oducing a stunning finish to win the Irish Open for the first time at The K Club. McIlroy was in danger of blowing a three-shot lead after 54 holes for the secon

Rory McIlroy has targeted a summer of success after producing a stunning finish to win the Irish Open for the first time at The K Club. McIlroy was in danger of blowing a three-shot lead after 54 holes for the second time this season after Scotlands Russell Knox carded four birdies and an eagle in the first 15 holes of a dramatic final round. Wentworth ways to watch Dont miss a moment of this weeks BMW PGA Championship, with extended coverage from Wentworth live However, the world No 3 then birdied the par-five 16th as Knox three-putted and, after lipping out for a birdie on the 17th, fired a stunning approach from 252 yards to within three feet of the hole on the 18th for a closing eagle. The resulting 69 on a day interrupted twice by hailstorms and torrential rain meant McIlroy finished three shots clear of Knox and Wales Bradley Dredge.He will donate his first prize of £515,000 to his own foundation which hosted the tournament for the second year. It means a lot for my summer, said McIlroy, who failed to convert a similar position in the WGC-Cadillac Championship in March.Its nice to get that first win of the year.I kept telling myself, kept telling anyone that would listen, my game was close. It was just a matter of everything clicking. Maybe those last three holes is the catalyst for another big summer. Rory McIlroy reveals he was holding back the tears on the 18th after winning the Irish Open The 27-year-old, who won four times in 2014 including two majors and a maiden WGC title, added: I really feel like my game is in good enough shape to kick on from here and to challenge in the three final majors, and obviously everything else we have to play for this year, Olympics, Ryder Cup, Race to Dubai, FedEx Cup.The 13th European Tour title of McIlroys career was not enough to improve his position in the world rankings, but it did lift him to second in the Race to Dubai behind Masters champion Danny Willett, who shared the lead at halfway but slumped to a closing 77. McIlroy puts himself in prime position to win the Irish Open after firing this five wood to within two feet of the pin on the 18th That left Knox as McIlroys biggest challenger and the US-based Scot took the lead with birdies on the 14th and 15th, only for McIlroy to produce a stunning approach from 273 yards to set up a two-putt birdie on the 16th, while Knox found sand off the tee and three-putted for a costly bogey.I played brilliant to be honest, Knox said. Obviously 16 is a huge turning point, but the shots that Rory hit in the end, he deserves to win. I shot 75 the first day and finished tied second. Thats pretty good.Englands Matthew Southgate, who regained his European Tour card via the qualifying school after undergoing treatment for testicular cancer last year, carded a closing 68 to finish fourth, the best result of his career.Watch the BMW PGA Championship throughout the week live on Sky Sports 4 - your home of golf Also See: McIlroy claims K Club thriller WATCH: Rorys winning shot Tearful Rory savours home win Free HD Golf Game Simon Mignolet Liverpool Jersey . - Derek Wolfe says hes finally healthy after suffering a seizure in November that doctors now believe was related to the spinal cord injury he suffered in the preseason. Dominic Solanke Jersey . This should be celebrated because it will not always be this way. With the amount of money given to players by their clubs these days, it is a wonder that so many of those teams allow the sport to continue to take away many of their assets so they can play for a different team in the middle of their season. http://www.liverpoolgear.us/Authentic-Nathaniel-Phillips-Liverpool-Jersey/ . The team says the Spain international has a muscle pull in his right leg. Barcelona hosts third-division side Cartagena in the return leg of their round-of-32 tie after winning their first meeting 4-1. Curtis Jones Liverpool Jersey . Each of Houstons starters scored in double figures as the Rockets improved to 2-0 against the Spurs this season, with both victories coming on the road. They also moved within 3 1/2 games of San Antonio (22-7) for the lead the Southwest Division. Joel Matip Jersey .ca looks back at the stories and moments that made the year memorable. The lineups that 25th-ranked California and San Diego State will field when they meet at Sacramentos new Golden 1 Center on Monday (11 p.m. ET, Pac-12 Networks) might bear little resemblance to the players they put on the floor in their last games on Wednesday.The Bears (2-0) were missing three starters -- preseason All-American forward Ivan Rabb (toe) guards Jabari Bird (back) and Grant Mullins (neck) -- in their 75-65 overtime victory against UC Irvine.The Aztecs (2-1) faced a worse situation. They started Wednesdays home game against San Diego Christian with only eight players and at one point were down to six, including one walk-on, by the time they finished off an 81-58 victory.They are probably looking for the same thing we are -- to get healthy, Cal coach Cuanzo Martin said, But thats a great program.There is a pretty good chance that many of the injured players will be available on Monday.All three injured Cal players may be ready to return Monday, and if Rabb plays, it would represent his season debut after he sustained a sprained toe in a scrimmage against St. Marys three weeks ago.For San Diego State, Valentine Izundu (ankle) and Matt Shrigley (ankle) could have played Wednesday if the opponent had not been an overmatched NAIA school.Montaque Gill-Caesar (nose) and Dakarai Allen (ankle) were injured during Wednesdays game, but might return for Mondays game, too.The outlook for Malik Pope (knee), Max Hoetzel (knee) and Ben Perez (back) is less certain. All three missed the first three games of the season and remain questionable for the game against Cal.The 6-foot-10 Pope is the key member of that group after starting 16 games last season.Maliks making progress, Aztecs coach Steve Fisher said after Wednesdays game, but I would term myself cautiously optimistic today that he would have a chance (to play Monday).It would haave been nice to have those injured players last Monday at Gonzaga, which clobbered San Diego State 69-48 when the Aztecs shot only 28.dddddddddddd.6 percent from the field.They were not needed against San Diego Christian, although Fisher nearly ran out of players.We had two 13-year-olds as honorary coaches today, Fisher said after the game, and at halftime I said, John, Jake, do you have tennis shoes? They looked at me. I said, Where do you go to school? La Jolla Country Day. What grade are you in? Seventh grade. I said: Im putting one of you in. I mean that, Im putting one of you in.After consulting a rule book, Fisher did not put them in. Jeremy Hemsley had a game-high 23 points for the Aztecs in that game and preseason all-conference selection Trey Kell added 19.The Bears had a much bigger challenge against UC Irvine, which held a 13-point lead early in the second half.Cal rallied behind freshman Charlie Moore, a 5-foot-11 point guard from Chicago who scored 38 points, a Cal freshman record and the most points by a Bears player since Jerome Randle, another undersized point guard from Chicago, scored 39 in 2010.We didnt want to have any excuses after the game, Martin said. You had key guys out, and this is part of the game. You have 13 scholarship guys. You have to make it work with the guys whove been in practice. Probably one of the better wins in my coaching career, just to see guys compete and battle and not make excuses.San Diego State, the preseason pick to win the Mountain West Conference title again, won the conference regular-season title by three games last season, but failed to get into the NCAA tournament. A neutral-court win over Cal might help the Aztecs make the Big Dance this season. ' ' '