‘Exhausted’ Rory falls with the world at his feet

Rory McIlroy missed a gilt-edged opportunity to become Ireland’s first world No 1 when he lost to Hunter Mahan in the final of the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club on Dove Mountain.

The Holywood hotshot, 22, admitted that he punched himself out mentally in an exhausting 3 and 1 comeback win over rival Lee Westwood in the semi-finals.

And while he staged another last gasp charge in the decider, coming back from four down after 10 holes to take the match to the 17th, 29-year old Mahan claimed a 2 and 1 victory, his second World Golf Championship and a cheque for $1.4m (€1 million).

“I knew that was going to be the toughest thing for me today,” he said of the semi-final fallout. “I was getting myself up for that semi-final match and I knew if I got through I would have to get myself up again for the final.

“It probably took me a few holes to get going but that’s not really an excuse, I just didn’t play well enough when I needed to.”

The final was all square after four holes as the finalists book-ended birdies at the second and third with bogeys at the first and fourth.

But it was soon apparent that McIlroy had left his best stuff on the course in his epic morning win over Westwood.

After halves in par at the fifth, Mahan claimed the 158-yard sixth when he hit a glorious tee shot to just 18 inches and then looked on as McIlroy hooked into the swale left of the green and failed to chip in for the half.

It was the start of a forgettable run of holes for the Irish star, who made some questionable course management mistakes to allow Mahan to comfortably dominate the match.

Now one down, McIlroy looked likely to win a hole back at the seventh with Mahan pulling his approach into a deep swale left of the green.

But with the entire green at his mercy to the right of the “sucker” left-side pin, the world number two followed Mahan into the swale and then compounded his error by taking four more to get down, gifting his opponent a win in bogey.

Two down, McIlroy could ill-afford another mistake but the inspirational driving and iron play he showed against Westwood was notably absent and he was soon three behind.

After hooking into the desert, the Northern Irish star overshot the green with his third with Mahan safely on in two. In the end the American didn’t have to hole an eight footer for birdie as McIlroy failed with one of his own for par.

Short with a 25 footer for a winning birdie at the ninth, McIlroy all but waved the white flag at the 10th. Mahan applied huge pressure with a towering 178-yard approach to just two feet and McIlroy missed from 11 feet for a half to go four down with eight to go.

The par-five 11th offered him a tiny window of opportunity and he took it with both hands, chipping in from 54 feet for a sweet eagle three to cut the deficit to three holes.

The 22-year old Holywood superstar looked out for the count when he went three down after just four holes in their “pistols at dawn” semi-final in Tucson.

But he roared back with seven birdies in 10 holes to give himself a chance of becoming Ireland’s first world No 1.

The key to the match arguably came at the fifth, where the tee was pushed up 30 yards. Both found the right rough but while McIlroy’s approach scooted 35 feet past, Westwood’s also went long and finished up against the collar of rough through the green.

The Englishman came up 10 feet short with his chip, missed the putt to see his lead cut to two holes and was then hit by a barrage of brilliant McIlroy birdies.

“If we go back to level there, it’s a different kettle of fish,” Westwood said. “And then Rory made a good putt on the next and birdied the one after it to go three up. So it was going to be hard work after that.”

McIlroy holed for winning birdies from 30 feet for a two at the sixth, 15 feet at the long eighth and eight feet at the ninth to turn one up.

He then got a lucky ricochet off a cart path on his approach to the 11th, clinching a half in birdie with a brilliant chip before moving up a gear.

He fist pumped after burying a 25 footer for birdie at the 12th to go two up and the easily claimed the 13th where Westwood drove into trouble and had to lay up as McIlroy hit the green in two with two huge blows.

Three down with five to play, Westwood hit back when he drove the 15th green and holed an 18 footer for eagle.

But McIlroy got up and down from sand for a half at the 16th before being handed the 17th and victory when his rival came up short of the green with his approach and failed to chip and putt for par.

In the consolation match, Mark Wilson beat Westwood 1 up to claim a cheque for $600,000. Westwood had to settle for “just” $490,000.