Justin Rose wins Turkish Airlines Open

The Englishman finished one clear of Dylan Frittelli and Nicolas Colsaerts

Justin Rose wins Turkish Airlines Open
Justin Rose wins Turkish Airlines Open
(Image credit: Getty Images)

England’s Justin Rose birdied the final hole at Regnum Carya Golf & Spa Resort to win the Turkish Airlines Open by a single shot from Nicolas Colsaerts and Dylan Frittelli.

Justin Rose made it back-to-back wins on the European Tour with victory in the Turkish Airlines Open at the Regnum Carya Golf & Spa Resort in Antalya.

Rose, who won the WGC-HSBC Champions last week, fired a closing round of 65 to win by a single stroke and move to second place on the Race to Dubai standings, just 135,000 points behind the leader Tommy Fleetwood.

Rose moved into a four-way tie for the lead in Turkey midway through the final round after birdies at the 2nd, 7th and 9th holes. At that stage, Dylan Frittelli, Padraig Harrington and Kiradech Aphibarnrat shared top spot on the leaderboard.

Frittelli of South Africa made five birdies in a row from the 4th to move into a tie for the lead. That run included an incredible three chip-ins. Frittelli then dropped a shot at the 10th but made further gains at the 12th, 15th and 18th holes to card a 64 and post a clubhouse total of 17-under-par.

Rose and Colsaerts sat on that score as they stood on the 18th tee, both men played good second shots to the last to set up birdie chances. Colsaerts was unable to convert but Rose rolled his putt for a three home to reach 18-under and to win the Turkish Airlines Open by a shot.

Frittelli and Colsaerts finished in a tie for second with Padraig Harrington in fourth and defending champion Thorbjorn Olesen in fifth.

3 Talking points from the Turkish Airlines Open

1 – Justin Rose joins Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy as the only men to have followed up a WGC title with a victory in their next tournament start. Rose now has a Rolex Series title to add to his U.S. Open, his Olympic Gold and his two WGC wins. The Englishman has jumped Sergio Garcia to now sit in second place on the Race to Dubai standings, just behind Tommy Fleetwood. Rose is looking to finish the season as European Tour Number 1 for the second time, having topped the standings back in 2007.

Justin Rose swing sequence:

2 – Nicolas Colsaerts was left to rue a disappointing third round of 73. The Belgian opened with two stunning rounds of 64 and closed with a fine 66 but he came up just one-shot shy of claiming a third European Tour victory. Still, the joint second place cheque for €515,303 he picked up was the biggest of his European Tour career. This was his best European Tour result since 2014.

3 – Padraig Harrington earned his second fourth place of the season, having also finished in that spot in the Scottish Open at Dundonald. The three-time Major winner made one of the par saves of the year on the 10th hole of his final round. Having put his tee shot into the trees, his second shot found the water but he then holed out from 60 yards to make a miraculous four.

Turkish Airlines Open Regnum Carya Golf & Spa Resort Nov 2-5 Purse: $7,000,000 Par: 71

1       Justin Rose (Eng)          69     68     64     65     266   €985,495 T2     Nicolas Colsaerts (Bel)   64     64     73     66     267   €515,303 T2     Dylan Frittelli (RSA)       70     67     66     64     267   €515,303 4       Padraig Harrington (Ire) 65     72     64     67     268   €296,003 5       Thorbjorn Olesen (Den) 69     68     66     66     269   €251,231 T6     Kiradech Aphibarnrat (Tha) 66 67    66     71     270   €192,732 T6     Eddie Pepperell (Eng)     66     66     71     67     270   €192,732 T8     Shane Lowry (Ire)         68     66     65     72     271   €134,091 T8     Julian Suri (USA)           68     70     66     67     271   €134,091 T8     Fabrizio Zanotti (Par)     72     66     67     66     271   €134,091  

Note: Player score in bold signifies Titleist ball usage

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?