Rory McIlroy (-17) sweeps the Wells Fargo Championship and achieves his fourth victory at Quail Hollow. Eight strokes under par in a stretch of eight holes have catapulted Rory to an uncontested victory in which he finally took a five-stroke lead over Xander Schauffele (-12). What happened between the flags of hole 8 and 15 is now part of the tournament’s history. Two eagles, four birdies and two pars. Final card of 65 strokes, the best of the tournament, and seals a memorable victory.
Despite the comfortable final victory, a beautiful battle was lived between the Northern Irishman and Schauffele during the first eleven holes of the final round. Along with the high level of the Hollywood player, it must be acknowledged that the American finally blew a fuse and ended up drowning on the shore after having been the leader for practically the first 63 holes of the tournament.
The fuel tank ran out for Schauffele and a masterful Rory crushed him and took his second consecutive victory after the one obtained in New Orleans two weeks ago. Only Scottie Scheffler and Rory have more than one victory this season.
The Northern Irishman has played very, very good golf to achieve his 26th victory on the PGA Tour, precisely in the place where he lifted his first trophy on American soil back in 2010. Quail Hollow is confirmed as one of McIlroy’s great gardens and ties with Emirates Golf Club as the course with the most victories in his career. Beyond his fourth victory, it is his ninth top 10 in thirteen appearances on the course located in Charlotte. Almost nothing.
After this victory, it is inevitable to think of Rory as one of the big favourites for the PGA Championship 2024 which starts in five days at Valhalla, the place where he won his last Major. 10 years of waiting could come to an end in the same place where it all started. “It seems that the stars are beginning to align in my favour,” Rory said minutes after winning the tournament. Will the PGA be the end of the streak?
What a show. What a way to play. The reality is that on the tee of hole 8, Schauffele had his maximum rent of the day after a spectacular eagle on the previous flag. The Californian was -13 to Rory’s -11. Just six holes later, McIlroy was winning by four strokes -16 to -12 after linking birdie, birdie, eagle, par, par and birdie. An excellent stretch.
Xander Schauffele bids farewell to the tournament with a logical bitter taste. He led for a large part of the tournament and was not able to finish the job, one more week. Yesterday he already showed signs of not keeping up with the pace he had set and today his worst fears were confirmed. Despite this, he adds a new top 10 to the backpack, the eighth of the year and arrives at the PGA in great form. Will it weigh on him mentally? It is the big question that he probably can’t even answer at this moment.
