Rory McIlroy left golf rival Jordan Spieth momentarily speechless after sinking a stunning 40-yard bunker shot at the Genesis Invitational. Spieth was in the middle of a live interview when the remarkable moment unfolded on a nearby TV screen, prompting him to abruptly pause the conversation as he watched the Northern Irishman’s brilliance in real time.
« Rory just holed a 40-yard bunker shot… okay, » the flabbergasted American said after his final round, staring up at the screen. « And that’s like an impossible pin too. A two-shotter. » McIlroy’s bunker heroics weren’t enough to land him what would have been the very first Genesis Invitational title of his career. The 2025 Masters champion ended up tied for second with Kurt Kitayama on 17-under, one stroke behind winner Jacob Bridgeman.
Amazingly, McIlroy’s moment of magic wasn’t the first to interrupt Spieth’s interview. Just minutes earlier, Max Greyserman had electrified the course with a hole-in-one at the par-three 14th.
« If I could finish top 10 somehow, I thought I was going to be five or six under, and I wanted a clean card which was really nice to do… ah, hole-in-one. Greyserman on the 14th » Spieth said.
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Spieth, a three time major winner, finished tied for 12th at 11-under par, seven shots adrift of Bridgeman. The winner’s 18-under total marked the lowest winning score at the Genesis Invitational since Fred Couples also posted 18-under to claim the title in 1990. The tournament has not seen a better winning score since 1985, when Lanny Wadkins won at 20-under.
McIlroy’s impressive display at Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles suggests he may be rediscovering his rhythm after a disappointing end to 2025. Anticipation is building ahead of the season’s first major, the Masters, with McIlroy heading in as defending champion.
Last year, the Northern Irishman finally captured the coveted green jacket after more than a decade and a half of near-misses, edging Justin Rose in a heart-thumping play-off to complete a historic career Grand Slam. The win also ended an 11-year wait for a major title, with McIlroy’s last win before that coming at The Open way back in 2014.
However, since breaking his duck at Augusta National, the 36-year-old’s form has tailed off. He hasn’t won an event since the Masters and had disappointing showings at the year’s other majors, finishing the PGA Championship tied for 47th place, the US Open tied for 19th place and The Open tied for seventh.
Jordan Spieth has experienced a similar dip in form in recent years. Following victories at the Masters and the US Open in 2015 and The Open in 2017, the 32-year-old has now gone eight-and-a-half years without a major title.
Since his last major triumph, Spieth has claimed just two tournament wins: the Valero Texas Open in 2021 and the RBC Heritage in 2022. Moreover, he has only recorded two top-10 finishes at major championships over the past four years, with his most notable near-miss coming at The Open in 2021, where he finished second, two strokes behind winner Collin Morikawa.
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