Justin Rose’s stunning approach to the final green during his US Open Championship triumph has been named The European Tour Shot of the Month for June.
Rose, who captured his maiden Major Championship triumph at Merion Golf Club, claimed 36.9 per cent of the vote to finish ahead of Irish Open champion Paul Casey and BMW International Open winner Ernie Els.
As a result, one lucky My European Tour fan, who matched their vote with the majority in the public poll, has won a TaylorMade Daddy Long Legs Putter.
On reaching the 18th hole at Merion – widely regarded as one of the most testing finishes in Major Championship golf – Rose stood a single shot clear of the field.
After splitting the par four’s fairway, the Englishman found his ball resting within a club length of the plaque commemorating Ben Hogan’s timeless one iron in the 1950 edition of the same event, immortalised in Hy Peskin’s iconic photo.
Anticipating a par was necessary to ensure victory, Rose, under the utmost pressure, fired in a pin-point four iron straight at the flag which pitched close to the hole before rolling 20 feet past into the fringe.
It was an incredible and memorable approach that would set up a tap-in par to seal Rose’s first Major victory.
“I’ve seen that Hogan photo a million times and I just stood over that shot and said to myself: ‘This is my time’,” said Rose, who became the first Englishman to win the US Open since Tony Jacklin in 1970.
“I wanted to do myself justice and put a good enough swing on it that even Ben Hogan might have thought it a decent shot, too.”
Casey’s stunning 45-foot eagle putt on the last hole of his Irish Open triumph came second in the public vote with 22.5 per cent, while Els’ fine approach to the eighth hole at Golfclub München Eichenried picked up third spot with 20.2 per cent.
Rose joins the other winners of the award so far in 2013 – Chris Wood (January), Charl Schwartzel (February), Anders Hansen (March), Maximilian Kieffer (April), and Ernie Els (May) - in the running for the Shot of the Year prize won by Louis Oosthuizen last season thanks to a stunning albatross two during the final round of the Masters Tournament.
The July Shot of the Month competition will be available on europeantour.com from Friday August 16. Simply log into your My European Tour account to cast your vote.
