PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- It was almost unfair, giving Rory McIlroy an extra 15 hours to know the exact shots he would need to hit to win.

Once the Players Championship became a three-hole aggregate Monday playoff due to a Sunday weather delay, McIlroy had the clear advantage over J.J. Spaun. But as the wind gusted down the 16th, McIlroy was as nervous as he had been for a long time, he said later. On Sunday, he had regretted not closing the door. The pressure, inevitably, was on him.

The stakes made for a tough night; he woke up at 3 a.m. and couldn't go back to sleep. The situation made for a "stressful" morning; he got to the course at 6:15, using the same workout and warmup routine as he would if he had to play a full 18 holes to find some semblance of normality.

"I was as nervous as I can remember," McIlroy said.