His peers had long faded away. There Rory McIlroy stood beside a likeable but unfamiliar journeyman on a chilly, windy Monday morning playoff with a chance to make a statement. He’d already hit his tee shot onto TPC Sawgrass’ famous 17th island green,

He again had the honor, and finding the surface on this treacherous island green would put enormous pressure on his opponent’s shoulders. So McIlroy went to his go-to shot. He hit a flighted three-quarter 9-iron,

After more than a year defined mostly by his near-misses, Rory McIlroy slammed the door on J.J. Spaun in Monday's playoff at Sawgrass.