Scottie Scheffler produced a sizzling final round 66 to claim a five-shot victory at the PGA Tour’s Arnold Palmer Invitational in Florida.
The world no.1 fired six birdies and no bogeys on Sunday to finish on 15 under and lift the trophy at Bay Hill for the second time in three years.
US Open champion Wyndham Clark finished second on 10 under, while Shane Lowry, who had held the lead or a share of it for all three earlier rounds, saw his challenge fade on Sunday with a closing level-par 72.
Scheffler, who was returning to the winner’s circle for the first time in almost a year, with his last victory coming at the 2023 Players Championship, said: “This one’s pretty special. It had been a while since I won. There had been a lot of chatter about my game and the state of where it was at, and so it was nice come here with a good mental attitude and to perform well under pressure. I think today’s round was really special for me going forward.”
Russell Henley and Will Zalatoris both finished on seven under in a tie for fourth, with the latter earning a place in the Open Championship for his efforts.
Rory McIlroy, runner-up at Bay Hill last year, shot 76 on Sunday to finish on one under par and tied for 21st, having started the final round in a tie for eighth.
SCOTTIE SCHEFFLER WITB
Driver: TaylorMade Qi10 (8°)
Fairway Wood: TaylorMade Qi10 3-wood (15°)
Irons: Srixon ZU85 (3, 4), TaylorMade P7TW (5-PW)
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM8 (50°, 56°), Titleist Vokey Design WedgeWorks Proto (60.5°)
Putter: TaylorMade Spider Tour X
Ball: Titleist Pro V1