Washington (United States) (AFP) – JT Poston defeated fellow American Ryan Gerard in a playoff with a par on the second extra hole to capture the Memorial tournament on Sunday for his fourth career PGA Tour title. Poston, who squandered a four-stroke lead when the final round began, birdied the last regulation hole to force a playoff. He won with a tense three and a half-foot par putt on the second replay of 18 to capture the crown and earn a handshake with host Jack Nicklaus at Muirfield Village in Dublin, Ohio.
“A lot of holes. A lot of grit,” Poston said. “Didn’t play my best 13 holes (to start the last round) but told myself I knew I was going to shake Jack’s hand walking off the 18th green and I wanted to be proud of that handshake. Thrilled it happened this way.” Poston, 33, captured his first PGA Tour victory since the 2024 Shriners Children’s Open in Las Vegas. Poston, who played 33 holes in all on Sunday, had not finished in the top 20 this season.
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“A lot of hard work. A lot of people believing in me when I may not have myself,” Poston said of his keys to victory. “Hard to believe. I haven’t played my best but I felt it was trending.” Gerard sank a birdie putt at the 17th from just inside 37 feet to grab the lead and shot four-under par 68 to match Poston, who birdied the 18th from seven feet to fire 72, on 12-under 276 for 72 holes. In the playoff, replays of 18, both parred the first try then each missed the fairway on the second.
Poston had a 29-foot birdie putt while Gerard was almost 54 feet from the hole. Gerard putted to within six feet, then Poston went three and a half feet past the hole. Gerard’s par putt rolled right of the hole. Poston then tapped in his tense comeback putt for the victory. “It was a fun ending. I made it interesting,” Poston told Nicklaus. American Wyndham Clark was third on 277 after a 67 with compatriot Sam Burns and England’s Tommy Fleetwood sharing fourth on 278.
Burns, Gerard and Poston shared the lead at 10-under after Poston made bogey at the par-three 12th with Clark and Fleetwood one adrift. Fleetwood dropped his 240-yard, nine-wood second shot within five feet of the hole at the par-five 15th and sank the eagle putt to grab the outright lead on 11-under. At 15, Gerard sank a six-foot birdie putt, Poston made one from just inside four feet and Burns tapped in for birdie, and when Clark birdied 15 and 16, there were five tied at the top. Fleetwood and Burns each made bogey at 17 to fall back. Gerard then stole the show with his long birdie at 17, but Poston extended the drama with a closing birdie.
Poston led by four. Poston made five birdies and two bogeys over 13 holes on Sunday morning to grab a four-stroke lead in completing the storm-halted third round. But in the final round, Poston squandered his lead in the first 12 holes. Top-ranked Scottie Scheffler, who seeks a career Grand Slam at the US Open in two weeks at Shinnecock, fired a 71 to finish on 284 alongside second-ranked Rory McIlroy, the reigning Masters champion who birdied five of the first six holes and shot 68. Reigning US Open champion JJ Spaun, preparing to defend his title at Shinnecock, fired a 72 to join them on 284.
© 2024 AFP
