Winner’s Bag: Patrick Cantlay, ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP @ SHERWOOD

There was no other way to cap off a PGA TOUR season this dramatic, was there? Trailing World No.1 Scottie Scheffler by six strokes entering the final round, Rory McIlroy staged a historic Sunday charge to become the first player to win three FedExCup titles. McIlroy’s win at East Lake marked the 12th time he has won on the PGA TOUR when trailing entering the final round. Since 2010, that is four more such wins than any other player. McIlroy’s three-win 2021-22 campaign won’t be remembered as the most prolific season of his career in terms of victories, but statistically it may wind up among his best ever. Rory won his fourth scoring average title, posting an adjusting average of 68.67. He joined Vijay Singh (2003) and Tiger Woods (eight different seasons) as the only players in PGA TOUR history with a single season average better than 68.7. Let’s examine some of the most interesting numbers regarding McIlroy’s FedExCup winning season. • One of the most significant improvements in McIlroy’s game over the past few seasons has been on the greens. Yes, there were moments where his putting let him down – namely the final round of The Open, where he languished through 18 two-putts – but the totality of his body of work over the last 36 months reveals a tremendous increase in overall performance. Two seasons ago, McIlroy ranked 122nd of 193 qualified players on the PGA TOUR in Strokes Gained: Putting per round. That ranking climbed to 66th in 2021 – and another 50 spots, to 16th – in this recently concluded 2021-22 campaign. McIlroy’s differential from two seasons ago to now is 0.57 Strokes Gained: Putting per round – a difference of more than two full strokes per 72 holes. From 10 to 15 feet, McIlroy is a completely different player than just a couple of years ago – he’s gone from 153rd in make percentage from that range to 6th this season. After missing 6 putts from 3 feet and in two seasons ago, McIlroy has made 1,193 of 1,194 from that short range over the last 2 seasons on TOUR, and didn’t miss a single one in 2022. All of these improvements seemed to perfectly crystalize over the weekend at East Lake. In the final round, McIlroy led the field in both total distance of putts made (115 feet, 10 inches) and Strokes Gained: Putting (3.92), fueling the largest final round comeback to win in TOUR Championship history. • Another facet of McIlroy’s game that has historically received some public scorn is his approach play from inside 150 yards. This represented another piece of McIlroy’s arsenal that went from weakness to strength, and it happened within the course of the same PGA TOUR season. After the Masters, McIlroy was ranked 208th of 209 players on the PGA TOUR this season in average proximity from 50- to 125 yards away (24 feet, 1 inch). His turnaround in this category since that point is nothing short of remarkable. Since the Wells Fargo Championship began, McIlroy is a staggering 10 feet better, on average, from that range. His mark of 14 feet, 1 inch is the best average among all players on TOUR with 30 or more attempts in that span. • McIlroy ended the season ranked inside the top-50 in all four key Strokes Gained disciplines: Off-the-Tee, Approach the Green, Around the Green and Putting. This is just the second time in McIlroy’s PGA TOUR career he has done that, having also achieved that balanced profile in 2018-19. Only four other players ranked in the top-50 in each of those statistics this season: Patrick Cantlay, Matt Fitzpatrick, Sungjae Im and Xander Schauffele. A season ago, McIlroy’s poorest ranking in the Strokes Gained categories came on shots around the green, where he ranked 71st. It’s been one of the more unheralded improvements in his game over the past 12 months: in the 2020-21 season, McIlroy ranked 131st on the PGA TOUR in scrambling percentage. That leapt up more than 100 spots in 2022, to 30th. He also improved more than 50 spots from this season to last in sand save percentage. • These other improvements allowed McIlroy to maximize his ability to capitalize on being one of the best drivers of the golf ball in the world. Rory has never ranked worse than 6th in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee in any single, full season of his PGA TOUR career. Since 2012, there are more than 360 different players with 100 or more rounds played on the PGA TOUR. McIlroy leads all of them in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee per round, with 0.94. At East Lake, McIlroy pounded 31 drives 320 yards or longer, 10 more than any other player in the field (Cameron Young ranked second, with 21). On all drives for the week, he averaged 315.8 yards, five more than anyone else. McIlroy’s ability with driver consistently gives him an advantage over the competition – but his balanced brilliance in 2022 made him a FedExCup champion.

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The second round of the Barracuda takes place on Friday from Montreux Golf & Country Club. Here’s how to follow all the action. Round 2 leaderboard Round 2 tee times HOW TO FOLLOW TELEVISION: Thursday-Friday, 7-9:30 p.m. ET (Golf Channel). Saturday-Sunday, 5-8 p.m. (GC). PGA TOUR LIVE: None. RADIO: None. FEATURED GROUPS (ALL TIMES LOCAL) Friday Jim Herman (134), Ryan Palmer (23), Russell Henley (87): 12:44 p.m. MUST READS Lingmerth leads suspended first round How Stableford scoring system works Expert Picks Power Rankings The First Look

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Brett Stegmaier is no John Madden. He doesn’t fear flying so much that he keeps an Amtrak schedule handy. He doesn’t own a luxury RV – complete with sauna – for those long cross-country trips like the famous NFL coach turned sportscaster once did, either. But even so, Stegmaier admits that he gets nervous when he steps on a plane and squeezes his 6-foot-3 frame into one of those cramped middle seats. “I wouldn’t say I’m afraid, I’m just kind of uncomfortable,â€� Stegmaier says good-naturedly. “It’s not my favorite thing to do. But I don’t like freak out or anything.â€� Madden actually did, though. He stopped flying in 1979 when he suffered a panic attack after getting on a plane in Tampa. Madden steeled himself and made it through the flight but hasn’t flown since. In Madden’s biography on Wikipedia, there’s even a section on his aviophobia. Stegmaier has a similar entry in his on PGATOUR.COM – right after his favorite TV shows, movies, sports teams and websites. It says: Not many people know that he is afraid of flying. Stegmaier says his aviophobia might actually stem from a long-standing fear of heights. In fact, he remembers a family trip to Toronto where the CN Tower was on the sightseeing agenda. At the time, the needle-like CN Tower was the tallest in the world. “And I wouldn’t go up in it,â€� recalls Stegmaier, who was 10 years old at the time of that vacation. “It was probably the first time I ever (realized I was scared of heights). I think I was embarrassed about it. Now I just kind of laugh about it.â€� Stegmaier can drive over tall bridges but he doesn’t know how comfortable he’d be if he were walking across them. And don’t even mention those high-rise hotels. “If I’m on the tenth floor of a hotel and there’s a balcony, I’m super uncomfortable with going outside.,â€� Stegmaier says. “I’m thinking if I slip and fall — you think the stupidest things.â€� At the same time, though, Stegmaier doesn’t mind looking out into the wild blue yonder when he’s buckled up in a plane. In fact, he’ll take another flight if no window seats are available. “If I can look out the window, I’m way more comfortable than sitting in the aisle,â€� Stegmaier says. “It’s weird. I don’t know how to explain it.â€� And while lots of aviophobics fear take-offs and landings, it’s the cruising part that bothers him. Oh, and the turbulence, even though Stegmaier knows flying is the safest form of travel. “There’s not much really I can do,â€� he admits. “I stare out the window. That’s the only thing I do. Even if we are in the clouds, I stare out the window. “Then once we land after a rough flight, I just feel an intense amount of relief. I don’t say I’ll never fly again, I just don’t look forward to it.â€� When he can drive between tournaments in four hours or less, don’t be surprised if you find Stegmaier in a car. But his fear of flying didn’t deter the second-year PGA TOUR pro from flying to Malaysia last fall. And that flight was 16 hours. Of course, he was flying business and had a seat that converted into a flat bed. “If I’m stuck in the middle in the back, I would be super uncomfortable,â€� he says. “… I was totally fine on that flight. “The hour and a half flight from Atlanta to Palm Beach, I don’t look forward to those at all.â€� Interestingly, Madden’s wife Virginia had her pilot’s license. And Stegmaier’s sister works for an airline — and “loves everything about flying.â€� Her husband flies propeller planes. “Which I won’t get into,â€� Stegmaier says firmly. “I don’t do that. I don’t even like the (regional) jets. And I don’t fly privately.â€� Still, flying is a necessary evil – kind of like going to the dentist, Stegmaier says. After all, PGA TOUR sanctioned events are played in 21 different states and nine different countries this year. “This would be a tough job if you didn’t want to get on a plane,â€� Stegmaier says with a wry smile.

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