Richard Henley wins Honda Classic after Rory four-man play-off
Rory McIlroy gives up two-shot lead and Tiger Woods quits after back spasms
Russell Henley made good on his second chance at the 18th hole on Sunday and won the Honda Classic in a four-man playoff.
The closing hour was a series of blunders at PGA National, particularly by Rory McIlroy, who lost a two-shot lead by closing with a 74.
Henley was in a three-way tie for the lead, 40 yards left of the flag on the par-5 18th in regulation, when he chunked a chip so badly that it only got halfway to the hole. He had to two-putt for par, and then watched as McIlroy nearly made a great escape from an otherwise bad afternoon. McIlroy hit a 5-wood from 236 yards to just inside 12 feet for an eagle and the win. It narrowly slid by on the right.
In the playoff, Henley was the only player to reach the 549-yard hole in two, and he two-putted from about 40 feet for birdie. Ryan Palmer missed a 10-foot birdie putt. McIlroy went from the back bunker to the front collar and had to scramble for par, and Russell Knox laid up and missed a 20-foot birdie attempt.
“This isn’t going to sink in for a while,” Henley said.
Tiger Woods abruptly quit after 13 holes and was driven straight to his car. He later said he had lower back pain and spasms, and was unsure if he could play at Doral next week. And then came all the mistakes by four players trying to win.