Key Takeaways
- Justin Rose pulled off the unthinkable at TPC Southwind, mounting an epic comeback to win the FedEx Championship.
- The 45-year-old made six birdies over the final eight holes in regulation and the playoff to claim his 12th PGA victory.
- RG's Brendon Elliott breaks it all down in the latest instalment of “The Starter”.
Justin Rose wins at TPC Southwind (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
In this week's 'The Starter,' PGA professional Brendon Elliott, a three-decade industry veteran, breaks down how Justin Rose defied Father Time with a stunning late rally at the FedEx St. Jude Championship and Tommy Fleetwood's heartbreaking collapse continued his winless streak.
Tommy Fleetwood was three shots clear with five holes to play. The championship seemed destined for Memphis, wrapped up with a bow for the Englishman who has knocked on the door so many times without breaking through.
Then Justin Rose happened.
What unfolded over those final five holes at TPC Southwind was pure theater — the kind of golf that reminds you why this sport can break your heart one minute and mend it the next. Rose, at 45, didn't just win the FedEx St. Jude Championship. He dismantled it with surgical precision, making six birdies over his final eight holes of regulation and playoff combined to claim his 12th PGA Tour victory.
This wasn't luck. This was mastery under the harshest spotlight.
When Champions Show Their True Colors
The 14th hole changed everything. TPC Southwind's downhill par-3, with water lurking right and playing as Sunday's second-toughest hole, had yielded exactly one birdie all day. Rose stepped to the tee trailing by three, pulled a 6-iron, and struck what he called a "perfect" shot to 15 feet left of a back-right pin.
The putt dropped. The crowd stirred. And suddenly, impossibly, Rose was on the hunt.
What happened next was breathtaking. A wedge to nine feet at No. 15. Up-and-down from a greenside bunker at the par-5 16th. Then, the shot that announced his arrival: another laser of a mid-iron at No. 17 that set up a 23-foot birdie conversion that had the gallery on its feet.
Four consecutive birdies. Three decades of professional golf distilled into 90 minutes of pure brilliance.
The Cruelest Sport Claims Another Victim
Tommy Fleetwood deserved better. Hell, he deserved a victory.
The man who began Sunday with a one-shot lead and extended it to two with three holes remaining has now compiled 43 top-10 finishes in 162 PGA Tour starts without winning. That's the most by any player without a victory since 1983 — a statistic that would be remarkable if it weren't so heartbreaking.
His undoing came swiftly and ruthlessly. A pitch shot through the green at No. 16 for a scrambling par. A poor approach at No. 17 caught between clubs, followed by a missed 7-footer for bogey. Needing birdie at No. 18 to force the playoff, his drive found sand, and with it, his chances evaporated.
Fleetwood's gracious response to yet another near-miss only magnified the injustice of it all. Some players are destined to be nearly men. Fleetwood is too good to be one of them.
Spaun Proves He Belongs on This Stage
J.J. Spaun's closing 65 was a thing of beauty. The US Open champion rolled in a crucial 20-footer at No. 17 to grab a share of the lead, then matched Rose shot for shot through two playoff holes before finally succumbing on the third extra hole.
The moment that defined Spaun's week came on the second playoff hole — a 30-foot birdie bomb that curved into the cup and forced Rose to answer with his own 7-footer. Championship pressure at its purest, and both men delivered.
This runner-up finish was Spaun's third second-place showing of 2025, tying him with Justin Thomas for the most by any player this season. More importantly, it locked up his spot at No. 3 in the FedEx Cup standings and virtually guaranteed his first Ryder Cup selection.
The Playoff Picture Gets a Massive Shakeup
Rose's victory didn't just change his own fortunes — it sent shockwaves through the entire playoff field. His leap from 25th to fourth in the FedEx Cup standings was matched by equally dramatic movements throughout the top 50.
Five players punched their tickets to next week's BMW Championship: Kurt Kitayama, Bud Cauley, Rickie Fowler, Jhonattan Vegas and J.T. Poston. The casualties were just as significant. Jordan Spieth's continued struggles dropped him from 48th to 54th, ending his season. Wyndham Clark fell from 49th to 56th despite entering with hope.
The most compelling storyline belongs to Rickie Fowler. His tie for sixth catapulted him from 64th to 48th, earning him another chance after missing last year's playoffs entirely. Sometimes golf gives you exactly what you deserve.
This Victory Means Everything
Rose's 12th PGA Tour victory carries weight that transcends the $3.6 million winner's check. At 45, he becomes the oldest winner since Phil Mickelson's 2021 PGA Championship triumph, and his projected jump to No. 9 in the world rankings marks his return to the top 10 for the first time in five years.
But here's what mattered most to Rose: this victory ended his streak of missing the last five Tour Championships. The man who captured the 2018 FedEx Cup title had watched from home as others played for golf's richest prize. Not anymore.
His jump to fourth in the standings guarantees his spot at East Lake Golf Club. And after what we witnessed at TPC Southwind, dismissing his chances would be foolish.
Age is supposed to be golf's great equalizer, the thing that humbles champions and forces legends into retirement. Justin Rose just proved that theory wrong in the most emphatic way possible.
