5/06/2012

McIlroy Loss Earns World No 1




Rickie Fowler beat Rory McIlroy and DA Points in a sudden-death play-off to win the Wells Fargo Championship at Quail Hollow in North Carolina.

The 23-year-old American, ranked 39 in the world, secured his maiden PGA Tour title after producing a superb approach shot at the first extra hole.

McIlroy's final round of 70 was enough for him to leapfrog Luke Donald at the top of the world rankings.

England's Lee Westwood finished joint-fifth after a final-round of 66.

McIlroy took some solace from returning to the top of the world rankings after missing out on a second Wells Fargo Championship title.

"That's nice. It's a little consolation," McIlroy said. "I would rather win the tournament, but yeah, it's good. I want to try and play well for the next few weeks and try and solidify my spot there at number one and hopefully start by doing that next week and giving myself another chance to win."

Fowler won the play-off with his second shot from the fairway, which left him around four feet from the hole. As his rivals managed tricky two-putts for par, Fowler sank his birdie attempt.

The win brought back memories of McIlroy's first Tour win, which came at the same venue two years ago - albeit in more spectacular fashion as he finished with a course-record 62.

Fowler said: "We've always had a great camaraderie, been good buddies. I definitely respect him as a player, and I feel like he respects me as well.

"But I've had a lot of fun playing against him."


No comments:

Post a Comment