Rory McIlroy openly acknowledged that his game still falls short of his own expectations as the season draws to a close with the Tour Championship, even after coming agonisingly close to a win at the BMW Championship. He described his recent form as "far from where it needs to be" following a lacklustre showing at the FedEx St.
Jude Championship, where he finished 66th out of a 68‑player field. By contrast, his play in St.
Louis represented a marked improvement. At Bellerive Country Club, the world No. 2 birdied three of the final four holes in his third round, pulling within five strokes of the leader, Wyndham Clark. That surge set up a Sunday showdown with the US Open champion, and McIlroy managed to level with Clark on the final day.
Despite remaining co‑leader with three holes remaining, McIlroy ultimately slipped to third place, four strokes behind Clark, who closed with a three‑birdie finish to secure a three‑shot victory and his third PGA Tour triumph of the year. "I'm closer [with my game] than I was at the start of the week," McIlroy said, but he added, "I'm still not in a spot where I'm super happy with where my game is or where my swing is, so I just have to keep working on it." He also noted, "It's nice to know, even when I'm not super happy with everything, I can still piece it together and get it around and still give myself a chance to win tournaments." McIlroy capitalised on a two‑shot swing on the opening hole and recovered from bogeys on the fourth and seventh holes, then rattled off three birdies over a four‑hole stretch beginning at the eighth. This surge brought him level after Clark had posted three over the first ten holes.
As the round progressed, Clark edged ahead with a 15‑foot birdie on the 16th and followed it with a two‑shot birdie on the subsequent par‑five, while McIlroy dropped a shot on the same hole. Clark added another birdie on the 18th to extend his margin over Patrick Cantlay. "I felt like most of my game held up today," McIlroy reflected. "Obviously, going out in the final group and you're working on some stuff, you're just hoping that everything stays the way it is.
I hit it well on the back nine. I gave myself plenty of chances. I just couldn't get a putt to drop there in those final few holes.
I always felt like I needed to just get my nose ahead to really try to put the pressure on Wyndham [Clark] and I couldn't." He continued, "We were tied there for a few holes and then when he made that putt on 16 for a two and I couldn't answer – that was obviously a huge moment in the round and in the tournament. Overall, I'm encouraged with how I played this week and certainly something to build on going into East Lake." Both competitors found trouble off the tee on the par‑five 17th. Clark elected to lay up, eventually birdie‑ing the hole, while McIlroy's aggressive approach sent his ball into a bunker, leading to a costly bogey.
"I tried to get it up a bit too far," McIlroy admitted afterward. "I should have been taking that left bunker out of play. If you're going to lay it up, lay it up, so just another stupid decision with a lay‑up on a par‑five that cost me." When CBS Sports asked whether he felt he deserved the win, McIlroy replied, "I can't be too disappointed. I'm probably not playing well enough to be disappointed that I didn't win.
I had my chances on the back nine and hit a lot of good putts that didn't go in. Wyndham Clark stepped up when he needed too. His birdie on 16 was huge and the way he played the last three holes, he showed a lot of character." The PGA Tour season now heads toward its climax at the Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club, where only the top 30 players in the FedExCup standings will compete for the $10 million first prize and the coveted FedExCup trophy.
Fans will be watching closely to see whether McIlroy can translate the progress he displayed in St. Louis into a victory at East Lake, or if Clark will continue his surge and add another title to his résumé. The final stretch promises high drama, as the remaining elite golfers battle for the season‑ending honors and the lucrative prize pool, with live coverage slated to begin Thursday at 5 p.m. on Sky Sports Golf and streaming options available without a contract on NOW.