Rory McIlroy produced a sensational back-nine birdie run to snatch a dramatic victory over Robert MacIntyre at the Genesis Scottish Open.
McIlroy overcame a mid-round wobble to birdie four of his last eight holes and post a two-under 68 in windy conditions at The Renaissance Club, with a birdie-birdie finish lifting him to 15 under and a shot clear of MacIntyre.
Victory is McIlroy’s second of the year and first since the Hero Dubai Desert Classic in February, with the latest success his first career win in Scotland and giving him confidence heading into The 151st Open next week at Royal Liverpool.
MacIntyre fell just short of a famous home victory despite charging up the leaderboard on the final day with a six-under 64, with world No 1 Scottie Scheffler finishing four strokes back in tied-third alongside Byeong Hun An and David Lingmerth.
McIlroy holed from 15 feet to save par at the first but dropped a shot at the next, with the overnight leader then cancelling out a birdie at the par-five third by three-putting from long range at the fifth.
He produced a spectacular up and down to save par from the sand at the sixth and birdied the par-four next, only to finish his front nine with back-to-back bogeys to reach the turn in 37.
McIlroy birdied the par-four 11th after a monster tee shot and converted from nearly 40 feet at the 14th to move back in a share of the lead, before falling a shot behind again when MacIntyre – playing several groups ahead – birdied the last.
The Northern Irishman missed an eight-foot attempt at the 16th but produced a brilliant tee shot and rolled in from five feet to birdie the par-three 17th, pulling him back level with MacIntyre, then holed a 10-foot birdie at the 18th to complete a famous victory.
MacIntyre started the day three strokes back but followed a tap-in birdie at the par-five third by rolling in from six feet at the sixth, then produced a brilliant approach into the par-five 10th to set up a six-foot eagle.
The Scot holed from 12 feet at the 14th for the first of back-to-back birdies, temporarily taking him two clear, then responded to a bogey at the par-five 16th by firing an incredible iron from the rough into the final green to set up a closing birdie and set the initial clubhouse target.
An and Lingmerth ended the week in tied-third and secured two of the three spots on offer for The 151st Open, with Denmark’s Nicolai Hojgaard earning the other last-minute major invite.
Tommy Fleetwood and Tom Kim both double-bogeyed their final holes to drop back to nine under and a share of sixth that included Tyrrell Hatton, who led during the final day before dropping four shots in his final five holes.
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