Justin Rose produced a sensational finish at the FedEx St Jude Championship with six birdies in his final eight holes to win a play-off against US Open champion JJ Spaun.
The Englishman, who at 45 became the oldest European to win on the PGA Tour in the modern era, looked out of it after a bogey at the 12th dropped him to 12 under, two off the pace with overnight leader Tommy Fleetwood, world No 1 Scottie Scheffler and Spaun ahead of him.
But four birdies from the 14th catapulted him to the top of the leaderboard and he just missed a 13-footer at the last to win outright as he finished on 16 under tied with Spaun, who produced a birdie-birdie finish.
Meanwhile, Fleetwood’s wait for a first PGA Tour title goes on after another desperately disappointing finish.
The Englishman looked perfectly placed to end his long wait for a win on the tour when he made three birdies in four holes on the back nine to move two shots clear with three holes remaining.
However a par-bogey-par finish saw him surrender his lead as Rose and Spaun capitalised to leapfrog him at the top.
In the sudden death play-off, Rose produced two more birdies in three holes – one a clutch effort after Spaun had holed from distance – with the second from 14ft after Spaun was half that distance away proving decisive as his opponent’s attempt to extend the contest raced past.
Justin Rose made four birdies in a row to force a play-off with JJ Spaun at the St Jude Championship
Rose ‘never stopped believing’
“That was an amazing last 90 minutes. I never stopped believing,” Rose said in his post-round interview.
“I played unbelievable golf coming down the stretch and had so much fun with it. When I bring my best I know I’m good enough to play against the best players in the world.
“Everyone calls me meticulous, precise, prepared – but I’ve always known I’ve got it inside. I get nervous like anyone, but when it matters, I still rise to it.
“I get fitter, feel better as the pressure builds. That’s hard to practice, hard to teach. It’s nice to know it hasn’t left me at this ripe old age.
“I don’t want age to become too much of the story. I’m moving well, body feels good, training well. There could be a good run of golf still ahead.
“Today’s huge for me. Very gratifying – a lot of hard work coming to fruition at 45 years of age.”
The Playoffs were launched in 2007 and have received multiple tweaks to the qualification and format since, with this year’s edition having three tournaments that all offer limited field sizes.
Only the top 70 in the season-long standings qualify for the FedEx St. Jude Championship, with the top 50 after that progressing to the BMW Championship at Caves Valley Golf Club in Maryland from August 14-17.
Both of those events offer 2,000 FedExCup points to the winner – four times the amount awarded for a regular PGA Tour event, with both also not having a 36-hole cut.
The top 30 in the standings after those tournaments qualify for the Tour Championship, taking place from August 21-24 at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, with all three events exclusively live on Sky Sports.
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