CHARLOTTE: Rory McIlroy's eagle on the par-5 10th hole added to his final-round momentum on his way to winning the Wells Fargo Championship for the fourth time on Sunday at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, N.C.
The Northern Irishman shot a final-round 6-under-par 65 for a tournament total of 17-under 267, good for a five-stroke advantage on runner-up Xander Schauffele, who had 71 in the final round.
Beginning with birdies on Nos. 8 and 9, McIlroy overcame Schauffele. The 34-foot eagle putt at No. 10 matched Schauffele's eagle from the seventh hole, and McIlroy pushed his advantage to four shots with another birdie at the par-3 13th.
In a six-hole span, McIlroy charged from two shots behind to a four-shot lead.
McIlroy excelled at times when it might have looked challenging. On the 14th hole, he blasted out of a sand bunker and sank the ensuing putt for a birdie. He knocked in a shot from a greenside bunker for another eagle on No. 15.
McIlroy also won the tournament in 2010, 2015 and 2021. The margin of victory in 2015 was seven shots, something that appeared likely again until a mishap on the final hole when his approach shot bounced into the water behind the green and he ended up with double bogey.
The tournament's only other multi-time winner is Max Homa, who has won it twice. He finished tied for eighth this year at 4 under after a final-round 69.
Schauffele, who led after each of the first three rounds, held a one-shot edge on McIlroy entering Sunday. It was a two-man showdown in the last round.
South Korea's Byeong Hun An shot 66 for one of the lowest rounds of the day to place third at 9 under, while Australian Jason Day's 70 and South Korean Sungjae Im's 73 left them tied for fourth place at 6 under.
Defending champion Wyndham Clark shot 73 on Sunday and finished at 7 over and tied for 47th place. REUTERS