Fedex Cup champion Rory McIlroy beat defending champion Xander Schauffele in a play-off to win the HSBC Champions, at Sheshan International. Picture by GETTY IMAGES

RORY McIlroy overcame Xander Schauffele in a play-off to win his third World Golf Championships title at the WGC-HSBC Champions, in China.

The Northern Irishman – who claimed his second Fedex Cup win in August – entered the final day at Sheshan International Golf Club with a one-shot lead.

And McIlroy still held that as he stood on the 18th tee, with playing partner and defending champion Schauffele his nearest challenger.

A closing birdie from Schauffele saw him join McIlroy at 19-under and take it to extra holes, but the American could not repeat last season’s play-off triumph over Tony Finau.

McIlroy hit a wonderful drive and found the green in two to set up a birdie which Schauffele could not match.

The San Diego ace found a nasty lie off the tee and was forced to lay-up on the first trip back up the 18th.

McIlroy said: “There’s a lot of stuff that people don’t see behind the scenes just in terms of hard work and putting the hours in at home.

“But all of that, it’s not work, really. It’s playing golf for a living. I’d be in trouble if I did have to work for a living.

“To practise hard and to do all the right things and to see it pay off like this and get wins like this makes it all worthwhile.

“It is what sport is about. Xander pushed me the whole way, or all 73 holes we played together this week.

“We played every round, and one more, as well. He played great. He was battling a flu all week, wasn’t feeling his best, and so the calibre of golf he played this week, it takes some doing.

“I don’t want to take anything away from him. He birdied the last to get into the play-off, and then I produced two of the best shots of the day when I needed it, which was really cool.

“I have one more event left in Dubai. I want to finish the season off as well as I can,” said McIlroy, whose biggest disappointment of the year came when he missed the cut at Royal Portrush, which hosted the Open, for the first time in 58 years in July.

McIlroy, who had two top 10s in the US Open and USPGA, added: “I really wanted to get another win before the end of the year.

“And now that I’ve done that, it would be nice to get two wins.

“I’m excited for the future. I feel like this year compares to 2014, 2015, but I don’t see any reason why I can’t go ahead and have an even better year next year.”

The win for McIlroy is his fourth worldwide this season and sees him join only Dustin Johnson and Tiger Woods as players to have won three of the four World Golf Championships events.

Rory’s previous victories came at the Bridgestone Invitational in 2014, and the WGC Cadillac Match Play in 2015.

A 14th European Tour victory – and the World No. 2’s first since the 2016 Dubai Duty Free Irish Open – also sees him equal Darren Clarke’s record for Northern Ireland.

Schauffele paid tribute to his conqueror saying: “He’s an elite player. When he’s on, I’d say he’s arguably the best player in the world.

“He made me play better. I know what I need to do to become a better player.

“My time will come. I’m looking forward to getting healthy, not coughing, sleeping. More important things than trying to win a golf tournament.”

South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen was the third member of the final group and he finished third at 17-under – two shots clear of Mexico’s Abraham Ancer, Frenchman Victor Perez and Austrian Matthias Schwab.

Perez and Schwab both fired closing rounds of 66 in impressive World Golf Championships debuts, while Ancer signed for a 67.

Sheffield’s Matthew Fitzpatrick finished on 14-under, two shots clear of Jason Kokrak, Patrick Reed and Paul Waring.

•For full results in the HSBC Champions click here.

SHANGHAI, CHINA – NOVEMBER 03: Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland pictured after with the ‘Old Tom Morris Trophy’ after winning the WGC HSBC Champions at Sheshan International Golf Club on November 03, 2019 in Shanghai, China. (Photo by Matthew Lewis/Getty Images)

The post McIlroy completes World Golf Championships treble with HSBC Champions win appeared first on Golf North.

A third 67 in a row gave Rory McIlroy a one-shot lead over Louis Oosthuizen as he chases a third World Golf Championships title in the HSBC Champions, at Sheshan International. Picture by GETTY IMAGES

RORY McIlroy carded a third consecutive round of 67 to take a one-shot lead into the final day of the WGC-HSBC Champions.

The World No. 2 is going in search of a third World Golf Championships title – and went bogey-free to move to 15-under and edge one clear of Louis Oosthuizen.

The South African has a Claret Jug in his trophy collection, but has never won a WGC event – losing out to Australian Jason Day in the final of the WGC-Dell Match Play three years ago.

McIlroy said: “I probably played the best today that I’ve played all week. I drove the ball well.

“Hitting my irons pretty good for the most part. I feel like I didn’t quite get as much out of the round as I could have but I’m not going to complain.

“I’m in the lead going into tomorrow, so just need to rest up and try to get out there and play another good, solid round of golf.

“I keep saying, I think my consistency this year, I’ve been able to take that to another level to what I’ve been able to do previously.

“Right now, the game feels pretty simple. I know that it’s not going to feel like that all the time, but when it does, you have to take advantage of that feeling.

“I’ve given myself another opportunity to win a very big golf tournament, a tournament that I’ve never won before.

“I want to go out there and be committed, play aggressively, and shoot a good number. I took a lot from the win in Canada earlier this year.

“I went out tied for the lead, and I just said from the start, ‘I’m going to keep my foot down and I’m going to go for everything.’

“It was a good lesson that when you do have something right there, in front of you – a tournament to win or something to achieve – you just have to grab it with both hands, and that’s what I’ll do tomorrow.”

A victory for McIlroy would be his first European Tour triumph since 2016.

It would also see the Fedex Cup winner join just Tiger Woods and Dustin Johnson in having won three of the four different WGC events.

The Northern Irishman won his second and latest WGC event at the 2015 Match Play at San Francisco’s Harding Park.

Since then has had nine top 10s in the tournaments, including a fourth top five at Sheshan International Golf Club in 2016.

Oosthuizen will be hoping to be inspired by South Africa’s Rubgy World Cup final, which came after the end of the third round in China.

“It was a very fast start,” said Oosthuizen. “I really struck the ball really good with my irons.

“The driver, I had a few awkward swings out there, but at the end I started hitting it good. So all in all, I feel like I’ve got a really good feel on the greens, and just played really good.

“I think around this golf course, the way the greens are, if you give yourself lots of opportunities, you’re going to make a few.

“They are so pure and so good, the greens. It’s the best I’ve seen them,” added Oosthuizen.

“I played with Rory the last two rounds last week. He’s absolutely striping it. I need to play really good golf tomorrow.”

Sheffield’s Matthew Fitzpatrick and defending champion Xander Schauffele were at 13-under, a shot clear of Cheshire’s Paul Waring.

Fitzpatrick, who is looking to extend of winning at least once in each year he has been on tour, said: “It was a bit up-and-down.

“Certainly didn’t have any ‘A Game’ today. Just didn’t feel comfortable really out there with my driver.

“The fairways around here are tough, and that was a bit of a grind. To get in at 13 that was good – you’ve got to be on your game.

“Of course you’re looking at leaderboards, and anyone that says otherwise is a liar. You’ve always got it in your mind, that you know what you need to do, and – at the same time – got to try and stick to the game plan.

“That’s why everybody is here is to win. If not, you may as well go home.

“It will be a good day tomorrow. Unfortunately, Rory is playing very well. He’s playing very annoying. I’ve got to play well, and that’s why it’s a World Golf Championships. It’s got the best players in the world.”

Sungjae Im and Jason Kokrak were at 11-under, a shot clear of Abraham Ancer and Kevin Kisner – and two ahead of another South African – Christiaan Bezuidenhout.

Recent Alfred Dunhill Links winner Victor Perez and Austria’s Matthias Schwab are also on the same mark.

•For live scoring in the fourth round of the HSBC Champions click here.

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