Rory McIlroy birdies final two holes to take the Scottish Open title

GULLANE, Scotland — Rory McIlroy birdied the last two holes in whipping wind Sunday for a two-under 68 to win the Scottish Open, his first victory on Scottish soil, and take a load of confidence into the final major of the year.

McIlroy was one shot behind Robert MacIntyre when he played the slope to near perfection on the par-three 17th for a four-foot birdie putt to tie for the lead. Then, he delivered what McIlroy called his best shot of the year — a two-iron into the wind to 10 feet for a final birdie.

It was a heartbreaker for MacIntyre, who was trying to win his national open and delivered a class shot of his own. MacIntyre hammered a three-wood from the rough on the 18th hole at The Renaissance Club to four feet, pumping both fists when it dropped for a 64.

It was a remarkable closing round given the wind that was rough and relentless off the Firth of Forth, and it looked for the longest time that it would give the 26-year-old MacIntyre the signature victory of his young career.

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Instead it was McIlroy, who played the tough back nine in 31 and capped it off with two clutch birdies for his first win since the Dubai Desert Classic.

The victory came at an ideal time. McIlroy heads south to Royal Liverpool for the British Open, where he tries to end his nine-year drought in the majors. McIlroy won the claret jug the last time The Open was played at Royal Liverpool in 2014.

“That was such a tough day — so tough,” McIlroy said. “To play that back nine in 4-under par to win the tournament, I’m really proud of how I stuck in there. I hit some amazing shots down the stretch. It feels incredible. It’s been a long six months, I feel, since I won in Dubai. I’ve given myself tons of chances, and hopefully this win sort of breaks the seal for me, especially going into next week.”

McIlroy finished at 15-under 265 and moved past Jon Rahm to No. 2 in the world.

Scottie Scheffler, the No. 1 player in the world, closed with a 70 and tied for third with Byeong Hun An (70) and David Lingmerth (68). Scheffler has finished among the top five in his last seven tournaments, two of them majors.

Vincent Norrman wins Barbasol Championship

NICHOLASVILLE, Ky. — Vincent Norrman lipped in an eight-footer for bogey on the 72nd hole to get into a playoff, then scrambled for par on the same hole in sudden death to beat Nathan Kimsey and win the Barbasol Championship, his first PGA Tour victory.

The 25-year-old Norrman, a tour rookie who played one year at Florida State after four years at Division II Georgia Southwestern, won in his 23rd career start. The Swede closed with a 66 at Keene Trace to finish at 22-under 266.

Kimsey, a 30-year-old European tour player from England who made his PGA Tour debut in this co-sanctioned event, shot 64 to post 22 under and waited to see if it would be good enough. It didn’t look promising with Norrman and Trevor Cone at 23 under.

But Cone yanked his tee shot into tall grass well left of the green on the par-3 16th, leading to double bogey. That opened the door for Norrman, who hit fairway wood off the 18th tee and went well left into an awkward lie. He still had 57 yards for his third shot, missed the green from there and then chipped well past the hole. His bogey putt caught the lip on the right side and dropped.

In the playoff, Norrman again went left off the tee, missed the green to the right and chipped to 2 feet. Kimsey hit his tee shot into thick rough on the right, just missing the water, and failed to get up-and-down from a bunker well short of the green.

Cone shot 68 and finished one shot shy of the playoff alongside Adrian Saddier (66), a European tour player from France.

Veteran Lucas Glover, who led after the first and second rounds, finished alone in fifth at 20 under, his third consecutive top 10. The 43-year-old Glover shot 68 and extended his streak of rounds in the 60s to 12, all since switching to a long putter.

Linn Grant takes first LPGA Tour win

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SYLVANIA, Ohio — Linn Grant won her first LPGA Tour title after an outstanding start to her career in Europe, enduring a charge from U.S. Women’s Open champion Allisen Corpuz and closing with a three-under 68 for a three-shot victory in the Dana Open.

The 24-year-old Grant has five victories on the Ladies European Tour — including a history-making nine-shot victory last year against a field of men and women in the Scandinavian Mixed — and earned LPGA membership starting last season. But she did not play in the United States until this year, when the U.S. dropped its COVID-19 vaccination requirement for foreign travelers. The Swede did not disclose her reasons for remaining unvaccinated, calling it a private matter.

Now she’s an LPGA winner and a lock to represent Europe in the Solheim Cup this fall in Spain.

“I think I’ve imagined this day so many times in so many ways in my own mind,” Grant said. “Just being here now, I’m just so speechless and at the same time I feel familiar with the setting for some reason. But it’s just so fun.”

Grant entered the day with a six-shot lead after a 62 on Saturday. She parred her first seven holes, chipped in for birdie from behind the green on the par-3 eighth, and still led by six at the turn. But Corpuz, a week after she won at Pebble Beach for her first LPGA title, made it interesting with birdies on four of the last five holes to shoot 65 and get within two shots.

“It doesn’t matter if it’s one shot or six or whatever it is. Like, it’s just awful. You just stress all the way,” Grant said. “From the second I teed off to the last putt I’m just shaking, stressed, tense. It’s fun, but also very not very fun.”

Grant saved par on the par-4 16th and finished with a birdie on the par-5 18th, reaching the green in two with a 3-wood that she didn’t think she could get there. Her four-day total at Highland Meadows was 21-under 263.

Steve Stricker dominates to win at Firestone

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AKRON, Ohio — Steve Stricker won his third PGA Tour Champions major of the year, capping off a dominant weekend at Firestone with a four-under 66 for a three-shot victory in the Kaulig Companies Championship.

Stricker was five shots off the lead after a second-round 73, but closed with rounds of 65-66 for an 11-under 269 total. David Toms shot a final-round 65 to finish alone in second at eight under.

The 56-year-old Stricker won the Regions Tradition in May, then triumphed two weeks later at the Senior PGA Championship. He has five victories this year on the over-50 tour and a lead of more than $2 million over second-place Bernhard Langer on the Charles Schwab Cup money list.

“It’s fun getting in contention on a day like today and knowing that you have to do certain things. The more times I’ve been there, the more times I’ve been able to handle it,” Stricker said. “And that’s been the fun part, that’s what keeps me motivated to come out here and continue to play.”

The win at Firestone gives Stricker a spot in next year’s Players Championship, which he said was one of his goals. This event was previously known as the Senior Players Championship before Kaulig Companies took over as title sponsor.