Sergio Garcia defeated Justin Rose in a dramatic playoff at the 2017 Masters to win his first career major tournament.
After countless heartbreaking losses and close calls, Sergio Garcia won his first career major title by beating Justin Rose on the first hole of a sudden-death playoff at the 2017 Masters.
Garcia was in the lead entering the final round and got off to a hot start on Sunday afternoon with two birdies on the front nine. Garcia could not maintain his narrow lead for much longer, as he went on to bogey both 10 and 11 to fall back to even on the day.
Justin Rose, also vying for his Green Jacket, took advantage with three straight birdies on holes 6-8 to move to the top of the leaderboard at -8 overall entering the back nine. With four birdies on the back nine, 2011 Masters champion Charl Schwartzel also kept the pressure on with an overall score of -6, goo enough for third place at the end of his round.
A string of six straight pars plus back-to-back birdies on 15 and 16 appeared to put Rose in great shape at -10. However, Garcia wasn’t done yet, and drained an eagle putt following a masterful approach shot on 15 to remain one stroke back of Rose.
Garcia went on to save par on 17, while Rose missed a putt to record a bogey. That tied things up at -9, setting up a dramatic par-4 18th. Rose hit a terrific approach shot to set up a short putt for birdie, only to be one-upped by arguably the greatest shot of Garcia’s career. However, both would miss their potential tournament-winning shots, setting up a sudden-death playoff.
A poor tee shot forced Rose to punch out from the rough, giving Garcia the advantage on the first playoff hole. After Rose missed his par put to settle for bogey, Garcia drained the 10-foot birdie putt to secure his first title in 73 career major appearances.
Next: Complete list of U.S. Open Winners
Here’s a look at the final leaderboard for the 2017 Masters, which will go down as one of the best tournaments in recent memory.
1. Sergio Garcia -9 (71, 72, 67, 69) – Playoff Hole: Birdie
2. Justin Rose -9 (71, 69, 70, 69) – Playoff Hole: Bogey
3. Charl Schwartzel -6 (74, 72, 68, 68)
T4. Matt Kuchar -5 (72, 73, 71, 67)
T4. Thomas Pieters -5 (72, 68, 75, 68)
6. Paul Casey -4 (72, 75, 69, 68)
T7. Kevin Chappell -3 (71, 76, 70, 68)
T7. Rory McIlroy -3 (72, 73, 71, 69)
T9. Adam Scott -2 (75, 69, 69, 73)
T9. Ryan Moore -2 (74, 69, 69, 74)