2014 British Open results: Sergio Garcia, Rickie Fowler push Rory McIlroy but come up short

Rory McIlroy started Sunday’s final round at the Open Championship with a huge six-shot lead, but it was far from the coronation stroll that many expected. Sergio Garcia, and to a lesser extent Rickie Fowler, put the pressure on at different points throughout the round and made the now three-time major winner sweat a little on the back nine. At one point, Sergio cut what was his seven-shot deficit at the start to just two shots, adding a little drama as Rory hit a few loose shots one group behind him.

Garcia was fabulous all day, rolling his putter about as good he ever has, especially at a major championship. He started with birdies in three of his first five holes to promptly jump into double-digit red figures. The putter has abandoned him as so many critical times in the past, usually from the shortest distances in the biggest spots at the majors. But it was the club that saved him repeatedly, including on a lengthy birdie try at the third. Garcia was so enamored with club that he felt moved enough to kiss it.

Garcia would roll one more in on the par-5 fifth to wrap up his early charge and go out in 32 for the second straight day.

The second par-5 of his round was where Sergio really put the pressure on, bombing in another putt, except this time it was for eagle to pick up two strokes. Rory stood in the fairway and saw Sergio make the putt, but he was unperturbed by the roar and followed right behind with a birdie to mitigate the charge.

Garcia has had so many close calls in his career, and this runner-up was less the result of his shaky play and more the overwhelming brilliance of McIlroy. Sergio kept grinding on the back nine, at one point making a miracle par after he rocketed an approach shot off the grandstand. He’d finally give his first shot back on the 15th, failing to get out of a pot bunker on what was a relatively easy sand shot.

That bogey pretty much wiped out any longshot hopes he had of pulling off the amazing chasedown. He’d add birdies at the two par-5s in Hoylake’s final three, but those holes were just as easy for McIlroy.

In many ways, Rory is achieving the career highlights that many of us expected Sergio to attain a decade ago. Garcia is still just 34-years old, the same age as Phil Mickelson when he won the first of his five majors. So he’ll have many more chances, but on Sunday, he was putting beautifully on what should have been a run to the title if not for Rory’s dominance. He was the subplot to the winner once again, but it was a really fun Sunday watching Sergio play.

Rickie Fowler finished in a tie for second, but from his opening bogey onward, he was much less of a threat playing alongside McIlroy in the final pairing. A major win has to be coming for Fowler soon. He’s now finished T5, T2 and T2 at the first three major championships of the year. His Butch Harmon tweaked swing seems to be in a perfect spot, and he’s obviously getting a ton of reps in contention at the biggest events. It’s just a matter of time before one of golf’s top marketing draws adds a career defining win.

Those three stars were in a separate division for most of the day. Tiger Woods, the last Open winner at this venue, was also in his own tier but for ignominious reasons. Woods shot an ugly 75 and finished fourth-to-last place. Tiger will regroup and play in Akron in about 10 days. Even though Sunday was particularly unpleasant, he should be happy play four competitive rounds in just his second start after months on the shelf due to back surgery.

Here are your final results from Royal Liverpool and the 143rd Open Championship.