PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — The playoff was only three holes. Rory McIlroy needed only three swings. And yet his victory Monday over J.J. Spaun in The Players Championship revealed so much about the state of his game and the cruel nature of the notorious TPC Sawgrass.
McIlroy delivered an early knockout against J.J. Spaun with his best drive of the week that set up a simple birdie, followed by a three-quarter 9-iron into a cold, cackling wind that found land on the island green at the par-3 17th.
“I certainly didn’t feel at my peak this week,” McIlroy stated following his victory as the eighth two-time champion of The Players. “Yet, I managed to secure a win in one of the most significant tournaments globally. This is quite remarkable.”
This marks the first time in his career that he has secured two victories heading into the Masters, which over the past ten years has been the one tournament preventing him from entering golf's highest echelon by achieving the career Grand Slam.
Spaun believed he possessed the ideal solution until he laid eyes on his 8-iron. sail over the island On the second playoff hole, this crushed his aspirations for achieving the largest victory of his career.
"Can I see this?" Spaun asked as he took a seat at the table, fixing his gaze on a TV in the rear of the media center that displayed a recording of his drive on the 17th hole. This was the first time he could actually view where his ball ended up — splashing down just past the wood border and into the water hazard. All he had heard previously were sighs from the spectators.
And he was still having trouble believing it.
I didn’t think it was lengthy,” he spoke softly. "I never considered it to be long.
Thus concluded an unforgettable week at golf’s biggest money event, where countless fans braved chilly and windy conditions for just 47 minutes of play between McIlroy—a player renowned for his achievements with 39 victories globally—and Spaun, a 34-year-old boasting a single PGA Tour win but who hadn’t previously managed to break par 70 on the TPC Sawgrass course until this past competition.
McIlroy said he woke up at 3 a.m. and couldn't get back to sleep. Whether this was about trying to win or trying not to lose — he had a three-shot lead with five holes to play in the final round Sunday — didn't matter.
He worked on his tee shot with the same helping wind off the right. To practice in the right wind for the 17th, McIlroy turned and hit balls from the range toward the third green.
McIlroy had been spotty off the tee all week, missing nearly half of his fairways. He set the tone with his best of the week, a 336-yard blast right down the middle that set up a pitching wedge from 176 yards into the par-5 16th for a two-putt birdie from 35 feet.
“I thought if I could get the ball in the fairway there, it sort of puts a little bit of pressure on J.J.,” he said. “To step up and make that swing was awesome.”
And then it effectively ended on the 17th.
“When my ball was in the air, I was telling it to get down," McIlroy said.
Spaun hit his 8-iron with a higher trajectory into a hurting wind off the right, and his first instinct was to yell, “Get up.”
“It just looked like it was going to be short,” Spaun said. “I was stunned. I couldn’t believe it was long. I’m happy with the swing I put on it — I am. The wind must have just laid down just a little too much, and it just went through the wind. Wasn’t my time.”
The first three-hole playoff in 10 years at The Players was caused by a four-hour rain delay on Sunday. McIlroy had to make a 4-foot par putt on the 72nd hole. Spaun had a 30-foot birdie putt for the win that stopped inches short.
McIlroy, disappointed and having lost a three-shot lead on the back nine, looked ahead to the playoff by saying, “Make five good swings tomorrow morning and get this thing done.”
Turns out he only needed three — the driver and wedge on No. 16, the 9-iron on No. 17 — to beat Spaun and claim the $4.5 million prize from the $25 million purse.
It was reminiscent of a 2008 playoff between Sergio Garcia and Paul Goydos, back when the 17th was used in sudden death. Garcia hit the green. Goydos came up short and into the water, and there is no lonelier walk than to the drop zone knowing it's over.
Spaun ended up with a triple bogey after missing a three-putt from 45 feet. McIlroy missed his 30-foot putt long and settled for a bogey, which gave him a three-stroke advantage. On the 18th hole, both players drove their balls significantly to the right. McIlroy accepted a conservative bogey, whereas Spaun chose not to attempt the remaining 10-foot putt for par.
Any reference to The Players as the fifth major or anything similar isn’t what McIlroy aims for currently since he understands that the true significant tournament—a major—is just around the corner at Augusta National. His focus now should be maintaining his form. Additionally, he secured victory at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am recently. Before heading into the Masters, he intends to play an extra round either in Houston or San Antonio.
“At present, everything seems to be functioning well,” he stated. “Simply continue practicing and performing the correct actions, cultivating proper routines, and over time—from day to day and week to week—these efforts culminate in moments like this one.”
Spaun secured $2,725,000 for coming in second place and climbed to No. 25 in the global rankings, which was sufficiently high to guarantee him a position in the Masters.
"A nice way to end the week," Spaun commented.
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