On Sunday evening at TPC Southwind, Justin Rose etched his name into PGA Tour history with a powerful playoff victory.
After a tense three-hole playoff match with U.S. Open champion J.J. Spaun, it was Rose’s 11-foot birdie putt on the 18th that sealed his 12th career PGA Tour win and his first FedEx Cup playoff title since 2011.
Not only this, but Rose also created history by becoming the oldest European winner in PGA Tour history to win at age 45.
His last victory came more than two years ago at the 2023 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, and this latest triumph arrives just five years before he becomes eligible for the PGA Tour Champions, the senior circuit reserved for players aged 50 and above.
As Rose made history, he capped off his hat to Phil Mickelson, who won the PGA Championship weeks shy of his 51st birthday.
“There’s a lot of sense of pride in that,” Rose told reporters when asked about winning at 45. “I think I’m not alone in it. There’s been guys that have done it, but there’s a pretty short list of guys that are competitive in that 45 to 50 sort of age range.”
Indeed, the list is elite. Phil Mickelson famously bucked the trend in 2021 when he won the PGA Championship at Kiawah Island at age 50 years, becoming the oldest major winner in history.
Mickelson shot rounds of 70-69-70-73 to finish at 6-under, beating Brooks Koepka and Louis Oosthuizen by two strokes.
But Lefty didn’t stop there. He also tied for second at the Masters in 2023 at 52.
“Obviously Phil bucked the trend; he won a major at 51. I feel like that’s good motivation,” Rose stated after winning on Sunday. “I still feel like there is that golden summer of my career available to me. That’s what I’ve been pushing for.”
Rose’s own “golden summer” has shown signs of revival. He finished runner-up at Augusta earlier this year and was in contention at Royal Troon. Sunday’s win, he said, was a signal that his game is not only intact, but improving.
“Will I ever be the best player that I was when I was maybe 2018 No. 1 in the world? I don’t know, but I don’t have to be, as long as I can find it at the key times,” he added during the same conference. “Winning is winning. I think proving that to yourself, even though I’ve come close and I felt good in contention, getting over the line is still difficult, and obviously I’ve won, like, twice in six years now, but this one felt good.”
Rose’s playoff composure was clinical. After matching Spaun’s birdie on the second playoff hole, he stepped up again on the third and delivered the decisive putt. Spaun’s 7-footer missed wide.
“I felt ready for it. I felt calm. I felt collected,” Rose said as quoted. “I think that’s when you learn most about yourself. I feel excited about where I’m at at 45 and I feel like there’s a good bit of runway ahead.”
Before Mickelson’s move to LIV Golf in 2022, he and Rose shared many courses together, including FedExCup Playoff events in 2018 and 2019. Now, Rose finds himself drawing inspiration from the man who redefined age in golf.
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