'Hell of a player, even better person' - Rory McIlroy backs Scottie Scheffler for PGA Tour Player of the Year

Scottie Scheffler suffered an agonising defeat to Rory McIlroy in the Tour Championship, but the Irishman has backed the world No. 1 to be named PGA Tour Player of the Year. Scheffler won four times in the 2022 season, the highlight being his maiden major win at the Masters.

Ad His form dipped a little after his triumph at Augusta, but he bounced back in late summer and looked sure to be crowned FedEx Cup champion after taking a six-shot lead into the final round of the Tour Championship. Tour Championship'I hate it' — McIlroy rails against LIV Golf after Tour Championship win3 HOURS AGO But he hadn’t banked on McIlroy producing a stirring performance to overturn the deficit and win by one stroke at East Lake. McIlroy was thrilled to get over the line, but had positive words about Scheffler and felt it could be the start of a big rivalry.

“Scottie Scheffler is going to win the Player of the Year,” McIlroy said. “There's no doubt about that. “It would have been fitting for him to end his breakout season with a FedEx Cup title.

He deserves this maybe more than I deserve it. He played an unbelievable season. “He didn't have his best stuff today, and I played well and took advantage of that.

«You don't really know what to say on the 18th green because he's had such a great year, but he'll be back, and he's a great player, and I told him this certainly isn't the last time that we're going to have these battles on the golf course. “Hell of a player, hell of a competitor. Even better person.” 'I was very interested' — Young turns down LIV, Matsuyama reportedly set to commit to PGA Tour 'I hate it' — McIlroy rails against LIV Golf after Tour Championship win Reflecting on his round and overall season, Scheffler said: “I just