McIlroy’s strong finish claims third Wells Fargo win
Rory McIlroy, the only golfer to win the Wells Fargo Championship multiple times, can add “three-time Wells Fargo winner,” to his resume.
McIlroy, a four-time major champion, fired a 3-under 68 in the final round of the tournament Sunday to finish at 10under for the tournament, winning by one stroke over hard-charging Abraham Ancer, who shot a final-round 66. Thirdround leader Keith Mitchell faded to a tie for third with Viktor Hovland after carding a finalround 1-over-par 72 at Charlotte, North Carolina.
It was McIlroy’s first win on the PGA Tour since Aug. 25, 2019, and first Wells Fargo Championship win since 2015 when he dominated the field by seven strokes. He also won the tournament in 2010.
“It just feels awesome,” McIlroy said. “This is one of my favorite places in the world. It’s great to win again. It’s awesome.”
McIlroy entered Sunday’s final round trailing Mitchell by two strokes. The golfers were paired together in the final group. McIlroy didn’t make many mistakes down the stretch, and when he did, he found a way out of it.
TOUR CHAMPIONS
Alex Cejka won the Regions Tradition in only his third PGA Tour Champions start, beating defending champion Steve Stricker with a birdie on
the first hole of a playoff at Birmingham, Alabama.
A childhood refugee from communist Czechlosovokia (now the Czech Republic), the 50-year-old Cejka made a 14-foot birdie putt on No. 18 and Stricker missed a 9-footer
with a chance to extend the playoff at Greystone Golf & Country Club.
Cejka had turned a three-stroke deficit into a two-shot lead over the final nine holes for a 5under 67.
WALKER CUP
Austin Eckroat and
Pierceson Coody got the United States off to a fast start, and Cole Hammer and Stewart Hagestad finished off Great Britain & Ireland in the Walker Cup at Juno Beach.
Ricky Castillo won again and the Americans took five of the 10 afternoon singles matches and tied another at Seminole Golf Club for a 14-12 win.
EUROPEAN TOUR
Garrick Higgo matched Tiger Woods’ record to become joint quickest to three tournament wins since 1990 with victory at the Canary Islands Championship at Tenerife, Spain.
The 21-year-old South African had a hole-in-one on his way to a 7-under 64 that secured him his third European Tour title — and second in three weeks.
LPGA
Ariya Jutanugarn shot a 9-under-par 63 in the final round to win the LPGA Thailand by one stroke and become the first home winner of the tournament in 14 years.
Jutanugarn’s total of 22-under 266 edged out her fellow Thai Atthaya Thitikul, 18, who missed a four-foot birdie putt at the last to force a playoff.
KORN FERRY TOUR
Austin Smotherman won the Simmons Bank Open for the Snedeker Foundation for his first title on the tour, closing with a 3-under 69 for a three-stroke victory at College Grove, Tennessee.