Golf Channel analyst Brandel Chamblee on Rory McIlroy: 'This Masters is his to win or lose'

Rory McIlroy can forget about flying under the radar entering the Masters Tournament next week. 

Golf Channel analyst Brandel Chamblee said during a teleconference on Tuesday that the outcome of the 89^th Masters is in McIlroy’s hands. 

“This Masters is his to win or lose,” Chamblee declared about the circumstances entering the tournament April 10-13 at the Augusta National Golf Club. “From a technical and mental standpoint, this is Rory’s. There has never been a better week for him to win the Masters.” 

Chamblee based his bold prediction on two factors: McIlroy, ranked No. 2 in the world, is playing at a high level. He won The Players Championship in a three-hole playoff over J.J. Spaun after rallying from four shots back at the start of the final round, and won the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro Am by two shots with weekend rounds of 65-66. 

McIlroy has tied for 17^th or better in all five PGA Tour starts this season, with three top-five finishes, and tied for fourth in a DP World Tour stop at Dubai. McIlroy made a run at Texas Children’s Houston Open winner Mi Woo Lee on March 30 before falling into a tie for fifth. 

McIlroy's main rivals 'off their game'

At the same time, his chief rivals are battling a bit.  

World No. 1-ranked Scottie Scheffler, the defending Masters champion, got a late start to the season after a hand injury and has failed to win a tournament this season. Scheffler enters the Masters without a victory for the first time in three years but he has finished among the top-25 in all six starts this season and tied for second at Houston, one shot behind Lee. 

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