Thomas returns at Sony Open and scene of scoring records

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PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. — When Matt Jones won his first PGA TOUR title seven years ago, he needed a 45-foot birdie putt just to get into a playoff and then a 40-yard chip-in to take the victory. This win was far less dramatic, yet just as meaningful. RELATED: Final Leaderboard | Winner’s Bag: Matt Jones, The Honda Classic Jones won The Honda Classic by five shots Sunday, a final round of 2-under 68 good enough to finish the week at 12-under 268 at PGA National. The margin matched the largest in tournament history, tying the mark set by Jack Nicklaus in 1977 and matched by Camilo Villegas in 2010. “Pretty emotional,” Jones said moments after sealing the win, his voice cracking a bit. “Seven years.” The win moves him to 11th in the FedExCup and closer to making his first TOUR Championship. It also will get him into the Masters Tournament in April and THE PLAYERS Championship and Sentry Tournament of Champions in 2022. The 40-year-old Australian earned $1.26 million and, this time, he’ll have more than a day to prepare for the trip to Augusta National. His win at the Houston Open in 2014 — and his Masters invite — came just one day before he had to go to Augusta, so it was a mad scramble to get family and friends together to share in the experience. Jones started the week with a course-record-tying round of 9-under 61. He was three shots behind Aaron Wise after 36 holes after a second-round 70, and his round of 69 on Saturday was good enough to put him up by three entering Sunday. Brandon Hagy (66) finished 7 under and alone in second on his 30th birthday, his chance at winning doomed by a third-round 76. Chase Seiffert (64), Brendan Steele (65), C.T. Pan (70), Denny McCarthy (67) and Russell Henley (68) tied for third at 6 under. “There’s a lot of tough holes out there and there’s big stakes for sure, but I’ve been working on some good stuff and it’s nice to see some of that pan out,” Hagy said. The only stretch where Jones’ grip on the lead seemed in peril was midway through the round; Wise, who once led by six shots during the third round, had four birdies in a six-hole stretch on the front and got within one of the lead. Wise’s chances ended at the par-4 10th. He hit his second into a bunker, then four-putted from 25 feet for triple-bogey. Jones’ lead went to four, and he avoided trouble the rest of the way, while Wise finished with a 73 and tied for 13th at 4 under. J.B. Holmes was in the final group with Jones, three shots back to start the day, and his chances were gone very quickly. Holmes knocked his shot from a greenside bunker off the green and made bogey on the opening hole, then sent his tee shot way right on the par-4 second and needed about 10 minutes to find the ball — it was nestled among palm fronds — and decide how to proceed. He went on to make double bogey there, and when Jones birdied the par-5 third Holmes’ deficit had gone from three to eight shots in about 45 minutes. At that point, only a few had a realistic chance at catching Jones. Before long, the outcome was obvious. “You can’t get a tougher golf course to win on than this one, in these conditions,” Jones said. “To be able to do that on this golf course is amazing and something I can build on for the future, hopefully.”

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FARMINGDALE, N.Y. – Rory McIlroy was 5 over for his first three holes and headed for a rare missed cut at the 101st PGA Championship at Bethpage Black. Then he found his range with the putter. After signing for a 40 on the tougher back nine, the reigning PLAYERS champion birdied holes 4, 5, 6 and 8 as he shot a front-nine 31 to almost certainly make the cut (71, 3 over total) with the afternoon wave still out on the course. “I was just glad to see one ball go in the hole and I got going from there,â€� said McIlroy, twice a winner of the PGA Championship. “I obviously had a very bad start. I didn’t feel like I hit any bad shots; maybe bad decisions more than bad shots.â€� McIlroy made putts of 13, 23, 22 and nearly 19 feet for his four late birdies. It was a welcome departure from his form the day before, when he tallied 35 putts, and a massive improvement from his atrocious start on the back nine early in his second round. As has been the story for many others this week, McIlroy struggled as he opened with the brutal, par-4 10th. He lost his tee shot right, and his second shot went just 91 yards into the trouble left. By the time he finally got to the green, he had 10 feet remaining to save bogey, and missed. Related: Tee times | Spieth sets up career Grand Slam chase | Koepka continues major dominance | Berger back in contention on Long Island “You go from the range and then you get in a car and you’re not hitting another shot for another 25 minutes,â€� he said, echoing what a handful of others have said this week. “So, feel like you could warm up again, basically, so that first tee shot is a little challenging for sure.â€� More right misses off the tee at 11 (bogey) and 12 (another double) completed the horrific start. “I tried over every shot,â€� he said. “And I didn’t let my head get down. I grinded.â€� With eight top-10 finishes in 10 starts coming in, McIlroy was among the pre-tournament picks to win this week. But until his last six holes Friday, he hadn’t looked comfortable at Bethpage. Part of that, he said, was the lies he’s gotten after his misses. Part has been the wind. “I though we got it pretty windy this morning, and we got it pretty windy yesterday afternoon,â€� he said. “So, I’d say that in terms of the scoring between the two sides of the draw, I’d say ours was maybe a shot tougher. We’ll see how that pans out at the end of the day.â€� He started his comeback with a 3-foot birdie putt at the par-5 13th hole, but bogeyed 15. He made the turn and managed only pars at 1 and 2, and was tied for 120th place. What was he playing for at that point? “Pride,â€� McIlroy said. “Just pride. Just trying to play a good round of golf and try to get something that’s close to the best out of myself. And, yeah, I don’t like missing cuts. It’s not something that I’m used to, fortunately, and I wanted to be around for the weekend.â€� McIlroy, 30, is third in the FedExCup and fourth in the world. “It’s just a matter of not pressing too much,â€� he said, “and staying patient and letting the good golf sort of come through. Took a while today, but it eventually got here.â€�

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