Rory McIlroy seals record-breaking Quail Hollow win

Sport360 staff 08:27 18/05/2015
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  • Rory McIlroy poses with the trophy after his win at the Wells Fargo Championship.

    Rory McIlroy underscored his status as the best golfer in the world on Sunday as he put the finishing touches to a record-shattering triumph in the US PGA Tour Wells Fargo Championship.

    The world number one fired five birdies in a three-under par 69, following up his stunning course-record 61 on Saturday to finish with a 21-under par total of 267 – seven strokes in front of Webb Simpson and Patrick Rodgers who shared second on 274.

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    The 26-year-old from Northern Ireland shattered the previous 72-hole tournament record set by Anthony Kim in 2008 by five strokes.

     

    He became the first two-time winner of the event, in which he claimed the first of his 11 US PGA Tour titles back in 2010.

    McIlroy shook off a three-putt bogey at the second hole. By the time he bogeyed 17 he had built a seven-shot lead.

    Great feeling to win my 11th PGA TOUR title & 2nd at Quail Hollow! And this man beside me has been there for every 1! pic.twitter.com/Xe7KWTR0Nk

    — Rory Mcilroy (@McIlroyRory) May 18, 2015

    He birdied two par-fives on the front nine, the fifth and seventh, and birdied the 12th, 14th and 16th coming in.

    At 12, he hit his approach shot 132 yards to two feet and tapped in for birdie.

     

    He moved to 21-under with his birdie at 14 and at 16 landed his approach shot three feet from the pin and made that.

    Simpson started the day four shots behind McIlroy and closed with an even par 72.

    Any hopes he had of catching McIlroy ended with a double bogey at the par-three sixth.

    Huge congrats to @McIlroyRory. His good is really good. Put on a clinic off the tee all week. Class act too. Hats off to him!

    — Webb Simpson (@webbsimpson1) May 17, 2015

    Rodgers, playing on a sponsor's exemption, briefly moved within three strokes of McIlroy's lead after an eagle at the 10th and birdie at 11 but faded late in a 68.

    He was in the water at 17 en route to a double bogey, unable to get the solo second place finish he needed to earn exemption for the rest of the PGA Tour season.

    However, Rodgers did earn a berth in next week's Colonial.

    Gary Woodland, Robert Streb and Phil Mickelson tied for fourth on 12-under 276.

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