WGC Match Play: Sam Burns wins after beating Scheffler and Cam. Young in tournament format

The unique tournament format returned last weekend to Austin, Texas at the country club from Wednesday to Sunday as we got a final read over who is the favourite to win the green jacket next month.

We certainly were delivered with some thrilling golf throughout the week, with such fluctuation in results and some tension in the later stages of the tournament. The group stages saw some shock exits such as world number three John Rahm, who exited in the group stage with Shane Lowry, Jordan Speith and Viktor Hovland.

Heading into the knockout stages, only one European remained – it was unsurprisingly Rory McIlroy. Eyes were certainly targeted in his direction after rumoured changes to his driver and putter and a successful practice round at Augusta the week prior – and he delivered this weekend.

The Northern Irishman exited in the semi-final after a sudden-death knockout to Cameron Young, but was spectacularly consistent in comparison to his underwhelming efforts at The Players Championship earlier in the month, where he did not make the cut.

McIlroy was particularly smug when asked about his practice Augusta round, where the interviewer questioned him on his round and mentioned the rumour that he had 19 putts in an 18 hole round. Although that consistency was not repeated, his all-round game was impressive in match play. The shockingly thrilling moment came on the 18th in his match against Denny McCarthy, where he hit a 400-yard drive to the pin. A stunning strike, and one of his best ever.

The round of 16 did not provide too many surprises with exception to Patrick Cantlay’s exit to the eventual winner, Sam Burns. At only 25-years-old, Burns was playing with supreme maturity, particularly against Scottie Scheffler who was inconsistent, but always found a way to return. To beat a mentality as strong as the Masters winner was never to be an easy feat. He kept his composure until an eventual 21st hole, where he putted from a difficult 14ft to win the match.

Sam Burns easily cruised past Cameron Young in the final, where the latter was somewhat lacklustre compared to the high standards that had been set in the tournament. Burns was thoroughly deserving of the win, and certainly did not do it the ‘easy way’.

Going into the weekend, a Scheffler vs McIlroy final was probably the prediction of every pundit and expert, but with the top two in the world losing in the semi-final, they faced each other in a match which neither wanted – a 3rd placed playoff. Their match was not of the standard both had been setting, but Rory will certainly be happy with the bragging rights of beating the only man ahead of him in the world standings.

Match Play is a great format which should become a regular on the PGA Tour. The format is different, and for that alone it is exciting when you deal with stroke play unless it is the Ryder Cup. It is disappointing not to see this return to the tour in 2024, but organisers will undoubtedly be desperate to see a return the following year.

WGC Match Play is fantastic at achieving two crucial necessities for the tour at this point in time; It raises standards and engages fans. The course is a perfect location for exciting, unpredictable golf and rewards calculated risks. Hopefully, this tournament is announced in 2025