Billy Horschel defeats Rory McIlroy in playoff to win BMW PGA Championship

There may not be a PGA Tour event this weekend, but it clears the way for the DP World Tour’s flagship event, the final round of the 2024 BMW PGA Championship, to be worthy of its name.

After 72 holes, only Rory McIlroy, Billy Horschel and Sriston Lawrence remained.

The atmosphere became exciting when Rory McIlroy hit a 47-foot eagle on the 17th hole to tie Lawrence's lead at 20 under. The four-time major champion was runner-up last week at the Irish Open and has had a disappointing year. Then he missed his second shot on the par-5 18th hole and hit it into the water, unable to get up to win.

Not to be outdone, Horschel (McIlroy's partner) showed his finest dramatic touch, nearly spinning his approach shot for eagle and eventually finishing with birdie to join McIlroy and Lawrence in a sudden-death playoff.

Each player was in trouble in the first playoff, but McIlroy and Horschel came out strong, both finishing with birdies on 18, while Lawrence made bogey after hitting the penalty area on his third shot.

The play-offs were narrowed from three to two and the situation was very tense.

After both hit their approaches down the middle of the fairway, McIlroy hit his approach down the middle of the green. Horschel didn't back down and matched him with an equally impressive iron shot — giving both players a chance for eagle.

McIlroy missed his eagle attempt, barely hitting the high side, and Horschel made a 20-foot putt to win — his second victory in the event, having also won at Wentworth in 2021, becoming the first American to win it twice.

“I’m thrilled with how I performed today, I’m excited about how I performed today — I just fought hard today,” Horschel said.

The winning eagle putt capped off a perfect final for Horschel, who went birdie-birdie to get into the playoff and then birdie-eagle to win the tournament.

“Look, I had to have some luck,” Horschel said. “After bogeying 15, I knew I was just a little bit away from winning.”

But Horschel persevered, confident that he could play great golf down the stretch.

“I was going to hit it out of the bunker in regulation, but my caddie Mike said, 'I don't know, man, there's a little sand in there,' so I just stopped and trusted [his advice]”He said. “I was really lucky to get this win today.

The win was a hard-earned one for Horschel, who said he had to work on his swing throughout the week.

“I haven't felt like my swing was right all week, but it felt good yesterday and I warmed up well this morning,” he said. “It didn't feel right today, but look, I tried my best and I always will — and I did that today. I hit some really good shots out there, I putted some really good shots, and that's what you have to do when you're not trying your best.

The hardest thing to take, of course, was the heartbreaking end to a season that had been plagued by “handicaps.” This second-place finish came on the heels of a runner-up finish at the Irish Open last week. While neither was as bad as his finish at Pinehurst at the U.S. Open, it still provided additional fodder for critics.

“I had a chance in the regular season, but the yardage in the second round was pretty embarrassing. [shot]”I tried to flip the 4-iron over, and luckily it didn't go in the water,” McIlroy said.

“But two weeks in a row I played well, but it still wasn’t good enough.”

Horschel even talked about the disappointment that came with beating a friend.

“Rory is a good friend of mine and I have a lot of respect for him,” Horschel added. “He's a talented guy and I know how close he was to winning this year, so I understand how he feels. But at the same time, I'm just excited to accomplish this today.”

Nick Dimengo

Golf.com Editor