Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Pluck of the Irish: McIlroy prevails
Gritty star repels Furyk for 1st victory in year
PONTE VEDRA BEACH — Rory McIlroy did not need the luck of the Irish to walk away a winner at The Players Championship.
On a challenging Sunday at TPC Sawgrass, McIlroy relied on grit, determination and the lessons learned from recent disappointments to pick up his first victory in a year and his biggest win in much, much longer.
The 29-year-old from Northern Ireland shook off a shaky start and rode a strong finish to a 2-under-par 70 to end the week at 16-under-par 272 and hold off resurgent 48-year-old Jim Furyk by a shot.
McIlroy’s 15th win on the PGA Tour also silenced his critics following several lost opportunities and lackluster finishes to open the 2019 season. During the final four holes Sunday, he followed back-to-back birdies with two stressfree pars on the par-3 17th hole island green and the daunting par-4 18th hole.
“It means a lot,” McIlroy said. “I needed to show a lot of character out there. I think all the experiences I’ve had over the last few weeks in terms of trying to win and not getting over the line definitely helped me today.
“Maybe if I hadn’t have had those experiences, I wouldn’t be sitting up here with this trophy, so I’m thankful and grateful for those experiences I’ve had this year.”
On an overcast, blustery St. Patrick’s Day at TPC Sawgrass, there could not have been a more popular winner than McIlroy.
The massive crowds along the final three-hole stretch — where this tournament so often is won or lost — were decked out in green and enjoying a partylike atmosphere. Some fans wore outfits and hats covered in four-leaf clover patterns.
By the time McIlroy cleaned up his par on the 18th hole, chants of “Rory, Rory, Rory,” filled the air.
Wearing a green shirt underneath an outer layer that protected him from temperatures in the 50s, gusting winds and intermittent rains, McIlroy was in St. Patrick’s Day spirit himself. On March 17 a year ago, he moved into contention Saturday at Bay Hill en route to winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational. “It’s not a bad weekend for me,” McIlroy said, before lifting his shirt. “I’ve got a bit of green on.”
He would be walking away Sunday with plenty of green, too. McIlroy picked up a $2.25 million winner’s check for his efforts.
McIlroy also joined some very elite company following his latest win.
Only Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods captured 15 wins and four majors before the age of 30. Nicklaus, Woods and Lee Trevino were the only golfers to win the Players, U.S. Open, British Open and PGA Championship until McIlroy joined them Sunday.
Besides making history, McIlroy won on a golf course where he missed the cut during his first two appearances, skipped the 2011 event and missed the cut again in 2012.
“Sawgrass and I didn’t have the greatest relationship starting off,” McIlroy quipped Sunday.
But the tournament’s move from May back to March better suited McIlroy’s game and reignited the Sunday drama for TPC Sawgrass, home to runaway winners Jason Day, Si Woo Kim and Webb Simpson during the past three years.
McIlroy’s first win in 366 days ago came at the expense of a host of players hoping to win the PGA Tour’s showcase event.
None would have been as celebrated as Furyk, one of eight players to have at least a share of the lead during the final round. The longtime resident of Ponte Vedra Beach was the last person to get into the 144-player field and nearly the last man standing on Sunday during his bid to become the event’s oldest winner.
Furyk’s 5-under-par 67 ended with a kick-in birdie on the 72nd hole and gave him the clubhouse over Eddie Pepperell and Jhonattan Vegas, who each carded 66s for the day’s low round.
“A shot here, a shot there maybe could have been a little different,” said Furyk, seeking his first win since 2015. “Ultimately left it all out there. I’ll be a confidence boost going forward. Haven’t been in that position in awhile.”
Meanwhile, Spain’s Jon Rahm, a 54-hole leader for the first time on the PGA Tour, will have to regroup after a final-round collapse. He showed nerves early and a bit of frustration late on his way to a 4-over 76.
Rahm never found a rhythm or enough fairways — he hit just 6 of 14 Sunday — during a difficult day that began with three bogeys on the first four holes.
Rahm would rally but never could summon the kind of golf he played on Saturday when he stormed to a 64 and a one-shot lead.
At day’s end, the temperamental 24-year-old was pleased he kept his emotions in check as his round came unraveled during some difficult moments. This included shots into the water on the 11th and 17th holes and pars on the eminently birdie-able 12th and 16th holes.
“It’s golf,” he said. “At least I’m proud of how I handled myself. The old Jon would have lost it.
“It still stings not to have a better chance at the end.”
Like Rahm, McIlroy had to bounce back from some early miscues, primarily a double-bogey 6 on the par-4 fourth hole. Unlike Rahm, McIlroy ultimately was undeterred.
Leading by a shot and positioned to close out the tournament, McIlroy then left nothing to chance on the final two holes.
“Kept telling myself on the way to the 17th tee, just make three more good swings,” McIlroy said. “That’s all you need to do, make a good swing in here, two good swings at the last, and this thing is yours.”
Three swings — and four putts —- later, The Players Championship was in hand. McIlroy hopes his first win in 12 months is a sign of things to come.
“It’s a massive win,” he said. “It’s a tournament that I’ve never won before on a golf course that I’ve had mixed results on, so I’m going to take even more from that. And I had to grind it out down the stretch, as well, which I’ll take a lot from.”