Who will put Rory McIlroy's green jacket on if he retains The Masters?

If Rory McIlroy successfully retains The Masters after his stunning start in the opening two rounds, who will hand him his green jacket?

The Masters is well known for a number of historic and iconic traditions, many of which are why the annual golf competition has become so popular.

Among one of the most well-known is the tradition that sees the winner of The Masters receive the famous green jacket from the previous year’s champion, often creating iconic moments between the best players in the world.

Last year, 2024 champion Scottie Scheffler couldn't stop smiling as was given the honour of being the first man to put the green jacket over McIlroy as he ended his 14 year wait for The Masters trophy, securing a career Grand Slam in the process.

But with McIlroy dominating once again in 2026, what will happen to this tradition if the Northern Irishman retains The Masters?

Until now, The Masters, which began way back in 1934, only three players have ever won in back to back years, Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods.

On the first of those occasions, Nicklaus himself was handed the honour of presenting , following the suggestion from Masters co-founder Bobby Jones.

However, since Faldo became the second player to achieve the feat in 1990, the Augusta National chairman has instead taken on this role, with Hord Hardin, who was chairman between 1980 and 1991, handing Faldo his second green jacket.

Therefore, when Woods won his second Masters 12 years later, it was Hootie Johnson, the fifth Augusta National chairman , who served between 1998 and 2006, who handed him the green jacket.

This means that should McIlroy win The Masters again this year, we can expect Fred Ridley to be the man passing over the green jacket to the Northern Irish superstar.

Augusta National chairman Hootie Johnson put the green jacket over Woods in 2002. (Image: ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP via Getty Images)

In anticipation of McIlroy potentially winning again this year, many fans have suggested that the rule should be changed to allow a fellow Masters legend to have the honour of passing over the green jacket.

With Woods currently taking some time away from golf to focus on his health, fans would no doubt rather see either Faldo or Nicklaus take Ridley's place as the man to bestow McIlroy with the jacket should he win again on Sunday.

Of course, in order for this to even be considered McIlroy needs to go on and actually win The Masters this year, something that can never be certain no matter how impressive his lead may be.

After shooting 67, five under par, in his opening round as defending champion, the Northern Irishman went even further in his second round with a score of 65, seven under par.

That means that heading into Saturday, he boasts a scorecard of -12, six shots ahead of Sam Burns and Patrick Reed, representing a historic record lead for the halfway stage of The Masters.