After winning the Wells Fargo Championship at Quail Hollow Golf & Country Club for the fourth time in his career, Rory McIlroy has won his second straight PGA Tour title.
Two weeks after he and Shane Lowry won the Zurich Classic, Rory McIlroy has won the Wells Fargo Championship for the fourth time in his career.
One shot behind leader Xander Schauffele going into the final round at Quail Hollow, McIlroy proved on Sunday why he is a four-time champion around the Florida course. In the last round, the Northern Irishman shot an incredible six-under-par 65 to defeat Schauffele by seven shots.
The 35-year-old got off to the ideal start in his last round, rolling in for a birdie after making a flawless approach into the first green to guarantee he moved up to the top of the Wells Fargo leaderboard alongside Schauffele.
But after two pars and a frustrating bogey at the par-three fourth, he was soon back to one behind. Schauffele, however, re-shared the lead at the sixth hole after making a bogey of his own with a three-putt. The yo-yo at the top persisted. However, the American made the ideal reaction, rolling in a magnificent eagle putt at the par-five seventh, while McIlroy made par, putting him two back.
However, McIlroy made up ground on the two-shot deficit in just three holes. On the eighth and ninth holes, the Northern Irishman made back-to-back birdies, starting a scorching run. He then made good on this after finding the green in two at the par-five tenth hole.
The world number two stepped up and rolled it in to tie the score at Schauffele’s birdie with 33 feet remaining for eagle. But while McIlroy was just getting started, his opponent was starting to fall from the top. Over his next two holes, the European made two pars and two birdies, which proved to be too much for Schauffele.
The American’s hopes were nearly dashed by bogeys at the 12th and 13th holes, as the putter remained unforgiving throughout the back nine. Within an hour, McIlroy had gone from being two behind to five ahead, which gave him the confidence to easily navigate the infamously difficult ‘Green Mile’ finish at Quail Hollow.
A hole before the well-known finish, McIlroy’s final round occurred, and what a moment it was. At the par-five 15th hole, the Northern Irishman made a great play after finding the front bunker with his second shot. He hollowed out from the sand to move six ahead of Schauffele, who made birdie.
Even though he found the water and double-bogeyed the 18th hole, McIlroy finished with two pars at 16 and 17 to take a comfortable five-shot victory. Only a few days had passed since McIlroy’s peers decided not to grant his request to rejoin the PGA Tour policy board.
Recalling his involvement in off-course politics at LIV Golf, the Wells Fargo champion chose in November to step down as player director. While the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia (PIF) and McIlroy are still in peace talks, McIlroy expressed his desire to return, but players like Jordan Spieth, Patrick Cantlay, and Tiger Woods eventually rejected him.
His focus will undoubtedly stay on the course for the time being in preparation for the PGA Championship next week. After winning back-to-back tournaments, McIlroy will be looking to win his first major championship in ten years, and he probably feels confident in his chances. Ten years after the Northern Irishman defeated him by a single shot, he also makes a return to the location of his last major victory, which he took home in 2014.
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