Scottie Scheffler regained the top spot in the world rankings, successfully defending his WM Phoenix Open title. Scheffler carded a closing 65 at TPC Scottsdale to finish on 19 under par and two shots ahead of Canada’s Nick Taylor, who also shot 65 playing alongside Scheffler and world number three Jon Rahm. Rahm finished three shots behind Taylor in outright third place after a final round of 68. Scheffler’s win meant Rory McIlroy needed to finish third or better to remain top of the rankings, but but instead McIlroy settled for a tie for 32nd following a final round of 70.
Scheffler started the day with a two-shot lead and immediately saw that halved as playing partners Taylor and Rahm birdied the first, but he responded with birdies on the second and third. Taylor and Rahm both birdied the sixth to close the gap again and although Rahm bogeyed the eighth, Taylor’s birdies on the ninth and 10th gave the world number 223 a share of the lead. Scheffler reclaimed top spot with an eagle on the par-five 13th. Said Scheffler: “I’m just proud how I fought today. I didn’t have my best stuff, I grinded it out. I wasn’t hitting it good off the tee, my irons didn’t feel as sharp but I played a great round of golf.” Asked about the par save on the 16th, Scheffler added: “It was a big putt. That almost looked like it was going to be short for a while but that putt was really fast and just kept going. It was definitely a lot of fun to see that one go in.”
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