Rory McIlroy won the PGA Tour Championship in Atlanta and became the first player in the history of the FedEx Cup to capture the title for the third time. Previously, he won the Championship in 2016 and 2019. McIlroy made a historic comeback after six shots behind world number one Scottie Scheffler in the fourth round.
Rory McIlroy's fourth round started with a bogey, but he leveled with Scheffler after the world number one put three bogeys in the initial six holes. Further, Mcllroy pushed five birdies across his first 12 holes.
However, a bogey on the 14th pushed him back behind Scheffler. Mcllroy leveled the score with a massive 31-foot birdie putt on the 15th. He eventually carded a final round 66 to win his third title one stroke ahead of Scheffler and Im Sung-Jae.
"I've been in the final group here three of the last five years," said McIlroy. "I didn't give myself much of a chance teeing off today. Six behind, I thought it was going to be really tough to make up. But [between] my good play and Scottie's not-so-great play, it was a ballgame going into the back nine."
How much money did Rory Mcllroy win?
A total of $75 million was set up for the best players on the PGA Tour, out of which McIlroy won a $18 million bonus after his victory on Sunday, August 28. This pushes his PGA Tour earnings to over USD 26 million for the season. Mcllroy said:
“The money is the money. It’s great, and we’re professional golfers, and we play golf for a living. That’s part of it. But I think at this point in my career, the winning and the journey and the emotions and who I did it with mean more than the check.”
A year ago, $60 million was set up, with $ 15 million going to the winner. The increased bonus pool of $75million means that the top 10 players will bank seven-figure paychecks while the last-place finisher will make $500,000.
Meanwhile, Scheffler and Im Sung-jae, a four-time PGA Tour winner this season, took home $5.75 million. Mcllroy said:
"It means an awful lot [to win the Tour Championship]," said McIlroy. "I believe in the game of golf. I believe in this tour in particular. I believe in the players on this tour. It's the greatest place in the world to play golf, bar none, and I've played all over the world."
He went on to say:
“Incredible day, incredible week. To claw my way back and end up winning the tournament, incredible. Just really proud of my resilience and how I sort of handled that start and just sort of stuck my head down and kept going all week and took advantage of the opportunity that I was given today.”
This has been a challenging year for the PGA Tour after an intense battle with Saudi-funded LIV Golf, which has attracted over two dozen players. It is now part of an antitrust lawsuit against the PGA Tour. However, McIlroy has always been transparent about his loyalty to the PGA Tour.
Just before the tour, he, along with Tiger Woods, discussed the future of golf. A spectacular performance from McIlroy has proved that the PGA Tour is one thrilling tournament.