Weather: Partly Cloudy. High of 90. Winds S/SW 15-25 mph.
PGA TOUR rookie Rory McIlroy shot a final round 10-under 62 to claim his first TOUR win by four strokes over Phil Mickelson at the Quail Hollow Championship.
McIlroy missed his last two cuts coming into the Quail Hollow Championship (Shell Houston Open and Masters).
McIlroy, who eagled the par-5 seventh hole (his 16th hole of the day) on Friday to help make the cut on the number, becomes the first player to win after making the cut on the number since Chris Couch at the 2006 Zurich Classic of New Orleans.
McIlroy's final round 10-under 62 sets the course record and is the lowest finishing score by a winner since Brad Faxon's 61 at the 2005 Buick Championship. It is the lowest in relation to par since Ryan Palmer shot the same score to win the 2004 FUNAI Classic at Walt Disney World Resort.
McIlroy becomes the third straight player in their 20s to win the Quail Hollow Championship (Anthony Kim and Sean O'Hair). He is now the youngest winner of the event.
McIlroy came from four strokes back on the last day to win, tying Hunter Mahan (Waste Management Phoenix Open) and fellow rookie Derek Lamely (Puerto Rico Open) for the largest comeback on TOUR this season.
McIlroy, who will celebrate his 21st birthday on Tuesday, has made 15 of 18 cuts in his young PGA TOUR career.
McIlroy moves to 25th in the FedExCup standings.
Below are the youngest winners in the history of the PGA TOUR:
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McIlroy's lowest final round score prior to Sunday was a 68 at the 2009 U.S. Open. McIlroy has posted 12 fourth round scores on TOUR as a professional, five of them have been in the 60s and seven in the 70s.
McIlroy joins Vijay Singh (2005) as the only International players to win the Quail Hollow Championship. Vijay Singh's six stroke come-from-behind win in 2005 is the largest in tournament history. McIlroy's is now second.
McIlroy joins Bill Haas, Ian Poulter and Derek Lamely as first time winners on the PGA TOUR this season. McIlroy joins Derek Lamely (Puerto Rico Open presented by Banco Popular) as the only rookies to win on TOUR this year. No rookie won on TOUR in 2009.
Tiger Woods is the quickest player to register $2 million in career earnings (16 events) in 1997. With his win, Rory McIlroy reached the $2 million mark in 17 career events as a professional.
Angel Cabrera (3rd) turned in the best finish of his PGA TOUR career in a non-major. His previous best finish on TOUR in a non-major is T4, which he accomplished four different times. This was Cabrera's 133rd event on the PGA TOUR.
Cabrera missed the cut last year at the Quail Hollow Championship and finished T72 in 2008.
Billy Mayfair was seeking to become the first Monday Qualifier to win on the PGA TOUR since Fred Wadsworth at the 1986 Southern Open. Mayfair won the Quail Hollow Championship Qualifier on Monday at Carolina Golf Club.
With the exception of the majors, the Quail Hollow Championship has featured the most difficult finishing holes (Nos. 16-18) on TOUR six out of the last seven years. The only exception was 2004, when the closing holes at East Lake GC (THE TOUR Championship) barely edged out Nos. 16-18 at Quail Hollow. The three holes played the toughest this week. Here's a look at the cumulative stats:
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McIlroy birdied two of the last three holes in the final rounds and recorded 3s on his final six holes of the day. His 30 on the back nine was the first of the week and ties the course record.
Phil Mickelson, making his first start since winning the Masters Tournament, made his seventh start at the Quail Hollow Championship. He owns five top-10s here (2004-T5, 2005-T7, 2007-T3, 2009-T4, 2010-2nd). Here's a look at how Mickelson has fared in his next start after winning a major championship:
-- 2004 Masters, followed by T2 at Zurich Classic of New Orleans
-- 2005 PGA Championship, followed by T51 at World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational
-- 2006 Masters, followed by T15 at Zurich Classic of New Orleans
-- 2010 Masters, 2nd at the Quail Hollow Championship
Mickelson now has 23 career runner-up finishes.
Scoring Averages:
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Bogey-free rounds:
R1: Brad Faxon, Bo Van Pelt and Camilo Villegas
R2: Phil Mickelson, Chad Campbell
R3: Davis Love III (68), Charley Hoffman (69), Ross Fisher (69)
R4: Rory McIlroy (62)