By The Associated Press’s Doug Ferguson
PEBBLE BEACH, CA: Pebble Beach continued to look gorgeous. Rory McIlroy did, too.
The PGA Tour needed the spark that one of the biggest names in golf and America’s most picturesque coastline golf course provided, and both played up to their hype. In the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am on Sunday.
When McIlroy turned the corner against a group of competitors, he produced two crucial birdies because he had total control over his shots. Then he hit a haymaker, launching his drive over a tree down the 14th fairway, leaving him with just a 7-iron to set up Eagle at the 571-yard hole.
According to Sepp Straka, we both hit seven there. I was 7-wood and he was 7-iron.
All that remained was a calm walk along the 18th fairway, enough brightness to make the waves turquoise, and enough cushioning to keep everyone stress-free. McIlroy defeated his Irish friend Shane Lowry by two strokes, finishing with a 6-under 66 and a par.
According to McIlroy, there are some places in our game that simply have a slightly greater significance than others. This is most likely due to the history of the courses, the winners, and the contributions those players have made to the sport.
At St. Andrews, I’ve had a couple near misses. He added that Augusta National was another. Therefore, it’s fantastic to be able to win in one of those famous locations.
With a 6-iron out of the bunker to 18 feet for birdie on the 10th hole into a stiff breeze along the Pacific, McIlroy cemented his position as the leader on a day when six players shared the lead. On the par-3 12th hole, he extended his lead to two strokes with a majestic 7-iron to 8 feet for eagle.
Everyone else was vying for second place after the 14th, which was essentially the decisive moment. McIlroy was pleased to receive the crystal trophy, his 27th in his PGA Tour career, after hitting 5-iron off the tee with a three-shot lead.
Only Phil Mickelson (45) and Tiger Woods (82) have more victories among golfers who are still competing. Mickelson won his 27th tour win at the age of 35 as well.
Lowry’s second shot over a cliff to the right of the par-5 sixth put him out of a share for the lead. However, his 68, which included a birdie on the last hole, won him second place by himself. He shot 31 on the back nine.
Justin Rose (68) and Lucas Glover (67) trailed by another shot. Straka, who had a one-shot lead going into the final round, finished with a 72 and was tied for seventh.
“I always think that when players like Rory McIlroy show up and play at their best, they’re pretty hard to beat,” Lowry remarked.
The top-ranked golfer in the world, Scottie Scheffler, finished with a 67 and tied for ninth place. Scheffler’s season was cut short by minor hand surgery after he punctured glass while preparing ravioli.
Inspired by Scheffler’s propensity to avoid mistakes, McIlroy took a cue from him this week at Pebble by controlling his aggressive tendencies. Despite the chilly, rainy breeze on Saturday, he only made one bogey during the weekend at Pebble Beach.
McIlroy has stated that this year will be significant for him, but his priorities were April through September, including an 11th opportunity to win the career Grand Slam at the Masters, a British Open homecoming to Northern Ireland, and a Ryder Cup road trip to Bethpage.
It wasn’t a bad beginning.
According to McIlroy, it’s a really great way to start the season. Naturally, winning makes everything better, but this week also included his first time seeing Cypress Point and a hole-in-one at Spyglass Hill in the first round.
He now returns to Florida with yet another trophy and a ton of energy for what he thinks will be a successful season.
The pack started to drift apart around the sixth hole. Tom Kim hit his second ball down the hill toward the ocean, while Rose’s tee shot went over the cliff in successive groups. He was followed by Lowry in the last group, which resulted in bogey.
On Sunday, February 2, 2025, in Pebble Beach, California, Scottie Scheffler hits from the first tee at Pebble Beach Golf Links during the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am golf tournament’s last round. (Photo by Nic Coury/AP)
When McIlroy hammered a difficult pitch from 50 yards out over a bunker to a back pin with enough height and spin to set up a 2-foot birdie putt, however, it appeared as though he was the player to beat from the second hole.
However, he withdrew after making his only bogey on the challenging eighth hole. The rest of them were left in a desperate pursuit.
He’s terrific when he’s good. Glover said, “And when he’s not great, he’s good.” He has a number of majors, twenty-something wins, and a strong game for a reason. Under the circumstances and with the strain, it was an impressive round out today.
Last year, McIlroy earned $3.6 million at Quail Hollow, where he won his second signature event. One shot short of the tournament record, he finished at 21-under 267.
Until he missed a 7-foot birdie putt on the 17th hole that would have cut the lead to two, Lowry at least attempted to get him to sweat. He did, however, earn a nice consolation $2.16 million for second place with his final birdie.
https://apnews.com/hub/golf AP golf
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