McIlroy blows 2-up lead to lose to Young on 19th: "Feeling obviously pretty bad"
Rory McIlroy reacts to his putt during the final round of the 2022 PGA Championship. Photo by Montana Pritchard/PGA of America
World golf will get to see Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler go head to head in the WGC-Dell Technologies Championship but it will be for third place after they lost 2-up leads and fell in extra holes in their semi-finals at Austin Country Club.
McIlroy’s hopes of heading to the Masters on the back of a 24th PGA TOUR win were dashed when he lost to Cameron Young on the 19th in the semi-finals as Scheffler fell to his close pal Sam Burns on the 21st.
World number three McIlrou looked poised to continue his impressive build-up to the opening men’s Major of the season. But after battling into a 2-up lead with three to play, the Co Down star (33) ran out of puff and Young birdied the 16th and 18th to force sudden-death, then advanced to this evening’s final with a birdie four at the 19th, the par-five 12th, despite driving into a bad lie in a fairway bunker.
Still seeking his first PGA Tour win, Young faces Burns, who caused a surprise when he came back from 2-down with six to play beat defending champion and world number one Scheffler.
Both McIlroy and Scheffler were left to wonder what might have been just 11 days before the start if the Masters but they could have no complaints.
"Feeling obviously pretty bad,” said McIlroy , who now faces Scheffler in the Consolation Match. “Two-up with three to play, but Cam played great. He birdied 16 and 18 and then made a hell of a birdie there after getting an unlucky break with the tee shot.
"Yeah, I just didn't do enough over those last four holes to close him out and when you don't do that and you've got, you're up against a player of Cam's caliber that's what's going to happen.
"So disappointing, but try to regroup and go out and try to win a match this afternoon."
Scehffler said: “It's a bit frustrating, but I put up a good fight today. I had a chance to almost go 4-down through 4 and put up a good fight and Sam played really well.”
McIlroy and Young traded birdies at the first but while the Co Down man made his his third bogey of the week at the third to lose the hole to Young’s birdie and fall 1-down, he soon took control.
After missing a birdie chance from nine feet to win the fourth, he birdied the fifth and par-five sixth to go 1-up, then made a 10 footer for birdie at the ninth to turn 2-up.
McIlroy had missed birdie chances at the eighth and 10th but he made no mistake from 16 feet at the 11th, forcing Young to make an eight footer there just to remain 2-down.
The four-time Major winner opened the door when he made an ugly six at the 12th, hooking his approach from a fairway bunker straight left into the water.
But while Young failed to match McIlroy’s chip and putt birdie at the 279-yard 13th and found himself 2-down again, he got back to 1-down with a two-putt birdie at the par-five 16th, where McIlroy had to lay up after driving into sand.
They halved the 17th but McIlroy couldn’t repeat his magical drive of Thursday on the 18th and Young made a seven footer for birdie to square the match to force sudden-death.
The American then made a miraculous birdie four at the 19th to advance, curling in a right to left breaking nine footer for birdie at the 19th, the par-five 12th, despite having to lay up from a fairway bunker.
McIlroy was short right of the green in two but after chipping to eight feet, his putt to extend the match never threatened the hole.
Scheffler looked in trouble when Burns birdied the first three holes to go 3-up.
But the Louisiana native (26) gifted the world number one the fifth when he drove into the hazard and had to take a penalty drop.
Scheffler was relentless from there, making an 18 footer at the par-five sixth to go 1-up before added three birdies in a row from the eighth.
Burns bogeyed the ninth and 10th go find himself 2-down but what looked like being a comfortable win for Scheffler also went to sudden-death.
Burns birdied the 13th from 10 feet to cut the gap to one hole, got up and down from 90 yards to win the 15th in birdie and square the match, then followed a half in birdies at the 16th with a sensational two at the 17th, where he ripped his tee shot to 11 inches to go 1-up.
But Scheffler showed his class at the 18th, rolling in a five footer to force extra holes after Burns had missed a 10 footer for the match.
They moved on to the par-five 12th for the first extra hole and halved that in birdies before Scheffler hit a 95-yard approach to four feet at the 13th.
Burns looked to resigned to his fate after missing his 20 footer but Scheffler missed his birdie putt and it all ended at the 14th, where Burns made a 15 footer for birdie and victory.
Burns will be a tough oppenent for Young given his putting and he reckoned that was the difference against Scheffler.
“I struggled midway through the round,” Burns said. “But just was able to battle back and kept myself in it and you know at the end of the day it came down to making putts.”
On the DP World Tour, Germany’s Nick Bachem won the 2023 Jonsson Workwear Open by four strokes from home duo Hennie Du Plessis and Zander Lombard after closing with an eight-under 64 in Johannesburg.
He finished on 24 under par at The Club at Steyn City for his first win on the DP World Tour as Holywood’s Tom McKibbin tied for 71st on five-under after a 70,
On the Challenge Tour, India’s Om Prakash Chouhan secured a dream maiden victory on home soil at the Duncan Taylor Black Bull Challenge in Bangalore.
He posted a bogey-free seven-under-par 65 to win by two shots on 18 under par with Dermot McElroy tied 21st on nine-under after a 69.
Just four behind overnight, Niall Kearney shot 76 to finish 34th on seven under with Conor Purcell 48th on five under after a 74 and amateur Robert Moran 61st on one under after a 72.
