International golf tournament which was organized for the first time in Turkey, Justin Rose became the first champion.
Justin Rose drew on memories of his part in the “Miracle at Medinah” to beat Ryder Cup team-mate Lee Westwood for the second time in three days to win the Turkish Airlines World Golf Final and $1.5 million.
Rose had got the better of Westwood in the round-robin stages at Antalya Golf Club, shooting a round of 66 on his way to three wins out of three in Group Two before beating 14-time major winner Tiger Woods in the semi-finals.
And the Englishman again carded a round of 66 today to win by a single shot, with Westwood unable to reproduce the form that saw him shoot 64 in his final group match and then a stunning round of 61 a few hours later in his semi-final win over former Masters champion Charl Schwartzel.
Rose never trailed in the match after holing from 25 feet for birdie on the first, but saw a two-shot lead cut in half on the 16th when he surprisingly missed from three feet for birdie after Westwood had holed from three times the distance.
However, Rose responded superbly with a long-range birdie two on the 17th, evoking memories of his monster putt on the same hole at Medinah as he birdied the last two holes to beat Phil Mickelson in the singles.
“I hit a poor putt on 16 and Lee flipped the script on me,” Rose said.
“I thought his ball was in the hazard – it was actually plugged in the rough – and then he makes four and I make five, and from that moment on it’s going to be a tight finish.
“He hit a great shot into 17 and I really felt like I needed to make that putt, and the 17th against Phil came to mind, just drawing on positive experiences.”
Rose has now won more than $3m in four weeks after claiming $1.6m for finishing second in the Tour Championship the week before the Ryder Cup.
And he admitted his wife Kate might be upgrading the plans for the house they are currently having built in the Bahamas after his lucrative end to the season.
“I think the Tour Championship sparked the good play for sure,” Rose added. “I had not had a good FedEx Cup play-off run until then, it was nice to get in contention.
“I played in the last group every day in the Tour Championship and that’s something I really enjoyed.
“That prepared me well for the Ryder Cup and I came off that with great feelings, the most amazing pressure putts of my life, and the 17th green has been really good to me again this week.”
Westwood had to settle for “just” $1m as runner-up, but was delighted to have quickly hit top form ahead of a busy end to the season.
“We both played really well, the slight difference was on the greens,” Westwood said. “Justin rolled in a couple of 20-footers, one crucial one on 17, and the longest I made was nine feet on 16.
“I left a lot of chances out there but that’s the way it goes sometimes.
“I knew before today he was rolling it well on the greens, he showed that against Mickelson at the Ryder Cup. I played him earlier in the week and he shot 66, so I figured I needed something around there.
“I think it’s been a great week. Other than the financial rewards it’s been good to get back on the course after the Ryder Cup and edge your way back into scoring.
“I think I am 22 under for five rounds so it’s a good way to refocus for the rest of the year.”
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