters and held all four major titles simultaneously in two calendar years.

But this is not the technical definition of a Grand Slam, and it famously became known as the “Tiger Slam”.

Rusty Weis is a lifelong fan of the Los Angeles Dodgers, Dallas Cowboys and Xavier Musketeers. He has been writing professionally… More about Rusty Weiss

The Brooklyn Nets will be shorthanded for the second consecutive game when they travel to face the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday. The Nets ruled Michael Porter Jr. (right ankle sprain), Deron Sharp (left thumb sprain) and Nolan Traore (rest) out for the matchup. Ziare Williams (illness) is questionable.

The Nets recently shut down breakout rookie Igor Demin for the season due to a plantar fascia injury. The lengthy injury report comes after Sharp and Williams missed Tuesday’s 138-100 loss to the Detroit Pistons. Brooklyn benched veteran Terrence Mann during the game, playing recent two-way signing Chanie Johnson and trade acquisition Josh Minot in extended minutes.

These rotation changes were followed by consecutive wins over the Pistons and Memphis Grizzlies, causing the Nets to lose significant ground in the NBA’s tank race.

Nets rule out several starters for Hawks matchup after back-to-back wins

Brooklyn was tied with the Indiana Pacers for second place in the draft lottery standings and within striking distance of the first-place Sacramento Kings last week. However, the Nets rode a veteran-heavy rotation to take on the Pistons on Saturday. They then played most of their rotation against the Grizzlies, which were without their eight highest-paid players, and led the way to a win on Monday.

The pair of wins dropped Brooklyn to fourth place in the lottery standings. Jordi Fernandez’s team has one more win than the second- and third-place Sacramento Kings and Washington Wizards, respectively, and two more wins than the first-place Pacers.

Despite their recent wins, the Nets control their own destiny in the draft lottery race. Brooklyn’s remaining schedule includes two matchups with the Kings, as well as meetings with the Pacers and Wizards.

A loss in those games would allow the Nets to climb into the top spot in the odds for May’s draft lottery.

The Golden State Warriors have been dealing with some injuries over the past few weeks, as Stephen Curry is still out with a knee injury. Another player sidelined was Kristaps Porzingis, who has been battling his illness for most of the season. Luckily for the Warriors, he was able to match that in their latest game against the Oklahoma City Thunder and finished with 9 points, five rebounds and five assists.

According to ESPN’s Anthony Slater, the Warriors want to be cautious about how much they extend Porzingis, and they have a plan for the team’s upcoming back-to-back.

“The Warriors’ current plan is to rest Kristaps Porzingis on Monday night in Utah and play him at home against the Bulls on Tuesday. He clocked up 23 minutes tonight and told Kerr after the game he felt fine,” Slater wrote on Twitter.

Steve Kerr was impressed with what he saw from Porzingis against the Thunder.

“I thought he looked like a guy who hasn’t played with any rhythm at all,” Kerr said cheekily after the game.

“But I thought he looked good physically. It’s a really encouraging night for him to play 23 minutes. I talked to him after the game, said he felt good. And it was really fun to watch him. You can see what kind of weapon he is, the shape he gives us. Obviously, we are.” [still] Figuring out the combinations, what kind of activities we want to run. With him and for him. It’s going to take some time, but it’s really encouraging to see him there.”

Porzingis said after the game that he was optimistic he would stay healthy moving forward.

“Honestly, I’m confident I’ll stay healthy,” Porzingis said. “This is what I really feel. Not to sell anything because I know I’ve been in and out again and again. But this time I really feel that way.”

Porzingis being healthy will be important for the Warriors this season as they try to make the playoffs.

The Brooklyn Nets will have Michael Porter Jr. and Igor Demin available for the first time in a back-to-back in more than two months on Friday. Neither Porter nor Demin appeared on Brooklyn’s injury report ahead of Friday’s matchup with the Oklahoma City Thunder. Both played during Thursday’s 112-84 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Nets have carefully managed the workloads of Porter and Demin this season. No one has come forward since the beginning of December.

Porter has suffered numerous back injuries throughout his career and suffered a “minor” MCL sprain earlier this season. Meanwhile, Damien missed most of the offseason due to a torn plantar fascia.

Michael Porter Jr. and Igor Demin available for back-to-back for first time in several months

Porter and Demin’s light workloads on Thursday after extended layoffs during the All-Star break likely played a role in their availability on Friday. The former played only 20 minutes, while Demin played 26 minutes during a wire-to-wire blowout loss in Cleveland.

Brooklyn will face an Oklahoma City team that is without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (abdominal strain), Jalen Williams (right hamstring strain) and Ajay Mitchell (abdominal strain/left ankle sprain).

The Nets will be without Nick Claxton, who is out after spraining his right ankle during practice on Wednesday. Ziare Williams will also be unable to participate in the game due to personal reasons.

After Thursday’s loss, the Nets are tied with the Washington Wizards for fourth place in the draft lottery standings. They are tied in the win column and twice behind the Indiana Pacers and New Orleans Pelicans in the loss column, who are in second place.