Justin Rose bogeyed the 72nd hole at the BMW Championship to fall into a playoff with Keegan Bradley. Rose would eventually lose the tournament with another bogey on the first sudden-death playoff hole, but there was a silver lining to his disappointing finish: he became the top-ranked player in the world.
Rose’s solo-second place finish allowed him to move from No. 3 in the world to No. 1, supplanting Dustin Johnson and leapfrogging World No. 2 Justin Thomas.
“Oh, man, that’s an amazing achievement,” Rose said following the playoff. “It’s something I’m extraordinarily proud of. I’d have loved to go there by winning, because I want to get to No. 1 by winning golf tournaments, but today was fun.
“Delighted to be World No. 1. It’s a boyhood dream, you know what I mean?”
Yes, Justin, we do.
“It’s a dream that we’ve all thought about at some point in our lives, or us young aspiring golfers think about it,” Rose said. “It’s a slow burn, and that would be my advice – kind of grinding out there – to young kids still trying to make their way.
“I turned pro at 18, and it took me 20 odd years to get to world No. 1. Just dedicate yourself to improving, to learning, to trying to get better. What excites me is obviously winning tournaments, these moments. But the quest to get better is why I wake up in the morning and it gets me out of bed.”
Rose joins Nick Faldo, Lee Westwood and Luke Donald as the only English-born players to have ever summitted the OWGR mountain.
We did it Dad…. World Number 1⃣ Thank you so much to my family, friends & everybody that has helped me achieve this incredible goal. Also, my sponsors @TaylorMadeGolf @adidasGolf @Hublot @Mastercard @ZurichNAnews @MorganStanley @LamkinGrips Thank you! #Team? pic.twitter.com/geZgcpTR7U
— Justin Rose ? (@JustinRose99) September 10, 2018
