DUBLIN, Ohio -- The stars came out for the Memorial Tournament at Muirfield Village Golf Club.
Not that you would know by glancing at the leaderboard.
Little-known William McGirt, ranked 102nd in the world, outdueled No. 193 Jon Curran in a playoff to earn his first PGA Tour victory.
"It's unbelievable," said McGirt, who previously finished second three times. "It was a struggle all day. I really fought my golf swing, but I made a lot of really good par putts. My speed was really good all day. That's what saved me."
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The unheralded duo finished at 15-under 273 before McGirt parred the second playoff hole -- the par-4 18th -- to claim his victory. McGirt shot a 1-under 71 Sunday, while Curran shot a 70.
McGirt had to endure two weekend weather delays, but it was worth the wait for the 36-year-old journeyman whose only professional victory came on the Tarheel Tour in 2007.
That check was for $16,000. On Sunday, he pocketed $1.5 million.
McGirt became the sixth player to have his first career win come at the Memorial, including the last three, joining Hideki Matsuyama and David Lingmerth, who won in a playoff last year.
"I've been in this position several times before," McGirt said. "As I said yesterday, I hope I finally learn something from it. And I think I did."
McGirt and Curran had a combined 218 Tour starts without a victory.
Dustin Johnson finished one shot out of the playoff at 14-under 274. He shot a final-round 71 that included five birdies. Like most of the field, though, the back nine was a smorgasbord of bogeys.
Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy (68 on Sunday), J.B. Holmes (69), Gary Woodland (73) and Matt Kuchar (73) tied for fourth at 13-under 275.
The field was one of the strongest of the season, featuring the top five players in the world. However, that didn't faze McGirt or Curran. Both hit clutch shots and made nervy putts on the closing holes.
They each parred No. 18 on the first playoff hole. On the second go round, McGirt and Curran each got in trouble, hitting their approach shots over the green. McGirt's chip left him an uphill 6-foot putt for par. When Curran missed his 40-foot par attempt, Curran knocked the winning putt into the center of the cup.
Players had to endure an hour-and-a-half delay, beginning at 2:14 p.m., due to thunderstorms. Sunday's conditions were a stark difference from the serene first three rounds that produced record-low scores. The field had to battle winds of 15 mph that made the 7,352-yard course play every bit of its length.
It appeared that Kuchar was cruising along to his second Memorial Tournament victory until a 4-over stretch on Nos. 12 through 15. Kuchar, who won the 2013 Memorial, bogeyed the par-3 12th, double-bogeyed 13 and bogeyed the par-5 15th.
He was vying to become the seventh multiple winner at the Memorial.
"It's disappointing," Kuchar said. "I didn't come here to finish fourth."
McIlroy also looked poised to win for the second time in as many starts. McIlroy, who won the Irish Open two weeks ago, avoided most of the bad weather and was the clubhouse leader for over an hour until Curran finished his round.
"I knew that I could maybe shoot a 31 or 32 on the back nine to try and at least post a number, and I made four birdies on the back nine. I just made a couple of mistakes as well," McIlroy said. "But I feel like 68 out there is a pretty solid score today. It's moved me up the leaderboard a little bit. I can take a lot from how I've played for the most part this week."
McGirt first contended for a win at the Canadian Open in 2012. When he told Tiger Woods a few weeks later that he regretted not looking at leaderboards during the final round, Woods was incredulous, McGirt said this week.
"You're an idiot," McGirt recalled. "Do you think Kobe (Bryant) doesn't look at the scoreboard with a minute to go in the game? I said, 'Point taken.'"
It was the first time McGirt ever spoke to Woods. On Sunday, McGirt didn't need to leaderboard-watch -- his competition was in the same group.
Even so, if he looked over his shoulder late in the day, he finally would have seen his name at the top as a PGA Tour winner.
"I looked at (the leaderboard) all day," McGirt said. "Every single one of them."
NOTES: Jordan Spieth, who entered the weekend in contention, had his second consecutive over-par round, shooting 1-over 73 and finishing in a tie for 57th at 3-under 285. ... David Lingmerth, the defending champion, shot a 70 and finished tied for 27th at 9-under 279. ... Greg Norman was selected as the 2017 Memorial Tournament honoree. Norman, a two-time major champion, won the 1990 and 1995 Memorial. ... Roberto Castro shot the low round of the day, a 6-under 66, which moved him 40 spots up the leaderboard, from 51st to a tie for 11th at 277.
