McIlroy holds off field at PGA. Only 25, wins 4th major
As dusk falls, compelling PGA ends with major display of sportsmanship
LOUISVILLE Darkness had enveloped Valhalla Golf Club. A soft rain was falling. A bolt of lightning flashed over the clubhouse. The most dramatic men’s major championship of the year was finishing under the most bizarre cir- cumstances one could imagine: with a mad dash to the finish.
Rory McIlroy beat the field by one stroke — and total darkness by a couple of minutes — as he won his second major title in three weeks, with help from a fine act of kindness from the two men who were his closest pursuers: Phil Mickelson and Rickie Fowler.
They let McIlroy, who was playing right behind them, hurry
Ignited by an eagle from 7 feet on the par-5 10th hole and basically slamming the door shut on his competitors with a birdie from 10 feet on the 17th, the former Boy Wonder earned the fourth major win of his young career, three of them in his last nine played. On the heels of his tour de force win in the British Open, McIlroy became the first to win back-to-back majors since Padraig Harrington in 2008. And with his victory in the World Golf Championships last week, McIlroy has won his last three starts.
“Just incredible. I didn’t think in my wildest dreams I’d have a summer like this,” McIlroy said. “I think I showed a lot of guts out there to get this done.
With a final-round, 3-underpar 68, McIlroy finished at 16 under and beat Mickelson by one shot. Trying to win his sixth major to tie Lee Trevino and Nick Faldo for 12th all time, he closed with a 66 and nearly chipped in for eagle on the last hole that would have forced a playoff.
Fowler, who joined Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods as the only players in the modern era to finish in the top five in all four majors in a season, finished with a 68, tying Stenson (66) for third.
“Today wasn’t easy,” said McIlroy, who once fell three shots behind. “I didn’t get off to the best of starts. The guys came at me quickly. I had to bide my time and make something happen.”
That something came on the 10th when he hit a 3-wood from 284 yards less than perfect. He said the shot flew 30 feet lower and 15 yards left of where he wanted the ball to go. But it caught a slope and rolled out onto the green and close to the pin.
“It was lucky,” he said. “You need some luck in majors, and that was my lucky break. … The eagle was massive. I think the birdie on seven really settled me down. I started the round very tentatively. Sort of trying to get through the first few holes making pars while everyone else was attacking, so that wasn’t good. But the eagle on 10 just changed everything.”
And everything finally ended when McIlroy two-putted from 35 feet on the final hole in near darkness to win his second Wanamaker Trophy. Since breaking off his engagement with tennis star Caroline Wozniacki, he has won four tournaments in eight starts. And at 25 years, 3 months, 6 days, McIlroy became the third youngest to win four majors in the modern era, trailing Woods and Nicklaus. Now only the green jacket remains for McIlroy to become the sixth player to win the career Grand Slam.
“Obviously,” Fowler said, “Rory played great this week, and he’s been a deserving champion the last three tournaments. He’s playing quite good right now. Best player in the world, hands down. We’ll see if we can sneak one away from him at some point.”
“He’s on a roll,” Stenson said. “He is the best player in the world and playing phenomenal golf. So it’s take our hats off and give him the appreciation he deserves.”
While ducks took to the course after torrential rains dumped an inch of water in 45 minutes and forced stoppage of play for 1 hour, 50 minutes, birdies and eagles — and gut-saving pars — showed up when play resumed. On a course that might as well have been a sponge, five players at least shared the lead at some point.
McIlroy began his round with a one-shot lead but fell two shots back after bogeys on 3 and 6. A birdie on 7, however, was his first and put some pep in his step. He eagled the 10th and punched the air with a clenched fist after a birdie on the 13th from 9 feet gave him a share of the lead. The birdie on 17 gave him a two-shot cushion going into the last.
“I try and put all this talk aside every time it comes up, but Tiger and Jack are two of the most successful players of all time,” McIlroy said. “I’m on a nice track at the minute. I’ve still got a long way to go, but to be in their company at this age is very special.”