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After Further Review: Golf steals Sunday spotlight

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In this week’s edition of After Further Review, GolfChannel.com writers weigh in on a wild Sunday in golf which saw Rory McIlroy break out of his slump just days after breaking off his engagement, Adam Scott outduel Jason Dufner in a playoff to win the Crowne Plaza Invitational in his first tournament as No. 1 and Colin Montgomerie win his first major, the Senior PGA Championship.

The best Sunday afternoons in golf are usually scripted well in advance.

The final round of the Masters. Of the U.S. and British Opens, too. And certainly the Ryder Cup conclusion. We can grab our calendars on Jan. 1 each year (or every other year, in the case of the Ryder Cup), place a big red X through these dates and let the action unfurl from the comforts of the couch.

Every once in a while, though, a Sunday afternoon unexpectedly develops into must-see TV. That was the case this Sunday, when the Crowne Plaza Invitational, BMW PGA Championship, Airbus LPGA Classic and Senior PGA Championship might not have seemed like the greatest collection of tournaments beforehand, but together provided enough drama and entertainment with enough big names involved to ensure this will be remembered as one of golf’s best days of the year.

It would be incorrect to state that with the Indy 500, a baseball no-hitter and playoff games in the NBA and NHL, golf won the day on the sporting landscape. But during a time when the game needs a jolt with Tiger Woods on the shelf, it received one through organic means on a great Sunday afternoon. – Jason Sobel

Tiger who?

Whoa, Tiger lovers, just kidding, but this is as good as the PGA Tour, the European Tour and the Champions Tour has been able to do trying to fill the substantial void since Woods was sidelined earlier this year with back surgery.

If Woods was watching golf this Memorial Day weekend, he might not have gotten up off his couch on Sunday. Not with Rory McIlroy winning the BMW PGA Championship on the European Tour in the morning. Not with Adam Scott making his debut as world No. 1 in style winning the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial in a playoff late in the afternoon. Not with Colin Montgomerie holding back a hard-charging Tom Watson to break through and win a senior major, his first major, and his first tour title on American soil, early in the afternoon.

Tiger’s absence has been conspicuous with so few stars stepping up to try to fill the void, but we got a flood of welcome star power Sunday. – Randall Mell

Maybe he’s happy with the way things played out. Maybe regret is the ultimate waste of time. But after Colin Montgomerie closed with a 65 on Sunday at the Senior PGA Championship it’s easy to imagine the Scot spending the next few days second-guessing his path in life. At 50, Monty has now doubled his PGA Tour win total on the Champions circuit. That is to say, Sunday’s Senior PGA was his first official victory in the United States and, more importantly, his first major championship. His decision to stay in Europe and only dabble in Tour golf is history, but considering his recent success on this side of the Atlantic it may be the kind of history that haunts. – Rex Hoggard

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Newly single McIlroy (66) wins BMW PGA

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Turns out, Rory McIlroy was engaged all this week at the BMW PGA Championship. No longer to Caroline Wozniacki, but rather, engaged in his golf at Wentworth.

McIlroy posted his lowest round of the week on Sunday, a 6-under 66, en route to a one-shot victory over childhood friend Shane Lowry (68) at the European Tour’s flagship event. It was his sixth European Tour victory, his first on European soil and his first since November 2012, when he won the DP World Tour Championship.

The win came just four days after the 25-year-old announced he and his tennis star fiancé broke off their engagement.

BMW PGA Championship full-field leaderboard

BMW PGA Championship: Articles, videos and photos

Photos: Rory and Caroline

“I’m not exactly sure how I’m feeling right now, to be honest,” McIlroy said. “I’m happy that I won, obviously. … Mixed emotions.”

McIlroy mounted the largest final-round comeback of his career; he came from seven shots back of 54-hole leader Thomas Bjorn. McIlroy got off to a hot start with an eagle at the par-5 fourth hole, then added six birdies to just two bogeys on the day. Before the win, McIlroy’s best finish at the BMW PGA was a fifth-place finish in 2009.

McIlroy’s last worldwide victory came at the Australian Open in December 2013, where he also shot 66 in the final round to win by one over Adam Scott. It was later that month, on December 31st, that McIlroy asked for Wozniacki’s hand in marriage.

Finishing two shots back of McIlroy were Bjorn (75) and former world No. 1 Luke Donald (70).

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