Rory McIlroy silences critics with superb Players Championship triumph

Rory McIlroy finally buried his Sunday demons and achieved his first win in more than a year here on Sunday. And it meant Sandy Lyle at last has a United Kingdom countryman for company on the coveted Players Championship title.

It was anything but straightforward for McIlroy, who double-bogeyed the fourth to spiral out of the lead and then bogeyed the seventh. At that stage, it seemed his recent final-round failings were going to have yet another “close, but …” ­entry. McIlroy came into the year’s biggest golfing week so far with five top-six finishes to his name in the six events he had played in 2019 and, although that was an astonishing run of consistency, he had been presented with chances to win in each of those events.

This time, the 29-year-old refused to accept defeat and with five birdies in his last 10 holes, he shot a 70 for a 16-under total to beat last year’s US Ryder Cup captain Jim Furyk by a shot to claim the $2.25 million (£1.7 million) first prize. Furyk, the evergreen 48-year-old, must be sick of the sight of Europeans after his gallant 67.

“It’s very special,” McIlroy said “I’ve had all those nears calls this year, but I called them ‘remote misses’. It gives you even more hope to go forward and go again. I think all those experiences led me to this point. Ultimately they were good for me.”

The Players is cast as “the unofficial fifth major” and, with every other member of the world’s top 50 lining up against him, the gold trophy will take pride of place on the rung immediately below McIlroy’s four majors proper.

To say it was well-timed was a gross understatement. Without this success – just his second in the last 2½ years – it would have been ­almost impossible to envisage McIlroy prevailing at the Masters in four weeks’ time and so becoming just the sixth player in history to complete the career grand slam. However, after this display of prime ball-striking and undeniable nerve, he must go in as the favourite.

“If I hadn’t have won today, I would have said I don’t need a win going into Augusta, but it’s very nice to get one, especially doing it on this course, which in some ways is similar to Augusta,” McIlroy, who has risen back up to world No 4, said. “I feel I’m playing some of the best golf of my life. I think I have started the second phase of my ­career. I have been on Tour 11 years, and I feel I can make the next 10 years even better than the previous 10. That is my motivation.”

McIlroy believes his “shot of the week” was the approach from the fairway bunker on the 15th, which he faded around the trees to 14 feet. He birdied the par-five 16th, as well, to assume the advantage once more. Of course, he still had to negotiate the treacherous island-green 17th and the fearsome 18th, but two gutsy pars saw him join Lyle – after a 32-year wait – as the only UK golfers to win the PGA Tour’s flagship event.

Only two other players in history have previously won 15 PGA Tour titles and four majors before their 30th birthday – Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods.

In a tie for third came England’s Eddie Pepperell. If it was not abundantly clear already – with his two wins on the European Tour last year – the United States now knows the 28-year-old from Oxfordshire brings much more than merely a funny tweet. No doubt his offbeat presence on social media has established him as someone different in the sanitised locker rooms, but his golf is also an eye-opener.

Pepperell was playing so poorly on Tuesday he considered pulling out. It is fair to say, he is rather glad he hung around to make his Players debut and collect $775,000. His six-under 66 hauled him up from a tie for 16th. He played his last 12 holes in seven under, with his 50-footer on the 17th his highlight.

The fans on that penultimate hole enjoyed a riotous passage of play. Just after Pepperell made his pupil-strainer, so the Venezuelan Jhonattan Vegas held from 69ft 7in, the longest putt ever recorded in professional competition on Pete Dye’s malevolent 137-yarder. Vegas also shot a 66 to finish alongside Pepperell.

It was a notable day for England with Justin Rose, the world No 2, proving his own form for Augusta with a 68 to finish on 12 under in a tie for eighth. Tommy Fleetwood finished in a tie for fifth on 13 under, but the Merseysider will be far from satisfied with his 73.

Tiger Woods shot a 69 to end on six under in a tie for 30th. After pulling out of the previous week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational with a neck injury, he described himself as “right on track for the Masters”. The season’s first major cannot come soon enough.

9:51PM

McIlroy's post-round comments...

"It's very special," he said. "I just tried to treat it like another day, even though I've had all those close calls. They were good for me.

"I think all those experiences this year led me to this point. Ultimately they were good for me because they got me over the line today.

"The final few holes were tough. It's a massive win. The way I played those last few holes give me a lot of confidence.

"It's very nice to get a win, especially doing it in this golf course. Honestly, a golf course which plays a bit similar to how Augusta will play in a few weeks.

"I feel like I'm playing some of best golf of my life right now."

9:39PM

RORY MCILROY WINS THE PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP!

What a sublime round of golf from the Northern Irishman to silence the critics and win his first Players Championship. It would have been easy to crumble after going two-over thru four, but he remained calm to push on to victory. This final-round 70 is enough to fend off surprise challenges from Jim Furyk and Eddie Pepperell to claim the winning prize of $2.25 million.

After a difficult start which saw him double-bogey the fourth, McIlroy returned fire with four back-nine birdies to help propel himself to the top of the leaderboard. What a round to help secure his first triumph since last year's Arnold Palmer Invitational.

9:36PM

On the green in two...

McIlroy can even finish his round off here with a birdie. Brilliant approach shot into the green, and he has a 13-footer to move to 17-under. No-one can catch him now, with both Fleetwood and Rahm finding the water on 17. He now has two putts to secure his victory.

9:31PM

McIlroy's perfectly down the fairway on 18

Another sweet drive from the 29-year-old, and this is his tournament to lose now.

9:30PM

Fleetwood's in the water on 17 - game over!

In his defence, he had no option but to do that- he needed to take the pin on to chase Rory. Very close, but it bounces off the decking into the water. That's his hopes of becoming Players champion finished.

9:25PM

Oh so very close for Rory on the 17th!

Right idea, fine effort, but his putting line is a couple of inches off. Still, that'll be an easy tap-in par to move onto the 18th with his 16-under score intact.

Fleetwood has also taken his eagle chance, and he's on 14-under.

9:21PM

Fleetwood's eagle chance

The Englishman desperately needed something to happen having dropped two shots on the last 15 holes, but he's just put his approach on 16 to within two feet of the hole. He'll take two shots back here with an easy tap-in, but he'll need some more magic on 17 and 18 to catch his Ryder Cup team-mate.

9:19PM

McIlroy's on dry land

Not a realistic birdie chance from where his ball's landed on the front of the green, but he'll be over the moon it's not in the water. He's got a complicated 34-foot putt coming up with a severe left-to-right swing.

9:16PM

Birdie for Rory!

That's his fourth birdie in the last six holes, and he's now down to 16-under on his own. Just the dreaded 17th to play now, and then he's onto the last. If he can par-par the next two, he'll no doubt win this tournament. It would require something spectacular to catch him.

9:10PM

Eagle chance!

McIlroy's hit an eight-iron from 178 yards out, and it's landed smack in the middle of the green. Difficult chance for eagle from 50 feet, but you've got to think it will at least be a birdie. Looks like he could be about to take the outright lead on 16-under.

9:07PM

McIlroy's out of position on the 16th

Imagine hitting a drive on a par-five too hard? That's exactly what Rory's just done.

He's in the first cut of rough on the right-hand side, 346 yards from where he teed off. A monster hit.

8:59PM

McIlroy hits back!

This is about as dramatic as golf gets. Furyk birdies 18, McIlroy then birdies 15. Both men are on 15-under, but there are a host of players zoning in on 14-under. This tournament is far from over, especially with Rory on his way to the par-five 16th now.

8:56PM

Furyk birdies the 18th

And with that, the clubhouse score moves to 15-under. Incredible stuff from the 48-year-old. He followed up his excellently-placed drive with a sumptuous approach shot into the green, with his ball landing dead-still just three feet from the hole. An easy-tap in, and with that he takes the lead.

8:51PM

Pepperell on his round today

"That might be the highlight of my career," he said of the 49-foot putt on the 17th.

"There's something around this course I feel extremely confident on.

"Honestly I felt like I swung it terrible today. Around the greens, I was on fire. I felt like Seve out there, to be fair."

8:49PM

Rory bogeys the 14th!

The 28-year-old drops a shot on the par-four to move back to 14-under. That's brought several players back into the party, with Jon Rahm, Jim Furyk and Jhonattan Vegas all on 14-under as well as Eddie Pepperell.

8:39PM

Furyk's on 14-under

He's found six bunkers this week, but he's chipped out and into the hole within two shots on five occasions. He's also found 43 of 55 driveways off the tee, which is the fourth best of the field this week. Some excellent all-round golf.

He's just parred the 17th and he heads into the final hole in seek of a final birdie. And he needs it.

8:33PM

Pepperell posts the clubhouse score on 14-under

What a round from the 28-year-old that was. Seven birdies and a single birdie to card a final-round 66. He's now got an anxious wait to see if he's done enough to earn his first win on the PGA Tour. As it stands, he'll be missing out to Rory McIlroy.

8:22PM

Huge, huge birdie from McIlroy!

The 29-year-old takes the outright lead on 15-under. He sinks a highly-difficult 12-footer on the par-four 12th to secure two birdies in a row. He took his time over that stroke, and it paid dividends.

8:19PM

However...

Pepperell has just sent his drive on 18 to the right, and he's going to be over 200 yards from the rough into the green. Difficult hole.

8:14PM

Incredible scenes at the 17th - Pepperell moves to 14-under!

The 2018 British Masters champion has taken a share of the lead in incredible fashion. The best putt of the week, with a birdie out of nowhere at the 17th from 49 feet out.

His green-reading today has been excellent, and that's his seventh birdie in his last 11 holes.

He said this on Friday, he loves it!

8:07PM

Fleetwood and Rahm both in the water

Complete madness from the two Ryder Cup stars. They've both found the water with their second shots on the par-five 11th, and now they've got huge tasks here to make pars and keep their hopes of victory alive.

8:05PM

Pepperell to within one of the lead!

More outstanding golf from the young Englishman, and he adds a birdie on the par-five 16th to his already-impressive scorecard. That's six birdies in his last 10 holes playing alongside Justin Rose. Astonishing turnaround and his rise to the top of the leaderboard seems to have come out of nowhere. Could this be a pairing worth monitoring for future Ryder Cups? I'd think so judging by this performance, with Rose himself also on three-under for the day.

8:01PM

McIlroy birdies!

He joins Rahm and Furyk on 14-under.

Rory mentioned how badly he's played par-fives over recent weeks before his round today, but that one was excellent.

7:59PM

No clear winner yet

There's a huge cluster of players at the top, with 11 golfers switching between 12-under to 14-under. Long way to go, and many of them have the infamous 17th to play. That hole could decide the tournament.

7:57PM

McIlroy's shot from the fairway bunker...

...lands on the green on the par-five 11th. Good effort, and chance for birdie here. His ball striking has been pretty good over the last few holes, he's settling into it now.

7:55PM

Fleetwood's birdie hunt continues

The 28-year-old has parred every hole so far today apart from the bogey on the 1st. He's had a plenty of opportunities to grab an extra shot back, but he hasn't managed to sink any longer putts yet. He's hit nine out of 10 greens in regulation so far.

7:45PM

Pepperell's in the mix

The Englishman's quietly plodded along over the weekend, and all of a sudden he's just two off the lead on 12-under.He's just chipped in from the greenside bunker on the 15th to birdie.

His playing partner, Justin Rose, also birdied to move back to 11-under as well.

England's finest are going well at Sawgrass.

7:43PM

Furyk's battling away

He's sent his opening shot on the 192-yard par-three 13th too far, and his ball's rolled off the back of the green. Should have a solid chance for a par, but any hopes of a bonus-birdie evaporated as soon as it thudded against the short grass.

7:36PM

Rahm fails to birdie the 9th...

The Spaniard's had a 12-footer for the outright lead on 15-under, but he can't quite muster the required birdie putt. He stays on 14-under and will be hoping for a better back nine. He's one-over for his round so far.

7:28PM

Day slips, but McIlroy birdies

The Australian bogeys the par-five 9th after a poor iron shot from the centre of the fairway. He's slowly falling out of contention here.

However, Rory's seize his opportunity for birdie after sinking a difficult 10-foot downhill putt. He moves back to 13-under and is now alongside Fleetwood in T-3 position.

7:24PM

Furyk joins Rahm on 14-under!

The 2018 US Ryder Cup captain birdies the 11th to move to 14-under and tie Rahm for the lead.

7:22PM

Huge hit from Rory

He's just shy of the green on the par-five 9th after two brilliant hits from the 29-year-old. He's chipping onto a downslope which could make it a bit tricky, but a birdie looks like a realistic outcome from his position.

7:16PM

Turning point for Rahm?

The Spaniard takes the outright lead after guiding a 13-footer directly into the cup on the par-three 8th to secure birdie and move to 14-under.

7:12PM

Fabulous shot from Fleetwood

The Englishman lands it to within 15 feet on the 8th, and it drops nearly stone-dead on the green. That's a good indication of how soft the course is out there at the moment.

7:07PM

Schniederjans is one shot behind the leaders

7:02PM

Weather update...

The rain appears to have stopped despite Snedeker's umbrella below, but it's currently 16 degrees Celcius with 20 km/m northerly wind. There are also some showers forecast between 8-10pm GMT.

But what does that mean?

Well, an even softer ground may benefit certain players, like Rahm and McIlroy. The Spaniard won the Irish Open in poor conditions back in 2017, while McIlroy's Open 2014 victory was also in a similar environment.

This course is known for the iconic 17th, and with such a condensed leaderboard, it could still have a major role to play with regards to who emerges victorious later on today. The showers will also come at a time the players are on the par-fives on the back nine, and that could also affect their best chances for birdies.

6:54PM

Rahm birdies!

The Spaniard joins the top after taking a shot back on the 6th. That's his first birdie of the day, which is a superb outcome considering he found the bunker with his initial tee shot.

6:51PM

Day on the 7th...

Lands his second shot about 25 feet from the hole on the green, and he's now got a chance for birdie. That'll go down nicely after his bogey on the hole before.

6:49PM

Schniederjans squanders a birdie opportunity

The American has a 30-footer on the 7th to take the outright lead on 14-under, but his ball wriggles away just as it starts getting close to the cup. He stays on 13-under.

6:47PM

Don't go anywhere...

There are 13 players hovering between 13-under and 11-under, including the likes of Justin Rose and Adam Scott.

Tommy Fleetwood, Rory McIlroy, Abraham Ancer and Ollie Schniederjans currently lead on 13-under.

6:42PM

Fleetwood pars the 5th

Success for Tommy at the par-four 5th, and he remains in a tie for the lead. He's starting to settle in now, and he's still on course to potentially become the first Englishman to ever win the Players.

6:37PM

Day in trouble on the 6th

He's sent his drive deep into the trees on the right. Poor shot, and he's at risk of dropping another shot here unless he can conjure up something spectacular.

6:31PM

Johnson is one shot off the lead

Three birdies and a solitary bogey for the American to start his round, and he's now just one shot behind Fleetwood on 12-under. This is stark turnaround considering his history at Sawgrass, with his game seemingly much better suited to the March event as opposed to May.

He's not had top-10 finish at the Players ever in his career!

6:28PM

Excellent putting from Fleetwood

A real nerve-testing nine-foot putt on the 4th to save par. He sinks it, and now he has the outright lead on 13-under as Rahm drops behind.

6:27PM

Rahm bogeys the 4th

Another dropped shot for the Spaniard, and he moves back to 12-under. Very poor start all round, and he has a lot of work to do now if he is to become the 2019 Players champion.

6:19PM

McIlroy double-bogeys the 4th

He drops to 12-under after a painful double-bogey. Rory's Sunday problems continue...

6:18PM

One to watch today - Bryson DeChambeau

Out of nowhere, really, 'The Scientist' is all of a sudden in with a shout of winning here.

He's had a steady-but-unspectacular week, but three birdies on his front nine today has thrown him right in the mix thanks to a errors from Rahm and McIlroy. DeChambeau's now 11-under thru 10, two shots off the top.

6:14PM

Rahm also drops a shot

Bogeys all round at the top of the leaderboard, with Rahm struggling to find his form from yesterday. He bogeys the par-four 3rd to move to 13-under. All of sudden, Rory finding the water doesn't look that bad.

6:12PM

McIlroy's in the water!

Unsure why McIlroy has opted to take on the awkwardly-positioned pin on the par-four 4th from the rough, but he's been punished. Into the water he goes, and he'll drop a shot here.

6:10PM

Garcia on countryman Rahm...

"He's a great player, he's playing well and putting nicely," he said. "He has a great opportunity to become a Players Champion for Spain.

"We'll see how he handles the nerves. I will expect him to up there with a really good, solid chance going down the last."

6:06PM

Rahm and Fleetwood par the par-five 2nd

Mentally they'll feel like they've left a shot out there.

Fleetwood has birdied the hole twice this week, and eagled it once. Rahm, meanwhile, has birdied it twice as well as parring it on Friday. Disappointing result for both.

6:02PM

Jim Furyk's two-under thru five for today

And 12-under for the tournament, two behind Rahm and McIlroy. He's not out of this by any means.

5:55PM

Woods cards a final-round 69

Birdie chance on the 18th, but he can't quite make it. He finishes the tournament on six-under after a steady three-under final round. Definitely positives for the 14-time Major champion to take going forward, and he'll also be glad not to see the 17th at Sawgrass again for another year.

5:51PM

Fleetwood also bogeys

Despite birdies on the 1st on both Thursday and Friday, Fleetwood's failed to find a similar result over the weekend. His bogey today is better than yesterday's double-bogey, but still not a great result. Shifts back to 13-under.

5:48PM

Rahm bogeys the 1st

Outside chance for birdie from 50 feet out, but the Spaniard can't find the right line and it ends up eight feet short. He can't convert that for par, so he bogeys the 1st and drops back to 14-under.

The last 54-hole leader to shoot in the 60s here at The Players was Stephen Ames back in 2006. He shot a final-round 67.

5:42PM

McIlroy pars the 1st, while Day bogeys

Rory will take that after his bogey yesterday, while his playing partner must be happy with a bogey here after his poor drive and even worse approach shot.

Players have their umbrellas out now as well.

5:37PM

Rahm and Fleetwood underway

The tournament's leader has sent his opening drive nicely down the fairway. This is the first time in his career that he's held the 54-hole lead and he's branded a potential victory here at Sawgrass as "career defining". No pressure, then.

His partner, Fleetwood, has enjoyed similar success as well with his first drive also neatly position down the centre of the short grass. Game on!

5:35PM

Poor start for Jason Day at the 1st

Drives the rough, and then sends his second into the rough again close to the green. His third? A poor chip into more rough. He'll be doing well to escape with the bogey.

5:33PM

McIlroy's onto the green in two

Really positive first hole from the Northern Irishman who has an outside chance for birdie from the edge of the green. It's a long 50-footer, which is a disappointment after initial landing the ball within 10 feet of the hole, but an improvement on yesterday nevertheless.

5:31PM

Adam Scott joins the party on 11-under

It's difficult to remember when he won this tournament 15 years ago back in 2004, but he's in contention again here having just birdied the 2nd and 4th.

5:26PM

McIlroy off to a decent start

The Northern Irishman is off to a good start on day four with a solid opening drive straight down the fairway. He bogeyed this hole yesterday after finding the rough, so an improvement straight away for McIlroy.

5:25PM

Birdie-birdie start for Dustin Johnson

Early move from the American who has opened his final round with back-to-back birdies. He's now on 12-under for the tournament.

5:19PM

The remaining pairings...

17.25 GMT - Rory McIlroy, Jason Day 
17.35 GMT - Tommy Fleetwood, Jon Rahm

5:14PM

Story of the iconic 17th this week

Francesco Molinari has just swiped the 33rd ball of the week into the water to double-bogey. His ball joins two of Tiger's, who found the hazard on day two to quadruple-bogey the hole.

Today, it will pose an equally tough test with a northerly wind likely to challenge the right-handed player especially. The pin today is right-centre on the green.

5:08PM

Tiger watch...

The 14-time Major champion has just bogeyed the par-four 14th, but he's still one of the better performers out there today.

He's hit 10 of 12 fairways off the tee today, which is already better than his nine on Thursday and Friday, and eight on Saturday.

He's been pretty solid all week in terms of greens in regulation. He's made 50 of 68 so far, which is 16th on the leaderboard when comparing the entire field. Not bad.

5:02PM

Rory highlights his weakness

"I haven't played the par fives that good the past couple of weeks," he said. "It's definitely an area that I need to concentrate on and make the most of those holes. It is getting difficult out there."

4:55PM

Early mover...

Jhonattan Vegas has birdied his first two holes to move to 10-under. Good start from the Venezuelan, but he'll need a couple more of those if he is to mount a serious charge towards Rahm, Fleetwood and McIlroy at the top of the leaderboard. The world No. 119 has only had one top 10 finish since January 2018, so this is a huge week for him going forward and into the rest of the year.

4:50PM

Rahm's practicing...

He's in the bunker at the moment, chipping balls onto practice green. He's  found the bunker four times throughout his last three rounds.

4:46PM

Solid round from the 14-time Major champion

While he's not going to win this tournament, Woods is posting a score that's going to send a message to the late-starters that birdies are definitely achievable today. He's four-under thru 12, and the likes of McIlroy will be hopeful they can play similar golf when they get underway themselves in around 40 minutes time.

4:39PM

Kaymer's repaired some of the early damage...

The German's now down to three-over for his round, having birdied the par-five 11th. He's struggling today with the weather conditions, and is heading for his worst score of the week with his current card.

4:36PM

Fleetwood's thoughts...

"Winning is very difficult," he said. "Four days of golf is a long time.

"You have to take the positives all the time. I am happy with how consistent I feel like I can be. I shot a lot of good scores and put myself in contention a few times.

"But just keep doing the right things. Keep doing the same things. Hopefully it just happens naturally. So focusing on it too much is something I don't want to do it. Just keep doing what I'm doing."

4:29PM

Interesting choice of outfit from Rory Sabbatini...

The world No. 229 is one-over for his round today, but looks set for a solid finish. He's missed the cut in two of his last three starts, so this week's been an improvement for the Slovakian.

4:25PM

Rahm's chances...

It's gloomy, humid and windy out there, with the possibility of further rain. A guaranteed test for the players  who are yet to tee off, despite the early scores indicating there could be a plenty of birdies.

Rahm is a solid performer in difficult weather conditions, noting his triumph at the Irish Open back in 2017 where conditions were far from ideal. He's only finished out the top 10 on one occasion in his last eight starts as well.

However, the Spaniard is in an unfamiliar position heading into his 5.35pm tee time alongside Ryder Cup team-mate Tommy Fleetwood. This is the first time in his career he's held the lead after 54 holes, while he is yet to finish inside the top 60 at the Players Championship in his career.

4:16PM

Rahm's thoughts heading into his 5.35pm tee time today

"For the last two years, I played okay golf," he said. "This change to March benefits me a little bit.

"It will be absolutely amazing to name yourself a Players champion. It's career defining. Only a very few number have gone on to to do it more than once."

4:04PM

Woods and Fitzpatrick sharing the tee today

Fitzpatrick may have already played in a Ryder Cup and won five European Tour events, but sometimes people forget that he's just 24 years old. He'll have grown up admiring Tiger, and no doubt being in a two-ball pairing with the man himself at the Players today will live long in the memory of the Englishman.

3:58PM

Tiger's last nine holes to come...

Woods leaves the front nine with a 33 score, and he's put himself in a good position to secure a top-20 finish if he can keep it together for the last nine holes. His tee shot on the 10th has found the fairway perfectly with the ball ending 101 yards out from the hole.

The 43-year-old's now in the perfect position to attack the pin here, which is back-left of the green. Chance for birdie, perhaps?

3:48PM

Scoring so far today

Early signs suggest it's going to be a birdie-fest out there as the night draws in, with Emiliano Grillo seven-under thru 16 for his round today. Sergio Garcia's four-under thru 10, Thorbjorn Olesen is five-under thru 17 while there's a host of players on two and three-under. There are only 10 players today who are currently over par, but that includes some high-profile names, like Martin Kaymer who is four-over thru 10.

3:46PM

It's tight at the top!

3:36PM

Fleetwood's on the range

The 28-year-old is out hitting mid-range irons already, and it looks like he's working on some alignment drills. He doesn't tee off for two hours. It seems very early to be warming up and getting things in motion for his 5.35pm tee time.

3:33PM

Tiger much-improved on day four so far...

A much better performance from the 14-time Major champion so far today. His putting has been near-perfect, helping to propel himself to three-under thru seven. He's found six of seven greens in regulations, while he's only missed two fairways off the tee. But he's still on six-under for the tournament and a way back from the leaders on 15-under. A strong final round to help build some confidence heading into Augusta next month.

If only he found this form earlier on in the week...

3:23PM

The final day is here!

Welcome to day four of the Players Championship!

We're set for a enthralling final day out at Sawgrass, which is bound to be influenced by the deteriorating weather conditions. The forecast is suggesting a day splintered by rain showers, while a 20-25 km/h northerly wind is bound to cause havoc out on the course, especially on the longer par-fives.

Adding to that, the air is notably more humid today, which could also suit the probing Rory McIlroy who seems to perform better on softer courses with a greater ability to spin the ball (note the Open at Hoylake in 2014). He's just a single shot behind overnight leader Jon Rahm, and the Northern Irishman will be desperate to claim his first win since last year's Arnold Palmer despite not admitting it to the media. That said, the Spaniard won't be giving up without a fight and you'd be a brave person to pick against him giving his current form. He's finished outside the top 10 on just one occasion in his last eight starts.

And don't forget Englishman Tommy Fleetwood, who remains in the hunt despite a fairly awful front nine holes yesterday where he was three-over thru seven. He rescued his situation on the back nine with four birdies, and he'll be in the final pairing alongside Rahm.

Glance further down the leaderboard and you'll spot Major-winners not too far adrift, with Jason Day on 12-under and Dustin Johnson on 10-under. Throw in the likes of Keegan Bradley and Brandt Snedeker also on 10-under, and surprise package Abraham Ancer on 11-under, and it's clear we're set for a very tense final day in Florida.

Notable tee times to come...

16.05 GMT -  Tony Finau, Bryson DeChambeau
16.15 GMT -  Eddie Pepperell, Justin Rose 
16.25 GMT -  Kevin Kisner, Jhonattan Vegas 
16.35 GMT -  Patrick Reed, Adam Scott 
16.45 GMT -  Jim Furyk, Joel Dahmen
16.55 GMT -  Dustin Johnson, Brian Harman
17.05 GMT -  Brandt Snedeker, Keegan Bradley
17.15 GMT -  Abraham Ancer, Ollie Schneiderjans
17.25 GMT - Rory McIlroy, Jason Day 
17.35 GMT - Tommy Fleetwood, Jon Rahm