PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Rory McIlroy has won The Players Championship in a three-hole playoff against J.J. Spaun that lacked any real drama.

McIlroy blasted a drive down the 16th fairway to set up a birdie. And then Spaun sailed over the island green on the par-3 17th and into the water for a triple bogey. McIlroy is the eighth multiple winner of the PGA Tour’s premier championship.

It’s also the first time in his career he has won twice early in the season before the Masters. It was the first Monday finish in three years because of a four-hour rain delay on Sunday.

MESSI OUT OF CUP QUALIFIERS

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Lionel Messi will miss Argentina’s World Cup qualifiers against Uruguay and Brazil over the next eight days because of an injury to his adductor.

The 37-year-old Messi was not included in the 25-man squad announced on Monday by coach Lionel Scaloni. Later Monday, Inter Miami said Messi — the reigning Major League Soccer MVP — underwent an MRI “to assess the extent of the discomfort in his adductor region,” an injury that the team said occurred in Sunday’s win over Atlanta United.

Argentina leads South America and will visit second-place Uruguay on Friday and host fifth-place Brazil four days later in Buenos Aires.

GEORGE IS OUT FOR THE SEASON

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Paul George will miss the rest of the season to recover from his injuries, ending a difficult first year in Philadelphia for the nine-time All-Star. The 76ers say George has received injections in his left adductor muscle and left knee, following consultations with specialists.

According to the team, he “is medically unable to play and will be out for at least six weeks.”

Philadelphia’s last game of the regular season is on April 13. George, who turns 35 on May 2, signed a $212 million, four-year contract in free agency last summer.

But his first year in Philly was marred by injuries that resulted in the forward having one of the worst years of his NBA career.

STRIDER SPARKLES IN 1ST SPRING START

NORTH PORT, Fla. (AP) — Atlanta Braves pitcher Spencer Strider struck out six and didn’t allow a base runner over 2 2/3 innings in his first Grapefruit League appearance since undergoing Tommy John surgery last year.

Strider started just two games and went 0-0 with a 7.00 ERA last year before getting shut down for the rest of the season.

That followed a 2023 season in which he went 20-5 with a 3.86 ERA and a major league-leading 281 strikeouts in 186 2/3 innings.

He made the NL All-Star team and finished fourth in the Cy Young Award voting in 2023.