McIlroy the big winner at East Lake

Dustin Johnson and Kirkland homeowner Kevin Chappell share the lead entering Sunday’s final round of the Tour Championship, the last event in the four-tournament FedEx Cup playoffs.

If Johnson wins Sunday, he will also claim the FedExCup and the $10 million prize awarded to the victor of the season-long points race.

“It would mean a great deal”.

“This week it’s all about you limiting your mistakes”, he said. The Tour Championship purse is almost $9 million on its own, but when you combine it with the outrageous FedEx Cup Playoffs purse ($35 million), there is going to be some serious money on the line in the final round. Or at least they will be if Johnson can clinch the win Sunday afternoon – and every other important trophy in the process.

“I’ve got a lot of confidence going into tomorrow”, Johnson said. Almost two hours later, he holed a 15-foot birdie putt on the fourth extra hole to win the tournament and claim the $10 million FedEx Cup bonus.

The latter would be an eerily similar situation to one in 2012, when McIlroy won twice in the playoffs but the FedEx Cup went to Brandt Snedeker. He has his own quest to wage: Trying to win a tournament for the first time as a six-year PGA Tour pro. The Spanish star played the first five holes on the back nine in 6 under with an eagle and five birdies, then closed with four pars to miss a chance to break 60.

“I felt comfortable. I just went to sleep on the back nine and made a bad double bogey on 14”, Schwartzel said.

What was your favorite moment from Rory McIlroy’s Tour Championship win?

Chappell had a two-shot lead with two holes to play when he made bogey on the 17th hole – only his third of the week at East Lake – and Moore birdied it in the group ahead of him. He pushed his drive into the right rough and could only muster a double bogey. Chappell had a 20-foot birdie putt on the last hole to win and left it short.

“I like my position”. I played with Ryan all day, who played phenomenally well.

“It gets me closer to what I need to do”.

McIlroy’s putter has been a stone around his neck this year but there have been genuine signs during the FedEx Cup play-offs that he has worked out his problems on the greens. If McIlroy won the tournament, the Ulsterman would also win the FedEx Cup.

Scotland’s Russell Knox carded the low round of the day of 66 to join South Korea’s Kim Si-woo and American Justin Thomas on 139, while defending champion Jordan Spieth was in a group on 140 that also included Australian Adam Scott.

McIlroy was three shots behind with three holes to play Sunday in the Tour Championship.

A hat-trick of birdies from the fourth had briefly taken Johnson four shots clear of the field, although the 32-year-old gave the chasing pack a glimmer of hope with a bogey on the seventh. Chappell was eliminated after making a par.

“I guess the streaks have been longer”, Chappell said.

“I’ve been able to keep momentum when I’ve had it”.

Two years ago, Billy Horschel won the final two playoff events to claim a deserving FedEx title – but there was little argument in favor of him as the best player of the season.

But let’s return to No. 17, shall we?

Win, lose or tank, 2016 has been a career year for Kevin Chappell.

“That range session definitely helped last night”.