McIlroy claims second major at PGA

Northern Irish star makes it two majors in two years with Kiawah victory

Record-breaker: McIlroy’s eight-shot margin of victory is the greatest in US PGA Championship history

Rory McIlroy cruised to a second major title in as many years with a record-breaking eight-shot victory in the US PGA Championship.

The 23-year-old Northern Irishman carried a three-shot lead into the final round at the weather-delayed Kiawah Island event and performed a superb display of front-running to close out a final round of 66, beating the previous winning margin set by Jack Nicklaus in 1980.

It was McIlroy’s lowest round of the week and outstripped his nearest challenger going into the final day, Carl Pettersson, by six shots.

While expecting a challenge from the Swede or perhaps a charge from Tiger Woods – attempting to close out the 2012 major season with a 15th title – it was in fact England’s Ian Poulter who posed the most serious threat.

Six birdies in his opening seven holes allowed Poulter to narrow the gap on McIlroy at the top of the leaderboard to two shots but it was a remarkable run that he was unable to maintain.

Bogeys followed at eight, 13, 14, 15 and 18, leaving Poulter in a tie for third on four-under-par alongside fellow Europeans Justin Rose and Carl Pettersson with last week’s WGC-Bridgestone Invitational champion Keegan Bradley on the same mark.

“I’m speechless,” said McIlroy, who again assumes No.1 position in the golf’s world rankings. “It has been an incredible week. I had a good feeling about it at the start but I never imagined it would turn out like this.

“It was a great round of golf. The gameplan was just to play solid. I got off to a bit of a shaky start, but settled into it and I thought my putting today was phenomenal.

“Thanks dad and thanks mum – I’m sure she’s watching at home. I had a good feeling at the start but I never imagined doing this.

“It means an awful lot to look at the names on that trophy and put mine alongside them.”

Adding to his record-breaking win at the 2011 US Open, McIlroy becomes the youngest winner of the US PGA since it adopted the Strokeplay format in 1958 and is also the first Brit to seal the title in over 90 years.

Although ultimately too far off the pace to mount a serious title bid, as it indeed proved for all 72 men in McIlroy’s wake following the 36-hole cut, it was the unheralded David Lynn who clinched the runner-up spot.

Lynn, the 38-year-old from Stoke-on-Trent whose best result of 2012 previously was tying for fourth at the Alstom Open de France and who qualified for Kiawah as the 100th ranked player in the world, saw out his championship with a 68 for a five-under-par total of 283.

“I got myself into the zone on Saturday and I was feeling comfortable on Sunday – it is all a bit surreal at the moment,” he said after completing only his second major.

While Pettersson’s bid for a maiden major title was thwarted by a two-shot penalty after moving a loose impediment in a hazard on his 55th hole, it was a third round of 74 that prevented Woods from threatening McIlroy’s ascension.

The world No.3 found himself five shots off the pace with 18 holes to play and was never in position to mount any pressure on the eventual champion after missed birdie and eagle opportunities on the first and second holes.

His final round of 72 put him down into a tie for 11th alongside Masters champion Bubba Watson, Open runner-up Adam Scott and 2010 Ryder Cup hero Graeme McDowell.

Bryce Ritchie is the Editor of bunkered and, in addition to leading on content and strategy, oversees all aspects of the brand. The first full-time journalist employed by bunkered, he joined the company in 2001 and has been editor since 2009. A member of Balfron Golfing Society, he currently plays off nine and once got a lesson from Justin Thomas’ dad.

Editor of bunkered