Scheffler wins as McIlroy and Lowry finish tied 19th at the Players

Rory McIlroy nearly set a Players Championship scoring record at the TPC Sawgrass Stadium Course.

Rory McIlroy watches his tee shot during the Players Championship at Sawgrass. Picture: AP Photo/Lynne Sladky

The Players Championship hurtled toward a dramatic conclusion Sunday night without the most dramatic player of the week in contention.

Scottie Scheffler became the first player in 50 stagings to defend as Players champion, shooting a final-round 64 to overcome a five-shot deficit and ultimately dodge three consecutive birdie putts to force a playoff on the last.

Rory McIlroy, meanwhile, nearly set a Players Championship scoring record at the TPC Sawgrass Stadium Course, but it wasn’t nearly enough for him to participate in the four-man race to the wire on Sunday.

McIlroy made 26 birdies this week at Sawgrass, missing a 6-footer on 16 that would have tied him with Sam Ryder for the all-time record on the Stadium Course. But with 11 bogeys and three doubles, his nine-under overall score only added up to a tie for 19th with Shane Lowry – 11 strokes off the clubhouse lead posted by defending champion Scottie Scheffler.

“A lot of good with 26 birdies, obviously, but a lot of bad in there as well,” McIlroy said. “Just a lot of volatility in my game that’s still quite destructive. So, a lot of work to do over the next couple of weeks.” 

The way McIlroy opened the week with a 65, he seemed a lock to be battling with Scheffler, Xander Schauffele, Brian Harman and Wyndham Clark – the major and Olympic champions who were jockeying for the lead down the explosive finishing stretch late Sunday.

But McIlroy seemed out of sorts after the first day, his scorecard littered with squares and circles that kept offsetting one another and keep him from ever featuring in the mix.

“I think, after the first round I sort of my expectations sort of went sky high because I was like, oh, I think I've figured it out,” McIlroy said. 

“Then the last three days were a little bit more of a struggle. I think I'm headed in the right direction. I've definitely straightened out a few of the iron shots, which was a big key for me coming into this week. I made enough birdies, it's just a matter of getting rid of the bad stuff.” 

Getting rid of the bad stuff is something that world No. 1 Scheffler has done so well to separate himself from McIlroy and overtake the leaders from five behind on Sunday as he challenged the largest comeback record at Sawgrass in an effort to become the first back-to-back Players champion in 50 stagings of the flagship event.

Scheffler didn’t make a bogey in his last 31 holes and fired a 64 on Sunday that chased down the final pairing of Schauffele and Clark who were each 2-under through 16 holes and looking up on the leaderboard going to the dangerous final two holes.

After Scheffler posted 20-under in the clubhouse, reigning Open champion Brian Harman, Schauffele and Clark all knew the mark they needed to catch.

Harman failed to birdie 16 and 17. Both Clark and Shauffele birdied 16 and took dead aim at the 17th pin, setting up birdie putts inside 5 and 7 feet, respectively. Schauffele missed his chance to tie Scheffler at 20-under going down the last. Clark, who just missed at 11-footer for eagle on 16, buried his second straight birdie to join a three-way tie at 19-under going to the perilous par-4 18th all needing birdies to force a playoff.

Harman had the first chance, missing a 17-footer after his approach checked up on the front of the green.

Clark’s approach left him almost the exact same 17-foot look that Harman faced. Schauffele’s from the pine straw was wide right on the green, leaving him a downhill 61-footer.

One ... shot ... short ... 💔

Heartbreak for Wyndham Clark on the 72nd hole @THEPLAYERS. pic.twitter.com/6d1Qa3elOa

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 17, 2024

Schauffele gave his a good run but his hopes slid above the hole. Clark had the final chance, and his putt looked true until it horseshoed in and out of the hole and back at him.

McIlroy, meanwhile, has three weeks to clean up any issues before the Masters, where he still needs to win to complete his career grand slam.

“If you've looked at my results over the last four tournaments I've walked away from pretty disappointed with my play, but they've been not terrible,” McIlroy said. “I’m not missing cuts and not too far off the leaderboard, but at the same time I expect a lot more of myself.” 

While the leaders were still fighting to the finish, McIlroy had a lot to say about the meeting set up between the PGA Tour policy board player directors and PIF chief Yasir Al-Rumayyan.

“I think it should have happened months ago, so I am glad that it's happening,” said McIlroy, who vacated his seat as a player director in the fall. “Hopefully that progresses conversations and gets us closer to a solution.

McIlroy has spoken with Al-Rumayyan in the past and hopes his peers at the meeting come to the same conclusion he has about the leader of Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund.

“That fundamentally he wants to do the right thing,” McIlroy said of Al-Rumayyan. “I think I've said this before, I have spent time with Yasir and the people that have represented him in LIV I think have done him a disservice, so (Greg) Norman and those guys.

“I actually think there's a really big disconnect between PIF and LIV. I think you got PIF over here and LIV are sort of over here doing their own thing. So the closer that we can get to Yasir, PIF and hopefully finalize that investment, I think that will be a really good thing.”