Tommy Fleetwood experienced disappointment once more.
Fleetwood, who briefly possessed a two-stroke advantage on the latter half of the course, faltered near the end, causing the FedEx St. Jude Championship to slip from his grasp on Sunday afternoon. This opened an opportunity for Justin Rose, who achieved four consecutive birdies late in the game, leading to a playoff with J.J. Spaun at TPC Southwind in Memphis, Tennessee.
Rose and Spaun battled through three playoff holes before Rose ultimately secured his triumph. Rose nearly sent his initial tee shot in the playoff into the water, but both he and Spaun concluded by two-putting for par. The second playoff hole also resulted in a draw, as Spaun executed a remarkable long birdie putt.
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In the end, Rose made another birdie putt on the third playoff hole, solidifying his victory. Spaun had a 7-foot putt to extend the contest, but he missed it past the cup. Rose ultimately achieved birdies on six of his final eight holes.
Rose, who secured second place at the Masters earlier this season, is now the most senior winner on Tour since Phil Mickelson won the PGA Championship in 2021. He is also the most seasoned player from Europe to win on Tour in the modern era. Rose celebrated his 45th birthday earlier this summer.
“That’s the motivation for my practice and play,” Rose stated after his win. “I’ve been saying for a while, especially after Augusta, that when I’m at my best, I know I’m capable of playing and competing, and now to win against the best players worldwide is incredibly gratifying and the result of a lot of hard work.”
Both Rose and Spaun have secured their places in the field next week at the BMW Championship, which marks the second of three playoff events. The top 50 players in the FedExCup standings have qualified for the tournament in Maryland and will automatically gain entry into all signature events next season. The top 30 golfers after next week will then proceed to the Tour Championship.
Tommy Fleetwood falters once more
Fleetwood began Sunday with a one-stroke lead over the competition, thanks to his 1-under 69 on Saturday. He started slowly on Sunday, creating an opening for Scottie Scheffler and the other competitors after commencing the day with a bogey.
Fleetwood achieved 10 consecutive pars after his bogey, while Scheffler and Spaun caught up to share the lead. However, Fleetwood eventually regained his form and took off. He sank a 33-foot putt for birdie at the par-4 12th, his first birdie in 15 holes.
Fleetwood then birdied the next hole after sinking a 15-foot putt, regaining the solo lead. He embarked on a remarkable stretch, making six one-putts in seven holes, culminating in a third birdie at the 15th.
However, Fleetwood’s momentum waned, and he missed a crucial par putt at the 17th, dropping one stroke behind once again. He concluded with a 1-under 69, marking his 29th top-five finish on Tour, which is 11 more than any other player without a win in the past four decades, according to The Athletic’s Justin Ray.
Meanwhile, Rose was making a significant push.
Rose, who began the day one stroke behind, went on a streak, achieving four consecutive birdies to quickly re-enter the competition. It was his longest birdie streak on Tour this season.
Rose had a promising opportunity for birdie at the last hole, but his putt narrowly missed the cup. This led to the playoff with Spaun, who also made a comeback with a pair of late birdies.
Spaun has now finished in second place three times this season, with two of those occurring in a playoff. He secured his first major championship victory earlier this summer at the U.S. Open.
“Missing a 7-foot putt is disappointing, but it was a tricky read, and I pulled it slightly,” Spaun commented on the final putt. “I persevered as best as I could, but he reached the hole first. It just wasn’t meant to be.”
Scheffler finished in a tie for third with Fleetwood at 15-under. Scheffler relied on Brad Payne, a chaplain to PGA Tour players, to fill in as his caddie on Sunday. Scheffler’s regular caddie, Ted Scott, had to return home after the third round due to a private family matter. Payne has caddied for multiple players on Tour in the past, and he previously substituted for Scott during the third round of the 2024 PGA Championship. Scott left Scheffler during the third round of that major championship to attend the graduation ceremony of one of his children.
Rose has now won 12 times throughout his career. He has achieved five top-10 finishes this season and entered the week ranked No. 20 in the Official World Golf Rankings. He fought his way into a playoff at Augusta National earlier this season, ultimately losing to Rory McIlroy.
Fleetwood has been a prominent figure on the global stage for years. He has been a mainstay on the European Ryder Cup team and has secured seven victories on the DP World Tour. He entered this week ranked No. 15 in the OWGR. However, the 34-year-old Englishman has yet to achieve a breakthrough in the United States. He has recorded five top-10 finishes this season on Tour and finished T2 at the Travelers Championship earlier this summer. That marked the sixth runner-up finish of his career, with two of those occurring at major championships.
Given his current performance, Fleetwood is poised to break through on Tour at some point. However, considering the challenging finish on Sunday, it is uncertain when that will occur.
“I’m obviously disappointed,” Fleetwood stated. “As I said last time, there are many positives to take away… I won’t feel that way right now.”
