WGC-Cadillac Match Play 2015: Leaderboard Scores and Highlights from Sunday

Rory McIlroy had to play a few extra holes during Sunday's final day of action at the 2015 WGC-Cadillac Match Play event, but the world's top-ranked player made it all the way through before knocking off Gary Woodland in the finals. 

The victory is McIlroy's first at this event. His day started early with the conclusion of Saturday's quarterfinal match against Paul Casey that was postponed due to darkness, which the 25-year-old won on the 22nd hole. He knocked off Jim Furyk in the semifinals before defeating Woodland in the final round. 

Here's the full breakdown of Sunday's action at the WGC-Cadillac Match Play Championship:

Semifinals	Result
Third-Place Match	Result
Finals	Result
Rory McIlroy vs. Jim Furyk	McIlroy def. Furyk, 1 Up
Gary Woodland vs. Danny Willett	Woodland def. Willett, 3 and 2
Jim Furyk vs. Danny Willett	Willett def. Furyk, 3 and 2
Rory McIlroy vs. Gary Woodland	McIlroy def. Woodland, 4 and 2

The third-place match between Furyk and Danny Willett, which was won by Willett, had a connection to McIlroy, via Shane O'Donoghue of CNN's Living Golf:

The 27-year-old Willett is still seeking his first PGA Tour victory, though he does have two wins on the European Tour and finished tied for 38th at the Masters in April. 

Those expecting late drama from the championship match, like Ron Kroichick of the San Francisco Chronicle, had to feel a letdown at the way McIlroy made easy work of Woodland:

However, there was plenty of it during McIlroy's match with Furyk. Furyk was 1 up after a birdie on the 15th hole and held it through 16 as the two shared birdies. McIlroy went to work after that, taking the 17th hole with a birdie. 

With things all square on the final hole, McIlroy had a chance to put Furyk away with a long eagle putt. Here's what happened, via the PGA Tour official Twitter account: 

Drama is nothing new for McIlroy this week. He needed extra holes in the third round-robin match against Billy Horschel just to get out of Group 1. 

Speaking after the victory over Furyk, McIlroy said that he would prefer to get some breathing room in these matches, via the PGA Tour official Twitter:

McIlroy finally got his wish in the championship match against Woodland. The American star had been going strong all week with three wins in group play, defeating John Senden 5 and 3 in the quarterfinals and Danny Willett 3 and 2 in the semifinals. 

Things fell apart for Woodland against McIlroy, who was happy to take advantage of every opening he got. One shot on the third hole in particular summed up his misfortune, via the PGA Tour official Twitter:

Even though that hole would end up being halved, as McIlroy and Woodland traded bogeys, it was the start of his downward spiral. McIlroy would win the next four holes to take a commanding lead before making the turn. 

Woodland did try to make a run on the back nine, closing to within two holes after McIlroy bogeyed No. 11 and he birdied No. 12, but a bogey on the 14th hole would spell the end for the 30-year-old. 

Rex Hoggard of the Golf Channel had some fun with McIlroy on Twitter, noting the star golfer may have been hoping Saturday night's fight between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao took place Sunday night so he could make it to Las Vegas:

Instead of getting to take a flight to Las Vegas for one of boxing's biggest fights, McIlroy will have to settle for another PGA Tour victory. It's his first so far in 2015 after two top-10 finishes at the WGC-Cadillac Championship and the Masters. 

Per Justin Ray of the Golf Channel, McIlroy has been on a roll in PGA Tour and WGC events over his last six starts:

The win is a nice birthday present for McIlroy, who will turn 26 on Monday. Per CBS Sports' Kyle Porter, the newly crowned WGC-Cadillac Match Play champion becomes just the third player ever with at least 10 PGA Tour wins before their 26th birthday:

Being on the same list as Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus means McIlroy must be doing something right. This event was also an excellent reminder that even with all of the hype around Jordan Spieth following the Masters, he's not the best player in the world. 

There may come a day when Spieth surpasses McIlroy as the No. 1 player on tour, but he's not there yet. McIlroy has that ability to turn on a switch when he has to and do something no one else is capable of.