ATLANTA -- As much as he later said he enjoyed being part of and witness to history a year ago at East Lake, Rory McIlroy didn't much relish that final-hole walk. Fans rushing past him. That chanting and singing and hollering for someone else. The fleeting fear of being trampled.
It was a hollow feeling, one made worse by knowing McIlroy had far from his best stuff in the final round of the Tour Championship a year ago.
That was hardly the case on Sunday.
In another high-intensity battle, this one with the reigning and likely repeating PGA Tour player of the year Brooks Koepka, it was McIlroy who prevailed, beating back all challengers, shooting the lowest 72-hole score, and erasing all doubt about who is the FedEx Cup champion.