American Sam Burns won the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play Championship after a dramatic semi-final defeat to Rory McIlroy earlier on Sunday.
McIlroy was beaten in a sudden-death extra hole by American Cameron Young, who went two and one up with three starting at the 18th in Texas.
Young parred with a pressure putt on the 18th and then won the match with a birdie on the first extra hole.
But the 15th seed was easily beaten 6 and 5 by compatriot Burns in the final.
Thirteenth seed Burns, 26, upset world number one Scotty Scheffler in a similarly tight semi-final that required three extra holes.
Against Young, he fell one down at the second but later dominated the match with a run of eight birdies in 10 holes from the fourth.
Young bogeyed 12 and 13 as he aggressively looked to cut his deficit before the pair parred on the 13th green.
“What a week,” said Burns, who sealed his fifth win on the PGA Tour. “I am very tired.
“He didn’t play the best stuff but it was a great match. I felt like I got something at the end of my match with Scotty.”
McIlroy recovered to defeat Scheffler 2 and 1 in a third-place playoff.
Despite the semifinal loss, his strong week comes 10 days before the Masters begins at Augusta on April 6.
“A ton of positives to take away,” said McIlroy, who is sporting a new putter and driver shaft. “Scotty and I are both disappointed that we lost our matches this morning.
“If you had told me I would have arrived on the Sunday of the match last week I would have taken it.”
Shock defeat for McIlroy and Scheffler
Two surprising semi-final results denied the tournament a McIlroy-Scheffler final expected all week and for most of their semi-finals.
Against McIlroy, Young birdied 16 and holed a seven-foot putt at the 18th to square the match.
Northern Ireland’s McIlroy failed to capitalize on a lucky break when the pair replayed the 12th hole – his approach tee shot had a lie as Young landed on the edge of the bunker – and then Young’s He then missed a 10-foot putt, made by a man who has never won on the PGA Tour.
Scheffler was three down early when his good friend Burns opened with three birdies but responded with four of his own in five holes to put him two up by the 10th.
But in a fine match, 13th-seeded Burns made par again at the 16th and put himself in front with a perfect tee shot at the par 17th, only for defending champion Scheffler to birdie the 18th to level the match. .
Scheffler won his last 10 matches in the tournament but, after both birdied the 19th hole and made par on the next, Burns’ 15-foot putt on the 21st proved decisive.
He secured his place in the final, where he scored the biggest win of his career.
