McIlroy went for the green in two and put his ball in the sand trap on the right.
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Olympic gold medallist Justin Rose was in the thick of the action as he got to 11 under through 10 holes but then played the final eight holes in 10 over, including triple bogies at the 13 and 16 holes along with a double bogey at the par-4 12.
“It’s incredible, this game, how quickly things can change and how quickly things can turn around”, McIlroy said.
The world No.5’s bunker play was brilliant yesterday, while his putting, a cause of frustration in the recent past, was solid.
Looks like new putting coach Phil Kenyon was the answer McIlroy was seeking as he fiddled with how he clamped his hands on different putters while missing the cut at last month’s PGA Championship and going winless on the PGA Tour since the 2015 Wells Fargo Championship.
Rory McIlroy is back in the top three in the world ranking.
He also won at the 7,207-yard TPC Boston in 2012, besting South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen by one shot.
McIlroy, who had not tasted victory on the PGA Tour since the Wells Fargo Championship in May past year, had started the tournament three over after his first four holes.
“I don’t know if I quit, but I definitely let my shoulders slump and let my head drop”, McIlroy said. McIlroy moved from No. 38 in the points standings to No. 4 thanks to the win, so he’s much better positioned to capture the cup as we move on to Crooked Stick. I knew that I hadn’t won on the PGA Tour in a while.
Casey finished in second spot, one shot clear of Jimmy Walker in third.
A distant six strokes behind overnight leader Paul Casey heading into the final round at the TPC Boston in Norton, Massachusetts, McIlroy fired a sparkling six-under-par 65 in blustery conditions on Monday to post a 15-under total of 269. He finished alone in second. Over the last few days, he’s obviously playing pretty well.
Patrick Reed, who tied for fifth with Fabian Gomez, retained the overall lead in the FedExCup standings.
McIlroy closed out the front nine with three straight birdies to take the lead for the first time. Walker was a further shot back in third place at 12 under.
That brought Casey within one stroke of McIlroy.
Casey needed an eagle at No. 18 to tie McIlroy after his par at No. 17, but missed a 58-foot putt that would have forced a playoff and parred the hole.
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276-Russell Knox (SCO) 73-67-69-67, Gary Woodland 69-66-74-67, Jason Day (AUS) 70-71-68-67, Hudson Swafford 69-69-70-68, Kim Si-Woo (KOR) 67-71-69-69, Hideki Matsuyama (JPN) 69-7067-70.
