Rory McIlroy didnt have his best stuff this week and, if youre a professional golfer, thats very, very scary. For a while on Sunday during the final round of the PGA Championship, one of the most exciting and memorable in many years, it appeared as if the Northern Irishman was going to let the peloton of chasers pass him, that his run of exacting play was going to end. When he stood in the 10th fairway waiting to play his second shot, he saw Rickie Fowler birdie to go up three shots. Phil Mickelson and Henrik Stenson were also ahead of him. It was, he admitted later, time to make something happen, and thats just what he did. “I needed to sort of stay patient and just sort of bide my time and wait for something to click,” McIlroy said. “Something to happen and that something happened on the 10th-hole. To make eagle there was a big turning point in the tournament and, from there, I kicked on and played some great golf down the stretch.” Great golf, but not the kind of golf that saw him win his last Majors by three, six and eight shots. This time, he had to grind it out and push himself uphill to the finish line. But he did just that and its that performance that makes it all the more satisfying. “To win it in this fashion and this style, it means a lot,” said the 25-year-old. “It means that I know that I can do it. I know that I can come from behind. I know that I can mix it up with the best players in the world down the stretch in a major and come out on top. “Phil Mickelson, the second-best player in this year and this generation, to be able to beat him on the back nine on a Sunday; its great to have in the memory bank and great to have in the locker going forward.” If it was impressive to watch him lap the field in his previous Majors, it was stunning to see him control the back nine on this occasion. Over the final five holes, each of the trio of chasers made a bogey: Stenson and Fowler on the 14th, Mickelson on the 16th. McIlroy played that stretch in one-under. Oh, there was that helping hand from the PGA of America on the final hole. As the sun was setting, Mickelson and Fowler allowed McIlroy and Austrian Bernd Wiesberger to hit their tee shots before the former pair had played their second.But then the PGA, hustling to get finished before enduring a massive logistical and possibly financial nightmare to come back for a Monday finish, told the last two to play their second shots to the green. It was a breach of etiquette and one a gracious McIlroy made sure to acknowledge to Mickelson and Fowler in the scorers room, as well as in his thank you speech on the 18th-green (a ceremony that took place basically in the pitch black). What Rory did was simple: Control the ball. Control his emotions. Control the game. And thats whats scary if youre a golfer. Or impressive if youre a fan. Earlier this year, McIlroy sat down with Jack Nicklaus and had a long conversation about all things golf. The Golden Bear told the Holywood Kid that he only had his best stuff in about five of the 18 majors he won. The other times, he simply found a way to win. Thats what McIlroy seemed to discover yesterday - that he can beat the best without his best. McIlroy refused to call this a new era, a passing of the baton from that broken-down, old Tiger Woods. “People can call it what they want, thats for them to decide,” he stated. “I just know that I can win tournaments.” Its easy to get ahead of ourselves so soon after a victory, to anoint the new king before the old one is gone, but it sure seems as if the next few years are going to be fun to watch if yesterday was any indication. Alex Cintron Jersey . Cory Batey and Brandon Vandenburg were each convicted on four charges of aggravated rape, one of attempted aggravated rape and two for aggravated sexual battery. Vandenburg was also found guilty of tampering with evidence as well as an unlawful photography charge. Joshua Rojas Jersey . Teams one through twenty competing in Englands top flight are each fatally flawed. A wide-open, highly competitive and mistake-filled season has followed. https://www.cheapdiamondbacksjerseys.us/.The team had a meeting prior to facing Russia at the world junior hockey championship and got the effort theyve been looking for by defeating the Russians 4-1 to advance to the quarter-finals. David Dellucci Jersey . However, Therrien added that Galchenyuks status for next Wednesdays game against the Detroit Red Wings is questionable. Galchenyuk has been out since Jan. 6 with a broken right hand. Silvino Bracho Jersey .Y. - The New York Islanders are brimming with confidence these days, thanks to a standout goalie and a newfound winning attitude. OKLAHOMA CITY -- The Oklahoma City Thunder apparently can win ugly, too. The Thunder blew most of a 16-point lead in the final six minutes Sunday night against the Orlando Magic but hung on for a 101-98 win, the 12th in the row to start the season at home for Oklahoma City. The Thunder are the first team in the NBA to open the season with 12 straight home wins since the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2008, according to STATS. The franchise last started 12-0 at home to open the 1993-94 season, when the team was located in Seattle. Kevin Durant had 28 points, nine rebounds and five assists, and Russell Westbrook added 20 points, 12 rebounds and six assists for Oklahoma City, which has won six straight overall and 14 of its last 15. The Thunder have beaten the Magic in five straight meetings. But Orlando made it interesting, taking advantage of miscues and missed shots by the Thunder to close the game on an 18-5 run. The Magics Glen Davis missed a potential tying 3-point attempt in the final seconds and Oklahoma Citys Serge Ibaka blocked a follow by Nikola Vucevic. "I thought our defence was just up and down throughout the night and then we didnt do a great job of executing down the stretch," Oklahoma City coach Scott Brooks said. "Those are things that we have to continue to work on and do a much better job with that. I think we have been doing a great job of that up until tonight." The Thunders 12-game home winning streak matches their second-longest since the franchise moved to Oklahoma City. The Thunder won 14 in a row at Chesapeake Energy Arena from January-March 2012. Arron Afflalo scored 25 points and Vucevic had 13 points and 16 rebounds for his 11th double-double this season for Orlando. The Magic, losers in 11 of their 13 road games this season, proved an unlikely threat to Oklahoma Citys home dominance. "Just good defence by (the Thunder) on our last possession and give them credit for that," Orlando coach Jacque Vaughn said. "Overall, our guys really believed from beginning to end that we were going to win that game and thats a good start for us." Durant denied that the Thunder were complacent against Orlando. "They kept fighting to the end," he said. "We got some tough breaks, but we were glad we fought it out and got a win. Thhey made a couple of runs but we were able to take the punch and keep pushing.dddddddddddd" A putback by Tobias Harris capped a 9-0 run by Orlando that tied the game at 45-45 with 3:38 left in the first half. After a timeout, Durant scored nine points in an 11-1 spurt by Oklahoma City and the Thunder led 56-49 at halftime. Orlando was within 67-62 after a 3-pointer by Jameer Nelson with 6:21 left in the third quarter, but Thabo Sefolosha had a follow dunk and a driving layup during a 16-7 run near the end of the quarter. Oklahoma City led 96-80 after a layup by Westbrook with 6:11 left. The Magic scored eight straight points and cut the margin to 96-88 on a basket by Victor Oladipo with 3:58 left. Durant answered by feeding Westbrook for a layup, then grabbed a rebound off a miss by Nelson and drove the length of the court for a layup with 3:10 left. That proved to be the Thunders final basket, as they missed their final five shots and turned the ball over twice after that. Oklahoma City finished with 13 turnovers. Nelson hit a 3-pointer - with Westbrook defending - with 31.9 seconds left to pull Orlando within 100-96 with 31.9 seconds to go. Westbrook turned the ball over moments later, leading to a basket by Maurice Harkless with 22.3 seconds left. Durant made 1 of 2 free throws with 13 seconds remaining to extend the Thunders lead to 101-98. Davis missed a 3-point attempt and Vucevic tried to tip the ball in. Vucevic initially was awarded a basket on a goaltending call against Ibaka with 1.3 seconds left. After a video review, officials overturned their call and ruled there should be a jump ball at centre court between Ibaka and Vucevic. The tip went to Harris, but his 3-point attempt came after the buzzer. "We had our chance to take it to overtime," Afflalo said. "It would have been great momentum for us. . It just didnt happen." NOTES: The Pacers can improve to 12-0 at home when they host Detroit on Monday night. ... Sefolosha returned to the starting lineup after missing three games due to a sprained knee. He finished with six points in 23:01. . Oklahoma City recorded its 100th straight sellout at Chesapeake Energy Arena, which seats 18,203. . Davis left the game holding his left shoulder with 2:06 left but returned in the final seconds. ' ' '