Jarrod Lyle gets positive news in cancer fight

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The old saying goes, “Never doubt a champion.” And Rory McIlroy is certainly a great champion. McIlroy can now add THE PLAYERS Championship before the descriptor, and it is very much deserved. Welcome to the Monday Finish where McIlroy proved he has been telling the truth all year. He really was pleased with his play and believed he was trending towards something big. Winning THE PLAYERS at TPC Sawgrass is certainly huge. FIVE OBSERVATIONS 1. Rory McIlroy is stronger than a lot of people want to admit sometimes. Now look, we are not ignoring the fact that in the last nine times McIlroy has played in a final group in the last round of a tournament he has failed to win. This is a fair narrative for golf pundits to highlight. And it will remain a while longer given McIlroy was not in the final group on Sunday at TPC Sawgrass. But what Sunday’s one-shot win did prove is McIlroy can handle the heat. Not just the heat of an incredible number of challengers that emerged on a wild Sunday, but also the heat of the spoken and written word engulfing the now 15-time PGA TOUR winner over the last 12 months since his previous win at the 2018 Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard. McIlroy has an incredible resume. Amongst it are THE PLAYERS trophy, a FedExCup, an Open Championship, a U.S. Open, two PGA Championships and two World Golf Championships – all before he’s 30. However you slice it, it is impressive. Could he have won more? Sure. But you can say that about almost every golfer out here. Read more about McIlroy’s incredible triumph here. 2. Furyk might just have some new tricks left. Jim Furyk was one of the last guys into THE PLAYERS Championship. A local at Ponte Vedra Beach, the 48-year-old was certainly grateful to be part of the field, his spot only secured with a recent top-10 finish at The Honda Classic. His performance over the four days was once again an advertisement that experience can certainly help on the PGA TOUR. With the like of Davis Love III, Phil Mickelson and Vijay Singh all showing competitiveness heading towards and into their 50s. His runner-up finish, which included some great shots down the stretch showed the nerves of the old guys can still stand up when it counts. The result catapulted him into the World Golf Championships–Dell Technologies Match Play field and gives him a chance to push towards a Masters berth. Read more about Furyk’s awesome and emotional week here. 3. Rahm runs hot. Joh Rahm continues to be a fascinating case study. The Spanish star is full of emotion and flair. It is part of what makes him such a special talent. But on course outbursts were causing some to question his temperament. The 54-hole leader talked about how he was so proud of himself for keeping a lid on his emotions over the early stages of the tournament but in Sunday’s final round Rahm once again found himself bubbling over at times. It was almost as if it all finally came to the surface. A critical play came on the par-5 11th where he defied caddy advice to lay up and instead hit the ball in the water going for the green. At the end of the day he signed for a 76 and dropped well back. And so the debate continues. The management of emotion is certainly important on the golf course but is the focus on it helping or hurting a natural talent like Rahm? It’s going to be fascinating viewing going forward. 4. Fleetwood is not far away. England’s Tommy Fleetwood will win on the PGA TOUR soon. A lot is made out of the fact Fleetwood has yet to win a PGA TOUR event. But what is sometimes understated is he already has four European Tour titles and also claimed the 2017 Race to Dubai. In his last two starts at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard and THE PLAYERS Championship he has had chances to win only to settle for a top-5 finish. Already some are suggesting he’s struggling to close the deal when it counts. That’s ludicrous. When he appeared out of it at TPC Sawgrass on Sunday he hit a stunning shot into 16 to make eagle. And then knowing he needed birdie on 17 he took dead aim. His ball found the railway ties and bounced in the water. I don’t call that letting it slip, I call that a brave finish. Just like McIlroy trended heavily towards victory this season before winning, Fleetwood will do the same. 5. The move to March is a success. It’s a small sample size for sure but the move back to March certainly provided an exciting PLAYERS. There was concern the move would suit the bombers more than most – and yes McIlroy won and Dustin Johnson had his first top-10 in 11 tries – but Furyk proved TPC Sawgrass can provide any type of winner. You have to drive the ball well and you have to hit your irons well. You don’t have to be the best putter, but you still need to roll the rock. On Sunday throughout the final round there were 15 different players who had a legitimate stake in the championship. The twists and turns were incredible. The excitement and drama THE PLAYERS throws up certainly makes it a great start to the season of championships. See more on the final round here. And more on the move to March here. FIVE INSIGHTS 1. McIlroy now has 15 PGA TOUR titles in 156 starts at age 29 years, 10 months, 14 days. He moves to No. 1 in the FedExCup standings. 2. McIlroy is just the third player – with Tiger Woods and Henrik Stenson – to have won at least one FedExCup, THE PLAYERS Championship, major championship and World Golf Championship. 3. The win was McIlroy’s sixth consecutive top-10 on the PGA TOUR, which bests his previous streak of five in 2015: THE PLAYERS Championship (win), Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard (T6), WGC-Mexico Championship (2), Genesis Open (T4), Farmers Insurance Open (T5), Sentry Tournament of Championship (T4) 4. McIlroy led the field in par-3 scoring average (2.69, ) and Strokes Gained: Tee to Green (13.262). Finished second in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee (5.309) behind only Fleetwood. 5. Jhonattan Vegas’ birdie putt from 69-feet, 7-inches is the longest recorded made putt on the famous par-3 17th Island Green. Official records began in 2003. WYNDHAM REWARDS The Wyndham Rewards Top 10 is in its first season and adds another layer of excitement to the FedExCup Regular Season. The top 10 players at the end of the FedExCup Regular Season will earn bonus payouts from the Wyndham Rewards Top 10. McIlroy stormed all the way from outside the top 10 to the No. 1 slot with his victory.

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Holding steady in gusty conditions and drawing on close calls earlier this season, Sam Burns cards a final-round 68 to hold off Keegan Bradley (71) by three at the Valspar Championship. With his first PGA TOUR win, Burns moves from 47th to 14th in the FedExCup – making him the biggest mover of the week – and becomes the second-youngest Valspar champ (24 years, 9 months, 9 days) after Jordan Spieth (21) in 2015. Here are five stories you may have missed from the Valspar Championship. 1. Burns back amongst talented peers After a distinguished amateur and collegiate (LSU) career, Burns turned pro but fell behind contemporaries Viktor Hovland, Collin Morikawa and Matthew Wolff, all of whom won straight away. It wasn’t a lack of talent; instead, Burns broke his ankle playing pickup basketball with neighborhood kids in his rookie season in 2019. Although he had played well enough to qualify for the FedExCup Playoffs that year, he shut it down in July. Then he missed the cut in four of his first five starts last season. “I wasn’t ready to play yet, but I tried to play,” he said at the Valspar after converting a 54-hole lead to a victory for the first time in three tries this season. “I just played awful for a month straight and just finally was like, hey, this is not a good idea long-term, I’m only creating bad habits and my body doesn’t feel good, my ankle doesn’t feel good, so let’s just shut it down until we feel like we’re ready. And that was a big learning moment for me.” Strange stat of the week: Burns made two eagles and two birdies to play the par-5 first hole in 6 under for the week, the most under par on that hole for anyone in Valspar Championship history. For more on Burns, click here. 2. Thomas retakes FedExCup lead Justin Thomas had the second-worst putting week of his career in finishing T13. That was the bad news. The good news is that he was aces from tee to green, leading the field in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee, SG: Approach-the-Green, and SG: Tee-to-Green. It was the first time in his career that Thomas has led the field in all three categories for the week. What’s more, he will head to this week’s Wells Fargo Championship at Quail Hollow, where he captured the 2017 PGA Championship, as the FedExCup leader again, by 30 points over Bryson DeChambeau. “I’m playing some really good golf and I’m really, really close to, I feel like, getting it going here pretty good,” Thomas said. “So, yeah, it’s a good kind of bonus for a so-so week.” Even better, he celebrated his 28th birthday last week. For more on Thomas, click here. 3. Bradley sees silver lining One day after the Kentucky Derby, the Valspar was a two-horse race. Then Keegan Bradley hit what he admitted was “a terrible shot” into the water at the par-3 13th hole. The ensuing double-bogey gave Sam Burns a lead he would never relinquish, but Bradley still saw the positives after signing for an even-par 71. Bradley’s seventh runner-up finish in 273 TOUR starts marked the third time he’s failed to close out a 54-lead/co-lead on TOUR, but his second-round 63 tied his career low on TOUR. He also climbed 30 spots to 36th in the FedExCup standings and is trending in the right direction. “My game is in great shape,” said Bradley, a four-time TOUR winner whose most recent victory came at the 2018 BMW Championship. “I’m playing (the Wells Fargo) in Charlotte, I got the PGA coming up in a couple weeks – this is the best I’ve played in a very long time, even before I had won even when I had won BMW, this is the best I’ve felt, so I’m excited.” 4. Great run continues for Hovland Viktor Hovland continues to enjoy a spectacular season. Making his Valspar debut, he shot a final-round 65 – low round of the day – for a T3 finish. In the process he moved from seventh to third in the FedExCup, and to 11th in the Official World Golf Ranking. Not bad for a guy who is only 23 and turned pro less than two years ago. “Obviously getting another win would be very fun,” Hovland said, “but just being consistent week in, week out is, yeah, I take a lot of satisfaction from that.” 5. Ancer heads to Quail Hollow in good form Abraham Ancer, the breakout star of the 2019 International Presidents Cup Team, shot a final-round 69 to finish solo fifth at the Valspar. It was his career-best 11th top-25 finish in 17 starts this season. He moved up to 33rd in the FedExCup and this week heads to the Wells Fargo at Quail Hollow Club, which will host the 2022 Presidents Cup. “Just try to figure it out, just try to play it,” he said of his plans. “I only played it I think once before. It’s a big golf course, so I know I have to be in the fairway almost every time to be able to have a chance for birdie, obviously, but, yeah, just to get more comfortable, get some rounds in, practice pretty much every day before the tournament starts and just get as many reps as I can.” As for any Presidents Cup prep with the team, Ancer said it was still too early. “Not really,” he said. “I think we just going to go do our thing. We might catch some dinner, whatever, hang out, but nothing crazy.” COMCAST BUSINESS TOUR TOP 10 The Comcast Business TOUR TOP 10 highlights and rewards the extraordinary level of play required to earn a spot in the TOP 10 at the conclusion of the FedExCup regular season. The competition will conclude prior to the FedExCup PLAYOFFS where the top 10 FedExCup points leaders will be recognized and awarded as the most elite in golf. Week after week, shot after shot, each event matters more than ever before. Who will finish in the Comcast Business TOUR TOP 10? Click here to follow the weekly action.

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