Rory McIlroy and Justin Thomas put on a full show during the much-needed week of the PGA Tour at the 2022 RBC Canadian Open. McIlroy finished with 62 runs and finished with 19 runs, beating Tony Finaw by two strokes and Justin Thomas by three runs. This is his second consecutive win at the Canadian Open and the 21st in his extraordinary PGA Tour career.
McIlroy, who played with Thomas and Fina in the final three, came out of the gates completely on fire. He made five birdies in the front and shot 29 runs on that side, then made his first three birdies in the ninth and completely captured the match. Although he began to fade slightly, he changed his last two approaches – one to 2 feet and the other to 4 feet – both to 62.
It was representative of a day when McIlroy was in the wedge. He hit seven approaches within 5 feet (all over 100 yards) and lost strokes in the 62 runs he scored in one day. Think about it – he was worse than the field average with his putter and put 62 on the card. !
Somehow, the post-round interview success of his 21st PGA Tour was even better.
The final in Canada was a great response to this week’s LIV Golf Debut in London, which gained momentum and paid $ 48 million to its 48-player field on Saturday, the first of eight events with 54-holes. LIV Golf is competing for the PGA Tour and a lot of people are interested. LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman proudly said on Saturday, “We’re not going anywhere.”
McIlroy, who has openly stated that he will not play LIV golf, questioned Norman after his victory on Sunday.
“It’s incredible,” McIlroy told CBS Sports. “This is the day I will remember for a long time.” He now has 21 PGA Tour hits, which he noted is “one more than the others”.
Norman has won 20 PGA Tours.
All in all, it’s one of the most significant weeks in recent PGA Tour history (and we’re not talking about a big Championship week starting on Monday!).
No one knows how the next few years will go or who will win the battle for regular season dominance between LIV Golf and the PGA Tour. Those organizations will be involved in that fight for a long time. However, it has been clarified how this week went. A day after proving that LIV golf was not for him, McIlroy once again revealed himself to be the professional golf soul. Grade: A +
Here are our remaining grades for the Canadian Open.
2. Tony Finow (-17): The worst score in the final group on Sunday was 64. The Worse Score. Both Finav and Thomas took that number to McLaren 62, and Finav made one last monster put. It was a good decision for him, and one important week to discuss his best performance of the year. Finav received 4.6 strokes a day, which is enough to win a regular PGA Tour event. Unfortunately, McIlroy scored over five. Quality: a
3. Justin Thomas (-15): This is as much for JT as it was for Finau. The PGA Championship winner received four strokes a round for the week and completed five shots more than the T7s, and on Sunday realized he had no real chance. However, he will go to The Country Club next week, looking for his second consecutive major, and I do not know if his confidence has ever been higher. One reason why: He has had a positive stroke in five of his last six matches. Quality: a
T4. Justin Rose (-14): It may seem strange to be disappointed at 60, but Rose has done something no one has done in the last 30 years. He attacked his approach for a long time and created the bogey when it was enough to shoot 59 in the final hole.
“I was completely disappointed,” Rose said. “Because you know what’s in danger, of course. You’re really playing the last hole – I’ve never shot 59 before – so this would have been a pretty footnote in a week. I do not know how much it was. I have no control, but … We’re right between the two clubs, and I went the wrong way and paid the price for it. Quality: a
T18. Scotty Scheffler (-7): The Masters champion had a bad day (he shot 1 over Saturday and faded hard to go to the final day). Like JD, there are still positives to carry. He finished in the top 15 in the tea to green and driving distance, and in both the season and his career he will be huge next week in his second big attempt. He played quietly better at the US Open recently, and if you believe that playing in his last two events (Charles Schwab Challenge and this Canadian Open) is a good indicator, he should be one of the favorites at Brooklyn. Quality: b
