Flying Rose has wings clipped in battle for No 1
SUCh was the blistering form of Justin Rose and Dustin Johnson in the first round at the Players Championship yesterday, it might well be that the sub-plot here of who finishes the week as world No 1 becomes every bit as compelling as the tournament itself.
Rose needs to win to have any chance of reaching the summit for the first time in his illustrious career and was delighted with the start he made as he opened with a fine four-under-par 68.
the bad news came when he looked at the leaderboard, and saw Johnson’s name up in lights at the top, alongside gritty swede Alex Noren and former Us Open champion Webb simpson, after a fine bogey-free 66.
As well as a victory, Rose needs Johnson to finish outside the top nine and the American, justifiably proud of his 15-month reign at the top, is plainly hellbent on passing on his end of the bargain.
‘i’ve got to admit i did find myself thinking about the world No 1 spot after picking up a few shots early on, but not after seeing Dustin move to five under and then six under,’ said Rose.
‘it’s all well and good talking about it, but if he wins he’s off and gone again. i do think, though, we’re in for six months or so where we see the world No 1 position to-ing and fro-ing, and i’m looking at this period as a real opportunity.’
No wonder, given that his form has been so consistent over the past eight months, he has almost forgotten what it feels like to finish outside the top 10.
the Englishman’s back nine might have felt prosaic following a fabulous opening, where he started par, birdie, eagle, after holing his second shot from 98 yards to the par-four 12th. But a birdie at the last meant an afternoon spent in a contented frame of mind.
As for the grouping of the three best twentysomethings in the game, Rory Mcilroy, Justin thomas and Jordan spieth failed to generate too many sparks between them. the sight of spieth three-putting from five feet at his opening hole rather set the tone, as the Open champion also put three balls in the water on his way to an awful 75.
he has only played all four rounds once in four appearances in this event and it is looking distinctly likely he will be watching the weekend action back home in texas once more.
thomas, who has the best chance of bringing Johnson’s reign as world No 1 to an end, was all over the place as well, with only seven pars on his card, but he finished in credit with a 71, the same score as Mcilroy.
‘it was OK, a fair reflection on how i played,’ was Northern irishman Mcilroy’s verdict.
For the first time in all his years on the PgA tour, Rose found himself with two fellow countrymen for company on the opening day, in ian Poulter and tommy Fleetwood.
Poulter shot 70 in bizarre fashion, for after an error-free opening nine came an inward half that was anything but, as he played the last eight holes in an equal number of birdies and bogeys. ‘it was annoying, in a word,’ he said. ‘i need to go and forget all about it now and spend the afternoon with the kids on the beach.’
Fleetwood, by contrast, got better as the round went on, finishing with three straight birdies for a 69. ‘it’s a shame i can’t keep going, isn’t it?’ he said, cheerfully.