2019 Championship standings: Rory McIlroy wins FedEx Cup for the second time in four years



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It is not unfair to judge golf superstars exclusively by the number of major leagues they win … until that happens. Rory McIlroy is the best proof that riding this line between two worlds can be frustrating and difficult. McIlroy came out last with Brooks Koepka in the Tour Championship on Sunday, shot 66 and won his second FedEx Cup in the last four years.

McIlroy did not miss a shot. A few weeks ago, when Koepka dusted Ulsterman, he toppled his final round at the WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational. High, sharp discs, stockings, 3-wood balls, tight wedges, long blitz irons. He almost literally hit the center of every club face he watched on Sunday, and he has the numbers (first in driving and first from tee to green this week) to confirm it.

"It was pretty cool," said McIlroy about fans who sang his name before heading to the 18th green. "I must say that I did not enjoy this ride last year, like everyone else. (…) In confronting the number 1 player in the world, it seemed to me to be Memphis and I wanted to somehow revenge today, to play like that alongside Brooks, win the victory and win the FedEx Cup, yes, it's great.It's amazing to see at how different things can be in a year. "

After a total of under 33 points out of the top nine, McIlroy ended the competition with birdies at No. 12 and 13 at the back to end up under 18, making the rounds of the rest of the competition. pack. He bugged the next two, but it did not matter. He cashed in the normal at No. 16 and stabbed the dagger at No. 17 with one last birdie to go up three shots with a hole to go. Another 18-year-old bird was just a cherry on his ear 66.

"My goal today was to win, it's not the normal tournament, but to win even by blows … My goal was to get the lowest score of the week. With the birdie of the last game, I did it "McIlroy told NBC. "… it's a great way to end a great season for me, I'll come back this season." [fondly]. I have done a lot of good things. I will try to improve again for next year. "

The numbers – both financially (the very first $ 15 million victory) and statistically – are staggering. They have been the way all year yet. The final count for Rory in 2018-19 on the PGA Tour looks like this.

  • Three wins
  • Top 10 in 74% of events
  • Best season won by non-Tiger Woods shots this century
  • $ 23 million profit
  • Second golfer to win several FedEx Cups (Tiger Woods)
  • Third golfer to win several tournaments (Woods, Phil Mickelson)

Some will answer with "Yes, but what about big leagues …" where Rory could only rank twice in the top 10 without either of the two being overly contested Sunday, and that Is a fair position to take. It also raises many questions that I am not sure I have real answers to.

McIlroy himself would trade everything, this year, with all the money, the top 10 and even the victories, against a single major championship, but what he has achieved is not nothing. It was a real season rich in extravagant achievements for someone who hears the whispers of disappointment when he does not claim one of the four big events.

This leaves us in a complicated place to be sure. McIlroy was awesome Sunday just as he was all year. He won the Canadian Open Championship and Canadian Open in addition to his $ 15 million victory on Sunday. No one has won more on the PGA Tour this season. Nobody had a better number of shots won. No one has earned more money. Nobody had more than top 10.

"I think I gave myself a lot of chances, win three times [this year] is great. I have the feeling that I could have won more, he said. Win again the FedEx Cup, persist throughout the year, continue to give me chances even when I get knocked over and I do not let myself be denied. Very proud of me, and I'm going to enjoy this one tonight. "

There is no good way to answer that. McIlroy is (and has always been) an unreal talent. This talent reappeared in 2019 and remained stable throughout. That there is a debate as to whether the season has been successful for someone who has earned $ 23 million on the course testifies to the bar that McIlroy himself set for the course of her career.

One thing we've learned for sure is that McIlroy's resume is far from complete. His Wikipedia page far to be filled. There seems to be a lot of work in the tank for someone who has done all that it is possible to do in this sport. Going back to the top of the golf world and staying there all season is evidence of unachieved training, and we should be excited to see what McIlroy will unearth again in 2020. Grade: A +

Here are the rest of our notes for the 2019 Tour Championship.

Brooks Koepka (T3): Happy New Year? Yes. Good week? Sure. Nice day Sunday in East Lake? No. Just like the WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational of a few weeks ago where you could just say in the beginning that McIlroy did not have the goods, these two players having been eliminated in the last pairing, you can to say that Koepka did not have it. early. He gave himself only three glances on 25 feet on the first nine. This was compounded by the ball that he lost on No. 7 which resulted in a double bogey, and that was all McIlroy from there. Koepka will not be devastated, although his financial advisor may be, that he had the goods in Memphis but not in East Lake. He still wins a truck full of money and will probably win his second player of the year title. Category B

Justin Thomas (T3): It's hard to see this as anything other than a missed opportunity for J.T. He came in the week ahead of the pack at 10 under and could only collect 277 from under 3 on the week. He really fell from the top of the standings with a triple bogey in the third round early Sunday morning and could not make up the difference later in the day in the last round. In an opposite performance last week, he drove very well, but did not hit his irons at all, losing the rankings in this category. Given his injury problem earlier in the year, finishing in the top five on the circuit was a good result for him, but he will be frustrated at not having won his second league title in the past three years. . Category B-

Dustin Johnson (T29): D.J. started the event 3 under and T11. He finished 10 times and last. In the meantime, he played among the worst golf courses we saw on 72 holes. Johnson shot 73-72-75-73 during his four rounds at East Lake and lost nearly 10 field shots on the approach, an unfathomable number for a talented man. This puts an end to a very strange second half of the season for the world No. 2 golfer after being crushed early in the year. Grade: D-

CBS Sports was with you all the way to update this story with the latest scores, scans and highlights from Sunday at the 2019 Tour Championship. If you can not see the updates below, click here please. Can not get enough golf? Subscribe to The First Cup with Kyle Porter where we take a weekly look at everything that happens in the world of golf.

Thank you for being past.

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