FedEx Cup ends for Lowry and McDowell; Meadow wins
Rory McIlroy. Photo by Darren Carroll/PGA of America
Rory McIlroy will begin this week's Tour Championship five shots behind new FedEx Cup leader Justin Thomas after a disappointing weekend in the BMW Championship in Chicago.
The world number three closed with rounds of 70 and 71 to tie for 19th on 11-under at Medinah, 14 shots behind Thomas, whose three-shot win catapulted him from 15th to first in the race for the $15 million FedEx Cup bonus.
Leading by six shots overnight thanks to a scintillating, course record 61 on Saturday, Thomas birdied four of his last eight holes to card a 68 and claim his 10th PGA Tour win by three shots from Patrick Cantlay, who shot 65, on 25-under par.
As a result, Thomas leapt from 15th to first in the FedEx Cup standings and under the new staggered format introduced for the Tour Championship, he will start on 10-under par at East Lake, two shots ahead of second-ranked Cantlay, three ahead of third-ranked Brooks Koepka, four clear of Patrick Reed and five ahead of McIlroy.
Open champion Shane Lowry, who needed to finish solo 29th at Medinah to secure his a first appearance at the Tour Championship, tied for 48th on five-under after a 69 to fall from 25th to 33rd in the standings.
Graeme McDowell also misses out on Atlanta, ending up 68th after he tied for 57th on three-under after a 71.
Masters champion Tiger Woods, who needed to finish 11th to defend his title at East Lake, tied for 37th with Jordan Spieth after a 72 and fell further in the standings to 42nd.
Meanwhile, Stephanie Meadow won the ISPS Handa World Invitational Men | Women at Galgorm Castle and boosted her confidence in her battle to keep her LPGA Tour card.
The Jordanstown star (27) fended off world number 29 Charley Hull down the stretch to win €36,030 - the same cheque awarded to men's winner Jack Senior.
Hull got to within two shots when Meadow bogeyed the 17th, but the Solheim Cup star missed a six-footer for eagle at the last and tapped in for a 69 to the Ulster star's 73.
"It's unbelievable to win here really," said Meadow, who won by one stroke on 10-under par. "When Charley hit that three-wood to six feet on 18, it was an unreal shot.
"She didn't make the putt, but it was a great run at me. She definitely gave me a run for my money."
Meadow is ranked 110th on the LPGA Tour standings, and while only the top 100 keep their cards, she returns with her confidence sky-high.
"I've got a little bit of work to do to maintain my LPGA card, so hopefully I can take this win and use this as momentum," she said. "It's big for my confidence."
Leona Maguire tied for sixth on five-under after a 73 with Castlewarden amateur Lauren Walsh a shot further back after a 71, giving her a brilliant share of eighth in her first appearance in a professional event.
Senior (31) shot a 67 to Matthew Baldwin's six-under 64 to tie on 11-under before claiming the title with a birdie at the second extra hole after they had tied on 11-under.
Ardglass' Cormac Sharvin, who was only Irishman to make the 54-hole cut, closed with a 69 to tie for 21st on two-under.
Belgium's Thomas Pieters (27) claimed his first European Tour victory for three years when he held off a late charge from Spanish rookie Adri Arnaus to win the D+D Real Czech Masters for the second time.
The 2016 Ryder Cup star had a three-shot lead with nine holes to go, but Arnaus birdied two of the final three holes for a closing 69 that Pieters only matched by converting a short putt at the 18th for a one-stroke win on 19-under par.
"I'm relieved," said the sometimes bad-tempered Pieters after his fourth European Tour win. "It's been a long time - it's been three years since I last won. It feels good to win again."
As well known for his fiery temper as his big-hitting, he pointed to his par save the 15th, where he took a penalty drop from deep rough and got up and down from 121 yards for a crucial four as an example of his growing maturity.
"Last year I would have whacked at that shot at 15 six times and finished way down the field," he said.
Paul Dunne closed with a 69 to share 23rd on nine-under to end a run of four missed cuts since his tie for fourth in the Made in Denmark in late May and move up from 97th to 90th in the Race to Dubai while 2018 runner-up Pádraig Harrington tied for 58th on four-under after a 70.
Des Smyth recorded his best Staysure Tour finish in more than 11 months when he tied for 11th behind Paul Lawrie in the Scottish Senior Open at Craigielaw.
The former Ryder Cup player (66) made six birdies in a one-under 70 to finish on four-over-par, six strokes behind Lawrie (50), whose 71 gave him a two-shot win over Peter Baker and Australian Peter Fowler and his first senior success.
At the Korn Ferry Tour finals, Scottie Scheffler won the Nationwide Children's Hospital Championship in Ohio.
Scheffler already earned his PGA Tour card by finishing in the top 25 of the Korn Ferry Tour regular season points list.
There are 25 PGA Tour cards available in the Korn Ferry Tour Finals series, while 25 were handed out for the top points finishers at the conclusion of the regular season.
Players like Scheffler who have already secured their cards are still playing for status, as the priority ranking for the 2019-20 season will be based on their Finals performance.
Seamus Power, who missed the cut in Columbus, has two events to make the top 25 in the KFT Finals list
