Rory McIlroy celebrated St Patrick's Day in brilliant style with victory in the prestigious Players Championship after a thrilling final round at Sawgrass. After proving his critics wrong by joining Sandy Lyle as the only British winners of the so-called “fifth major”, McIlroy will take renewed confidence into his bid to win a genuine fifth major title at the Masters to complete the career grand slam. McIlroy recovered from an early double bogey to card a closing 70 and finish 16 under par, one shot ahead of former Ryder Cup captain Jim Furyk, who had threatened to become the oldest winner in tournament history.