PGA Tour victories last month by then 20-year-old Rory McIlroy and 22-year-old Jason Day suggested that the time was right for perhaps the best young player of them all — Rickie Fowler.
But leading the Memorial in the final round Sunday, Fowler, 21, succumbed in a result much more in line with reasonable expectations from a player just a year removed from Oklahoma State.
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In the final nine holes at Muirfield Village, Fowler hit one shot in the water, one into a tree and three into bunkers on his way to a final round 73. Helping restore cosmic order was winner Justin Rose, 29, once a young phenom himself, who won for the first time on the PGA Tour.
It was never supposed to take this long for Rose. At age 17, he tied for fourth in the British Open at Royal Birkdale. But over the next 12 years, he would finish in the top five 20 times without a victory.
“I just think really realizing 18-hole leads, 36-hole leads, 54-hole leads mean zero,” Rose told reporters.
It was the third runner-up in the last eight months for Fowler. His breakthrough may be imminent. But Rose knows, even for the most talented players, it’s not that easy.
“I hear a lot of times one of the 20-somethings to win on the PGA Tour,” Rose said. “I’m really glad that I made that category just in time.”
