Justin Rose returned to the world’s top three on Sunday night after a seven-shot victory at Torrey Pines that broke a course record set by Tiger Woods.
Rose, 45, highlighted his remarkable longevity with his astounding triumph at the Farmers Insurance Open. And he made plenty of history on the way.
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The Englishman is the oldest player to win a PGA Tour event by at least seven strokes since 1961, when Sam Snead won a tournament by the same margin as a 49-year-old. Only Vijay Singh has been an older member of the world’s top three since the inception of the modern rankings in 1986, and then just by two months. Rose’s 23-under total is also the record mark at Torrey Pines, beating Woods’ 22-under from 1999.
On his way to his 13th PGA Tour win, Rose went out with a six-stroke advantage and was never in danger. This was an incredibly dominant wire-to-wire triumph. Rose fired a 62 in the first round and from there lengthened out impressively.
He hits it so far for his age – with an 180mph ball speed and a driving distance that was more than 320 yards in San Diego – that it provides an irresistible mix when he is at his best.
“I knew 23-under was a record,” Rose said after his concluding 70. “I’ve grown the lead each day so I wanted to finish seven ahead rather than six.
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“I had my own little mini goals down the stretch which kept me focused, which was key and I managed my game well. I’m still loving it and working hard and do believe there is some good stuff ahead of me.”
Rose and Joel Dahmen line up putts on the first green – Getty Images/Orlando Ramirez
Before the last round on this famous course on the cliffs above the Pacific Ocean, Rose’s nearest 54-hole challenger, Joel Dahmen, explained why he did not expect to catch him.
“Hey, Justin is pretty good at golf and has been for a long, long time,” the American said with a smile. “I mean, to still have the drive after the career that he’s had is very impressive. He puts a lot of work into his body and his ability to still grind and practise and spend the time on it when he’s got everything you could want is really quite something, to be honest. I’m seven years younger and I’m getting outdrove 30 yards by him. It’s inspiring.”
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Indeed, it is. Not only physically, but mentally. When Rose turned pro after finishing fourth in the 1998 Open as an amateur, he missed his first 21 cuts. He somehow overcame that humiliation to launch a remarkable career and he has never stopped fighting back against the odds.
To think that Rose was outside the top 65 of the rankings just 18 months ago and had to go through qualifying for the 2024 Open. He battled past the journeymen and bright-eyed amateurs to make it to Royal Troon. Rose finished second that week in Ayrshire and has not looked back.
While many would have expected the veteran – who, do not forget has been a professional since he was 17 – to have slipped out of competitive relevance, he had other ideas.
Yes, he already had a major in his locker, as well as an Olympic medal and more than 30 weeks as world No 1. But while his friends Ian Poulter, Henrik Stenson and Sergio García accepted multi-million dollar offers to join LIV, Rose turned down more than $70m from the Saudis.
Rose plays off the fifth tee on his way to a commanding victory – AP/Denis Poroy
He knew it would have sealed his dotage, but he still fostered ambition and now he can have no regrets. He came so close to beating Rory McIlroy in last year’s Masters – losing in a play-off – and after winning for the first time in more than two years in Memphis in the summer, has followed it up.
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In between, he played a starring role in the Ryder Cup in New York in September but soon after ruled himself out of consideration for the Europe captaincy for next year’s match in Ireland. Rose wants to play and this is further evidence he will be a huge asset once again. Luke Donald is still mulling over whether to take on the captaincy role for a third successive match, and Rose’s resurrection will surely act as more inspiration to do so.
On the DP World Tour, Patrick Reed nearly made it back-to-back wins when beaten in a play-off at the Bahrain Championship. The American, who quit LIV at the start of last week soon after prevailing at the Dubai Desert Classic, impressively shrugged off the upheaval when posting a five-under 67 for a 17-under total.
However, the 2018 Masters champion, who will play almost exclusively on the European circuit all season, was denied by Germany’s Freddy Schott in an extra-hole play-off that also included Scotland’s Calum Hill.
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