J.T. Poston Wins Memorial Tournament In Playoff

J.T. Poston didn’t just win the Memorial Tournament on Sunday; he survived Muirfield Village after a four-shot lead vanished, Ryan Gerard surged, and a crowded leaderboard turned the final hour into chaos.

Poston was 3 over in the final round when he reached the 14th tee, trailing for the first time since Friday.

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Then he birdied three of his last five holes, finishing with an 8-iron to 7 feet at No. 18 to force a playoff with Gerard at 12-under 276.

"I needed to play the last five holes really well," Poston said. "I knew I was going to be shaking Mr. Nicklaus' hand walking off 18 no matter what, and I want to be proud of the effort when I did. So just to do it the way that I did ... is a dream come true, and something I'll certainly carry with me the rest of my career."

The moment that saved him came one hole earlier. Poston was in deep rough at 17, laid up short of the creek, then watched Gerard bury a 40-foot birdie putt. Poston had to answer from 12 feet for par.

"After Ryan made his putt, that made that putt honestly a little easier," Poston said. "I knew exactly what I needed to do."

Jack Nicklaus understood.

"He had to make it," Nicklaus said. "I think sometimes when you have to make a putt, you find yourself in that position that you say, 'Well, I don't have any choice, I got to make it.' So yeah, I think by and large those are easier, actually."

Gerard closed with a 4-under 68 and kept swinging until a three-putt from 55 feet on the second playoff hole handed Poston the opening.

"I know there were a lot of people kind of tied for the lead at one point coming down the stretch, and I felt like I stepped up and executed golf shots that I wanted to execute," Gerard said. "Just stings a little bit."

The victory delivered $4 million, moved Poston to No. 39 in the world, locked up a U.S. Open spot, secured The Open berth available at the Memorial and punched his ticket to next year’s Masters.

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"I told myself in the playoff that this is my U.S. Open qualifier," Poston said. "I want to play in the majors. I want to play in the big events. This is a huge boost of confidence for me and my game and knowing that I can compete in those and play in those. Just thrilled to get it done."

Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy tied for 12th, but Sunday belonged to Poston.

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