Prestige television exuded a Masters green tint on Thursday night and Friday morning.
Rory McIlroy, who you might have heard recently claimed the career grand slam with a historic victory at Augusta National, spent Thursday and Friday in what NBC calls the “car wash,” appearing on the Tonight and Today shows in some of his first national television appearances since winning the green jacket.
In what has become a semiannual rite of passage for most Masters winners, McIlroy arrived on NBC’s late-night and early-morning talk shows donning the green jacket, and spent a good portion of his interviews in both places talking about the most historic of his victories. He also appeared on CNBC as part of a partnership with the private equity firm TPG.
McIlroy’s appearances included a few highlights you might have seen circulating the internet on Friday morning, but rather than leave you searching for the best bits, we’ve done the hard work and collected the 5 biggest moments here…
1. Tiger Woods’ post-win message
In his appearance on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, McIlroy revealed he’d heard from Tiger Woods shortly after claiming his green jacket at Augusta National. McIlroy said Woods’ message was characteristically blunt, but conveyed the history and sincerity of the moment aptly.
“Tiger said, ‘Welcome to the club, kid,‘” McIlroy said. “You know, there’s only six people have ever achieved the grand slam in golf. Only four of us are living. So it’s really cool to be a part of.”
2. Surprise celebrity’s voicemail
Speaking of celeb messages, McIlroy shared one from the aftermath of his Masters victory that has yet to be answered.
“I know you heard from everyone in the world [after the win] — was there anyone out of the ordinary?” Fallon asked.
To which McIlroy replied: “I was sorta overwhelmed with the people who reached out from all walks of life, culture and entertainment. But the one that really got me was Sir Elton John. I haven’t been able to connect with him.”
As McIlroy explained, he received a congratulatory message from Sir Elton, but not a phone number to return the call.
“His assistant left me a voicemail and said Sir Elton would love to congratulate you in person, the only problem is, he doesn’t have a cell phone, so you might get a call from a number in Windsor, England from a landline,” McIlroy said with a chuckle. “I was like, sure. I just think it’s so cool, I mean, it’s Elton John. I didn’t even know that Elton John knew what golf was.”
3. Flashback chipping lesson
As McIlroy’s interview segment with Fallon concluded, the host reminded the golfer of his first appearance on an evening talk show, on a Northern Irish interview series called Kelly, when McIlroy was just nine years old.
In that segment, McIlroy showed Gerry Kelly, the host, his talent for chipping golf balls into a washing machine door. And on Thursday evening, that’s precisely what McIlroy and Fallon did from the Tonight Show set.
Imagine telling that 8-year-old that he’d be doing the same fun drill on tv 27 years later while wearing a green jacket pic.twitter.com/oQby59hx5t
— claire rogers (@kclairerogers) May 2, 2025
4. Rory’s unexpected Masters week ribbing
As McIlroy reflected on the week that was in Augusta with the Today show team on Friday morning, he shared a story from the middle of tournament week that hadn’t been heard before. According to McIlroy, his young daughter, Poppy, delivered an old-fashioned (and unintentional) ribbing after a class photo in the Masters daycare center.
“So they did this kid’s photo one day, and they all got these Augusta National T-shirts. On the back of them was a list of all the past winners up until 2024,” McIlroy said. “Poppy came up to me one day and said, ‘Dada, why is your name not on the back of the T-shirt?'”
McIlroy could only laugh.
“When I won I came back and said ‘Poppy, my name is going to be on the back of the T-shirt.'”
5. Champions Dinner hint
Today host and golf diehard Carson Daly was the first to ask McIlroy about his Champions Dinner menu plans. And as for early thoughts about his menu for next spring’s Masters Tuesday meal, McIlroy is not short on creativity.
“I’ve been into like wild game recently, so like venison, elk, stuff like that,” McIlroy said. “I don’t know if that might be in it. That sorta fueled this run, so maybe something like that.”
You can check out McIlroy’s full appearances on the Tonight and Today shows from this week in the videos below.
