Billy Horschel claimed his second BMW PGA Championship title, defeating Rory McIlroy with an eagle on the second playoff hole.
Matteo Manassero had begun the final round with a three-shot lead, thanks to an impressive 9-under-par third round. However, a wayward tee shot on the first hole set the tone for a difficult day, and he never regained his rhythm.
Manassero’s resurgence this season has been a bright spot, highlighted by a win at the Jonsson Workwear Open in South Africa and a solo third at the Amgen Irish Open. These performances have seen him climb to 9th in the Race to Dubai Rankings and 6th on the DP World Tour’s top-10 list for a PGA Tour card. Despite his strong form, the past champion — who became the youngest-ever winner of the BMW PGA Championship in 2013 — was unable to capitalise on his lead.
Late in the day, Aaron Rai surged to 18-under-par, but his chances of victory were dashed when his approach on the 18th hole found the water. Meanwhile, Thriston Lawrence posted a scintillating 7-under-par to become the clubhouse leader at 20-under. However, McIlroy’s eagle-par finish and Horschel’s birdie-birdie stretch forced a three-way playoff.
On the first playoff hole, Lawrence’s chances unravelled after a wayward drive saw him find the mud-ridden pathway before putting his bunker shot approach into the stream. McIlroy and Horschel both birdied, sending the playoff back to the 18th tee.
On the second playoff hole, both players found the fairway, with McIlroy striking a solid approach to 25 feet for eagle. Horschel followed similarly, opting for a gentle left-to-right shot shape, landing 5 feet closer. McIlroy’s putt came heartbreakingly close but didn’t drop, leaving Horschel to roll his putt down the slope and into the cup at dead weight to clinch the title.
For McIlroy, it was another near miss, adding to a growing list of close calls. Despite the disappointment, the World No. 3 remained positive about his game.
“Over 72 holes, it’s really fine margins and little things here and there,” McIlroy said. “But I can’t walk away from here with anything but positivity about where my game is and how I feel looking to the last three events of the season.”
With this win, Horschel becomes just the third American to claim the BMW PGA Championship title, joining his own 2021 victory and Arnold Palmer’s triumph when the tournament was hosted at St. George’s in 1972. Speaking after his win, Horschel said his game plan for the final day was simple: stay solid.
“I told myself, go play a really good, solid round of golf. Matteo is a really good player. I know he’s come back from some struggles and it’s really great to see him back because he’s always had the game. He’s shown it at an early age, and it’s — I think we all can appreciate the hard work he’s put in to get back to where — out here and possibly become one of the best players again in the world.
“But at the same time, he was going to deal with emotions. He’s going to have a three-shot lead and I felt like if I could just, you know, play a solid round of golf and if Matteo went out and played a 5-, 6-, 7-under par round today, then you’ve got to tip your cap to him.
“If I go out there and play well and just sort of stay on his heels, then, you know, he was going to have to be looking at not just me, but Rory McIlroy, Thriston Lawrence… there were a lot of guys that could make runs, and this course allows that with the par 5s and some short par 4s.
“I just stayed in it the entire time. I looked at the leaderboard a little bit at times here and there just to see how things were playing out. But you know, I just said, hey, let’s keep trying to hit quality golf shots after quality golf shots, and hopefully that leads to really good scores.”
This win is Billy Horschel’s third DP World Tour title in his 82nd appearance, and could climb as high as second on the Race to Dubai Rankings up from 22nd, and as high as 17th on the Official World Golf Ranking, up from 24th.
