Rory McIlroy has revealed the role that Greg Norman played in the recovery from his Masters meltdown.

The Northern Irishman capitulated while leading during his final round last year, which handed victory to Charl Schwartzel.

McIlroy said that Norman, who suffered a similar fate at Augusta in 1996, helped him to overcome the heartache of missing out on the green jacket.

"He reached out to me after Augusta last year which was a really nice thing to do," said the 22-year-old. "He gave me some advice which I thought were really valuable. I took it into practice and it has definitely worked for me.

"He told me about creating this little bubble around myself in the week of the tournament. You don't read magazines, or newspapers and you don't watch TV.

"You just try and separate yourself from everything and focus on the task in hand, which is the golf."

McIlroy will return to Augusta next week looking to win the second major championship of his career.