McIlroy reacts after his long birdie effort at the 15th came up a couple of feet short. AP Photo/Chris O'Meara/Alamy Stock Photo
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McIlroy tied for fifth despite Saturday struggles at The Players Championship
McIlroy is four shots behind overnight leader JJ Spaun ahead of the final round at Sawgrass.
12.03am, 16 Mar 2025
RORY MCILROY WILL start Sunday’s final round at The Players Championship in a tie for fifth place, four strokes behind 54-hole leader JJ Spaun.
The world number two made an eight-foot birdie at the last to keep himself firmly in the mix despite an indifferent round of one-over par 73.
But McIlroy’s final flourish was trumped by playing partner Spaun who rolled in a 25-footer to give himself a one-shot overnight lead at the top on 12-under par.
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Bud Cauley fired a 66 with seven birdies and an eagle to challenge on 11-under, while Lucas Glover and Alex Smalley are tied for third on nine-under, one shot ahead of McIlroy, Corey Connors and Akshay Bhatia on eight-under.
Whipping winds played havoc with the field, with an average score of 74, while a stormy forecast prompted organisers to schedule Sunday’s last round in threesomes off the first and 10th holes with morning tee times.
McIlroy will tee off at 1.50pm Irish time alongside Smalley and Connors, with the leading trio of Spaun, Cauley and Glover out at 2.01pm.
McIlroy was one-under for his round at the turn, but made back-to-back bogeys at 12 and 13 before dropping a further shot with a three-putt on the iconic par-three 17th.
“They slowed the greens down today for obvious reasons and I didn’t adjust very well to that,” McIlroy said.
“I feel like every bogey was really soft. I could have shot something in the 60s.
“I have to at least be encouraged by how I hit it and how I controlled myself around there. I just need to chip and putt better tomorrow.”
Shane Lowry shot a two-over par 74 to sit on one-over for the tournament in a tie for 51st place.
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McIlroy tied for fifth despite Saturday struggles at The Players Championship
RORY MCILROY WILL start Sunday’s final round at The Players Championship in a tie for fifth place, four strokes behind 54-hole leader JJ Spaun.
The world number two made an eight-foot birdie at the last to keep himself firmly in the mix despite an indifferent round of one-over par 73.
But McIlroy’s final flourish was trumped by playing partner Spaun who rolled in a 25-footer to give himself a one-shot overnight lead at the top on 12-under par.
Bud Cauley fired a 66 with seven birdies and an eagle to challenge on 11-under, while Lucas Glover and Alex Smalley are tied for third on nine-under, one shot ahead of McIlroy, Corey Connors and Akshay Bhatia on eight-under.
Whipping winds played havoc with the field, with an average score of 74, while a stormy forecast prompted organisers to schedule Sunday’s last round in threesomes off the first and 10th holes with morning tee times.
McIlroy will tee off at 1.50pm Irish time alongside Smalley and Connors, with the leading trio of Spaun, Cauley and Glover out at 2.01pm.
McIlroy was one-under for his round at the turn, but made back-to-back bogeys at 12 and 13 before dropping a further shot with a three-putt on the iconic par-three 17th.
“They slowed the greens down today for obvious reasons and I didn’t adjust very well to that,” McIlroy said.
“I feel like every bogey was really soft. I could have shot something in the 60s.
“I have to at least be encouraged by how I hit it and how I controlled myself around there. I just need to chip and putt better tomorrow.”
Shane Lowry shot a two-over par 74 to sit on one-over for the tournament in a tie for 51st place.
– © AFP 2025
Golf moving day Rory McIlroy The Players Championship