Ponte Vedera Beach, Florida – It turns out that Rory McIlroy only needs three good volatility to win the player title in the playoffs at JJ Spaun on Monday.
McIlroy blasted his opening tee and hit a pitching wedge on a 16-16 five-card before finding the island green on par 17, effectively giving him a second title on golf in the cold wind of TPC Sawgrass.
Spaun lay on his 8 iron until he heard the audience’s groan behind the 17th green. His ball cut into the wind, drove through the green into the water, causing the triple to burn his hope.
“It’s a great shot…if it’s the right distance, it’s perfect,” he said. “I can’t believe it’s been too long. It’s just that my gusts are not my luck.”
McIlroy became the eighth winner of the player title and also won the championship in 2019. This is the first time in his career that he has won twice to the Masters. He won the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am last month.
For 10 years, the player’s first three holes playoffs were caused by a four-hour rain delay on Sunday. McIlroy had to make a 4-foot par putter on the 72nd hole. Spaun’s victory had a 30-foot birdie putt, just an inch.
McIlroy was disappointed and lost the three-shot lead, saying: “Do you do five good swings tomorrow morning and get it done.”
336-code drive on the 16th. Inclined wedge to the 35-foot interior. No. 9 iron found in dry land. That’s all he needed to beat Spaun and get a $4.5 million bonus from his $25 million wallet.
“These three fluctuations are basically what determines the championship,” McIlroy said. “I think he had a great week. To end it this way, it’s hard for him to see.”
It is reminiscent of the 2008 playoffs between Sergio Garcia and Paul Goydos, which was used in a sudden death on the 17th. Garcia hit the green. Goydos is short and enters the water, and there is no more lonely walk than the lonely area that knows it has ended.
McIlroy now has 39 wins worldwide, and the Masters one month away has a lot of momentum on his side. A green jacket is a professional grand slam that makes McIlroy’s most unique club with the golf course. He has not won a major since 2014.
Player championships are allegedly the next best thing for the Major, McIlroy managed the sawgrass despite missing more than half of the fairways this week.
“I feel like I’m a better player now than ever and it’s great to see the fruits of my workers pay off,” McIlroy said.
Spaun’s runner-up won $2,725,000 and ranked No. 25 in the world, high enough that he earned a spot in the Masters.
