Justin Rose notches first wire-to-wire Torrey Pines win in 71 years with apology to Tiger Woods

Justin Rose became the first wire-to-wire winner at Torrey Pines in 71 years, starting with a six-shot lead and never letting anyone get any closer to him Sunday as he closed with a 2-under 70 to win the Farmers Insurance Open.

Rose opened with a 62 on the North course at Torrey Pines and really never let up all week, playing even better on the South course that has hosted two U.S. Opens. He wound up breaking the 72-hole tournament record at 23-under 265, one better than Tiger Woods in 1999. George Burns also shot 266 in 1987.

“Sorry, T-dub, if you’re watching,” Rose said. That was his only real challenge, smaller goals to keep him pushing — he wanted to increase his lead each day, and he was aware of the tournament record. He got both. Tommy Bolt in 1955 is the only other player to lead from start to finish without ties at Torrey Pines.

The 45-year-old from England said he would not be complacent, and that much was evident when Rose went out in 33, holing a 35-foot birdie putt on the par-5 ninth that turned the back nine — all day, really — into what looked like a peaceful walk on the public course along the Pacific Ocean.

The tournament had one of its best weeks of weather, even by San Diego standards. The only thing lacking was drama, which was just fine with Rose.

This was little more than a battle for second and that was a tie. Si Woo Kim (69), Ryo Hisatsune (69) and Pierceson Coody (66) shared runner-up honors, a consolation prize worth US$726,400 (£531,199). For Coody, it also is likely to get him into a pair of US$20 million (£14.62m) signature events to end the West Coast Swing.

Brooks Koepka finished his return to the PGA Tour after defecting from LIV Golf with familiar cheers on the ninth green when he tapped in a birdie putt for a 70. There were some 300 people around the green, most of them shouting, “Welcome back, Brooks.” He headed to Phoenix later Sunday for the loudest event in golf. “I love the chaos,” Koepka said.

Rose, who also won at Torrey Pines in 2019, now has 13 career titles on the PGA Tour. He moves to No3 in the world, his highest ranking in nearly seven years. Even for all he has accomplished, from a US Open to an Olympic gold medal to seven Ryder Cup appearances, he has not stopped putting in the work to stay among the elite in golf.

“I still believe there’s good stuff in front of me,” Rose said.