Golf works in mysterious ways.
Justin Rose sets FedEx St. Jude Championship course record, proving ‘no-cut’ fields are the way to go
Justin Rose had the round of the championship Saturday. He also advocated for the PGA Tour’s ‘no-cut’ events in 2024.
Jack Milko has been playing golf since he was five years old. He has yet to record a hole-in-one, but he did secure an M.A. in Sports Journalism from St. Bonaventure University.
Just ask Justin Rose, who has experienced opposite ends of the spectrum this week at the FedEx St. Jude Championship.
On Thursday, Rose carded a 6-over 76 and sat in dead last following the opening round.
The Englishman hit the ball well, hitting 11-of-14 fairways, but missed a ton of putts—he totaled 33 of them to be exact.
If this week’s tournament had a 36-hole cut, Rose would have had to fight for his life on Friday.
But this championship—the first round of the FedEx Cup Playoffs—does not feature a cut, which saved Rose the extra Friday pressure and allowed him to focus on his game.
So after shooting a 3-under 67 on Friday, Rose shot a 9-under 61 Saturday, setting a new course record at TPC Southwind.
“There’s obviously no cut, but with these condensed fields being 70 [golfers], I’m actually a proponent of no cut because [these tournaments] are so hard to get into,” Rose said after Saturday’s record-setting round.
“[Having cuts] takes away the opportunity of a course record today for guys who have not had the greatest couple of days but maybe have earned their right to play in these big events. I could still have a pretty good week this week based on having a weekend.”
Rose had a tournament-best 21-putts on Saturday, as he grew used to the speed of the greens and climbed the leaderboard.
He now sits eight shots back of leader Lucas Glover, but another solid round on Sunday will keep Rose in the top 50 of the FedEx Cup standings.
Of course, those players that finish in the top 50 automatically qualify for the eight “Signature Events” as part of the 2024 PGA Tour Schedule. Those events have elevated purses, high-caliber fields, and no 36-hole cuts.
“These types of tournaments are long events,” Rose added. “If you think about going to next year, to get into all the elevated events, you’ve got to be top 50 on the FedExCup. It’s been on my mind all year to ensure that you’re playing at a level where next year you can build a schedule to your liking and with no compromises.”
“50 has been a really important number, and that’s a pretty good season.”
Thankfully for Rose, the absence of a 36-hole cut this week has allowed him to chase that elusive top-50. Perhaps he will go low again Sunday, thus cementing his status for 2024.
Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko for more golf coverage. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough too.
