ATLANTA — Heading into 2015 and then down Magnolia Lane, Rory McIlroy was clearly the alpha dog of professional golf.
The winner of the final two majors of 2014 and victorious in the Dubai Desert Classic in February, McIlroy was a dominant world No. 1 and the prohibitive favorite to win the Masters.
Then Jordan Spieth won four tournaments, including a Masters masterpiece and a nail-biter in the U.S. Open, the triumphs in the first two majors setting up a run at history on the Old Course in St Andrews, Scotland, in the British Open. He came up one shot short of a playoff.