Rose caps 'magical' week with Olympic gold
— -- RIO DE JANEIRO -- A week of Olympic golf that went well above expectations came to a fitting conclusion Sunday, as Justin Rose made the clutch shot in the end and lustily celebrated his winning birdie putt and the gold medal that comes with it.
There won't be a seven-figure check or FedEx Cup points or ramifications for the Ryder Cup. There is no jug or jacket or strength-sapping trophy.
But that gold medal will do just fine.
As will being called an Olympic champion.
"It sounds absolutely incredible,'' said Rose, 36, who won the 2013 U.S. Open and will go to 10th in the world with his victory. "I was on that last green just sort of pinching myself. I was thinking back to that quote that I had given about the Olympics all along.
"I hope my r?sum? one day will read: multiple major champion. But let's just call it major champion and Olympic gold medalist. I'd be a very, very happy man.''
Who knew that golfers who earn millions and fly on private planes and stay in lavish accommodations and command huge appearance fees and can make a king's ransom for a corporate outing could get emotional over playing for a medal?
That was the knock on golf, which has its four major championships every year, the game's pinnacle. The Olympics were derided, considered not necessary. Perhaps in some ways that is correct; the majors remain the standard, and it will be a long time before the Olympics could be considered on the same level.
But this always required taking a longer view. Looking at the big picture. Recognizing how this might impact golfers in non-golfing nations, how kids might be inspired to take up golf to purse Olympic glory. And maybe, giving back to the game in some way.
Olympic golf found an unlikely ambassador in Bubba Watson, who couldn't have been happier for a guy who tied for eighth.
"We're so blessed,'' Watson said. "When you look at these other countries, and these athletes that train for years, not just hours, years, and they got 30 seconds or they got a minute or they got under 10 seconds ...
"And I get to show up at Augusta every year from now on because I won [the Masters] there. So it is humbling, for sure. This is the greatest thing I've ever done. I'm so honored and pleased that they let me represent the U.S.''
Watson couldn't make the charge he needed, but Olympic golf turned out to be incredible, and a sun-splashed day on the Olympic Golf Course only added to the vibe. The grandstands were packed, fans lined the fairways waving flags, cheering and chanting throughout the final round.
Rose, of Great Britain, shot 67. Stenson had 68. American Matt Kuchar rallied with a 63 to snag the bronze medal and briefly flirted with contention for the gold.
It wasn't exactly the Duel in the Sun of four weeks ago at Royal Troon, when Stenson held off Phil Mickelson to win his first major championship and win the Claret Jug.
And yet it was compelling just the same, the two major champions battling back and forth all day, surging out in front, tied coming to the par-5 18th, and Stenson finally blinking -- hitting an indifferent pitch shot that left him some 18 feet from the cup, Rose knocking his stiff to set up the winning birdie.
"I just said today that I had to out-Stenson Stenson,'' Rose said. "I knew I wasn't going to get much from him at all. Obviously the bogey at the last only came because he had to force the putt in.
"But he is unbelievable. He's relentless and a great player, and I can't wait to be on the same team as him in the Ryder Cup. He's a great player and he's a great friend, and I just gave him a hug on the 18th green. He's as gracious as ever.
"I just said to him, 'Great summer,' winning The Open championship, I was so pleased for him. There's a lot of players, majors come and go, guys win them. But almost when you're a professional golfer, very few guys are you really genuinely, genuinely happy for, and Henrik is one of them.''
Stenson, 40, was indeed gracious, commending Rose for the shot he hit on the 18th to set up the winning birdie. A final-round 68 is certainly nothing to be ashamed of, but it undoubtedly will sting for a bit. He dearly wanted to win this tournament, add it to The Open title, and he came ever so close.
He will undoubtedly look back on a summer in which he won The Open, contended at the PGA Championship and came to the final green with a shot at the gold medal, with a silver medal an excellent consolation.
"Of course, when you're in good position to try and win, you always kind of feel a little disappointed afterwards,'' said Stenson, who bogeyed the last when he ran his birdie putt well past the hole -- one he knew he needed to make to force a playoff. "But at the same time, we said that all along in the Olympics, you've got some pretty good consolation prizes.
"I guess if you would have asked me before the week, I would have left here with a medal, I would have been pretty pleased and I managed to do that. I'm quite happy. I didn't feel like I played my absolute best throughout the week, but I played good enough to put myself in contention and that was my goal.''
It is fitting that the medal-winners were all invested in the Olympics. Never did any of them express doubt or concern about competing, a common occurrence in the lead-up to the Games. There were 21 golfers who were eligible to compete in this tournament and passed up a spot, including the top four in the world: Jason Day, Dustin Johnson, Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth.
It was Spieth's agonizing decision on the eve of The Open to not participate that created room for Kuchar, who just a week ago wasn't even aware of the format. But he admitted he was hoping players would withdraw, and he took advantage of what turned out to be a bronzed opportunity.
"I couldn't be more proud,'' said Kuchar, who narrowly missed a birdie putt on the 18th for a career-best 62. "It's really hard to describe the feeling, the pride that I have, whether it's in myself, whether it's in my country. To come out to play an amazing round of golf and to know that it would take an amazing round of golf to medal, I couldn't be happier.''
Nobody, of course, walked away happier than Rose, who has had a frustrating year dealing with a back injury and had failed to win all season. Now he has the glow of an Olympic champion.
How that impacts his legacy is a discussion for another day and might need more time to determine. But there is no denying that Rose wanted to be here, that competing with passion mattered to him, and he prevailed.
"I've been so focused, really, to be honest with you,'' he said. "I've been so into it. I've been so up for it. I've just been so determined to represent Team GB as best as I could. And it was just the most magical week.''
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