Justin Rose wins the Memorial Tournament

England's Justin Rose fired a closing round of 66 to overtake Rickie Fowler and win his first PGA Tour event at the Memorial Tournament presented by Morgan Stanley.

Justin Rose
Fergus Bisset
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published

England's Justin Rose fired a closing round of 66 to overtake Rickie Fowler and win his first PGA Tour event at the Memorial Tournament presented by Morgan Stanley.

Rose began the final round at Muirfield Village four shots adrift, but three straight birdies before the turn saw him draw level. When Fowler found the water at the par-3 12th, Rose took the lead and he didn't relinquish it.

Since winning the European Tour Order of Merit in 2007 and climbing into the World's top 10, the Englishman's career had gone a little quiet. But this first PGA Tour victory takes him back into the limelight and to 33rd on the Official World Golf Ranking.

"I've had a few close calls over time, and you start to sometimes wonder why you can't get it done," Rose said. "To win here at the Memorial, at Jack's tournament, I couldn't think of a better place to win my first tournament."

21-year-old Fowler had led the event for 48 straight holes until dunking it in the water on the 12th.

"I just made a bad swing and paid for it," he said.

Despite the disappointment of missing out on his first Tour victory, Fowler can console himself with the fact he has climbed to 13th on the US Ryder Cup points list and is looking an ever more likely candidate for Corey Pavin's team.

Phil Mickelson played his standard, highly eventful, final round to finish in a tie for fifth while Tiger Woods ended in a tie for 19th. Mickelson, yet again, missed the opportunity to take the top spot on the Official World Ranking.

The Memorial Tournament presented by Morgan Stanley Muirfield Village Golf Club, Ohio June 3-6, purse $6,000,000, par 72

1    Justin Rose (Eng)        65    69    70    66    270    $1,080,000 2    Rickie Fowler (USA)    65    66    69    73    273    $648,000 T3    Ricky Barnes (USA)    70    71    62    73    276    $348,000 T3    Bo Van Pelt (USA)    70    69    68    69    276    $348,000 T5    Phil Mickelson (USA)    67    71    70    69    277    $219,000 T5    Ryan Moore (USA)    70    69    70    68    277    $219,000 T5    Tim Petrovic (USA)    69    66    68    74    277    $219,000 T8    Stewart Cink (USA)    70    67    71    70    278    $180,000 T8    Matt Kuchar (USA)    71    68    69    70    278    $180,000 T10    Jim Furyk (USA)        68    67    72    72    279    $156,000 T10    Rory McIlroy (NIR)    72    68    68    71    279    $156,000

Note: Player score in bold signifies Titleist ball usage only

Fergus Bisset
Fergus Bisset
Contributing Editor

Fergus is Golf Monthly's resident expert on the history of the game and has written extensively on that subject. He has also worked with Golf Monthly to produce a podcast series. Called 18 Majors: The Golf History Show it offers new and in-depth perspectives on some of the most important moments in golf's long history. You can find all the details about it here.

He is a golf obsessive and 1-handicapper. Growing up in the North East of Scotland, golf runs through his veins and his passion for the sport was bolstered during his time at St Andrews university studying history. He went on to earn a post graduate diploma from the London School of Journalism. Fergus has worked for Golf Monthly since 2004 and has written two books on the game; "Great Golf Debates" together with Jezz Ellwood of Golf Monthly and the history section of "The Ultimate Golf Book" together with Neil Tappin , also of Golf Monthly.

Fergus once shanked a ball from just over Granny Clark's Wynd on the 18th of the Old Course that struck the St Andrews Golf Club and rebounded into the Valley of Sin, from where he saved par. Who says there's no golfing god?

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