Rose reaches No. 1 again with playoff win
Justin Rose is No. 1 in the world again, and this time he goes home with a trophy.
Rose rallied from a three-shot deficit Sunday with a three-under 68, then beat Li Haotong on the first playoff hole with a par to win the Turkish Airlines Open in Turkey for the second straight year.
The first time Rose reached No. 1 in the world was two months ago, a bittersweet moment because he lost the BMW Championship outside Philadelphia in a playoff against Keegan Bradley.
The 38-year-old English star Rose has plenty to celebrate of late. He won the FedEx Cup on the PGA Tour with its $10-million bonus, but much like getting to No. 1 in the world for the first time, it was an awkward moment because he had a chance to win the Tour Championship and instead closed with a 73 and tied for fourth.
This was the 21st victory worldwide for Rose, and the first time he had successfully defended his title. While the Turkish Airlines Open was only his second title this year, he has been at a consistently high level over the last two months. Rose has finished no worse than eighth in his last six tournaments dating to the second FedEx Cup playoff event on the PGA Tour. Going back to his victory at the Colonial on the PGA Tour, he has finished in the top 10 in 11 of his last 13 tournaments.
Rose said it’s his best golf “as a collective body of work.”
“That’s the exciting part — at 38, I still feel like there is improvement to be achieved,” he said.
Rose kept the No. 1 ranking for two weeks the first time he reached the top. Brooks Koepka will have a chance to take it back in two weeks when he defends his title at the Dunlop Phoenix Open on the Japan Golf Tour.
Bryson DeChambeau holed an eagle putt from just inside 60 feet on the 16th hole and shot a fiveunder 66 to win the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open in Las Vegas by one shot over former UCLA standout Patrick Cantlay, the defending champion. DeChambeau won for the fourth time in his last 12 starts on the PGA Tour and moved to No. 5 in the world . ... Nasa Hataoka shot a five-under 67 to win the Japan Classic for her second LPGA title of the season.