Brooks Koepka trailed Justin Rose by four strokes going into the final round on Sunday at the 2018 Fort Worth Invitational. Koepka proceeded to go out and shoot a bogey-free 63 in the final round.
He lost by three.
That's because Rose fell one shy of the tournament record with a 20-under 259 that included a 6-under 64 in the final round, tying his best score of the week. Rose and Koepka shot two of the three best rounds of the day on Sunday (Kevin Na tied the course record with a 61) and put on their own (less important) version of the show Phil Mickelson and Henrik Stenson displayed at The Open back in 2016.
Rose went out in 30 on Sunday with a bogey (!) and cruised home in 34 with another bogey at the last for the victory. Meanwhile, Koepka was terrific throughout as he shot 63 for the third time in his last five PGA Tour rounds. His only blemish was a bogey at the last when the outcome had clearly been decided. Koepka actually gained more strokes on the field this week than Webb Simpson did in his stunning Players Championship win two weeks ago.
The story this week was obviously Rose, though. His rounds of 66-64-66-64 were wickedly impressive and aided by one of the best ball-striking weeks of his entire career. Rose finished first in strokes gained on approach shots, fourth in strokes gained off the tee and gained 15.8 of his 18.5 strokes overall from tee to green. Even for the former U.S. Open champ, known for his iron play, it was sublime.
"I'm delighted the way I played this week," Rose told CBS Sports' Peter Kostis. "Obviously Hogan's Alley, tried to channel a little bit of that, and obviously the way I hit the ball this week I can be proud ... I'm a little bit speechless. What a hard week."
"I haven't played this venue in a while, but to win on a golf course like Colonial, I couldn't be more proud," added Rose. "It's such a special golf course, and I've loved playing here this week."
Rose had not played this tournament in eight years, but decided to do so to satisfy the PGA Tour's rule that you have to play at least one tournament you haven't been to in the last five seasons. He chose wisely, and now he gets to add Colonial to a growing list of impressive tracks he's conquered including Merion, Aronimink and Congressional.
Colonial often produces a great ball-striker as its champion, and this week was no different. Rose's form looks great with another classic course -- Shinnecock for the U.S. Open -- on deck in just three weeks. Based on what he did at Colonial, he can (and should) be one of the favorites there.
Here are the rest of our grades for the Fort Worth Invitational.
Jon Rahm (T5): I love seeing Rahm perform at a course like this. It's a reminder that, while he's one of the longest bombers on the PGA Tour, he's also one of the most creative players in the world. Rahm carved up Colonial, finished second in distance off the tee and in the top 20 in strokes gained from tee to green. He's so fun to watch no matter the backdrop.
"Two appearances, second place and fifth place, I'll take it," Rahm said of his history at Colonial. "This week I was feeling really good. Could have been a lot better, but sometimes you don't make putts." Grade: A
Rickie Fowler (T14): Fowler was under par all four rounds, but couldn't match the show Koepka and Rose put on. Still, his game is in a decent spot with the Memorial and the U.S. Open on deck over the next few weeks. He finished top five in putting, but I'd like to see him tighten up the iron play a bit (No. 63 in the field is not all that good for a ball-strike of his caliber). Grade: B
Jordan Spieth (T32): The three-time major winner (and former champ at this tournament) couldn't shoot anything better than 68 this week. For the sake of context: Every round Justin Rose shot was better than 68 this week. Spieth again struggled with his putter. He finished 70th (!) in the field in strokes gained putting and lost strokes to everyone on all but one day of the event. I don't know how he's going to right the ship, but with three majors and the playoffs upcoming, I know it's going to need to happen soon.
"I think good things are about to come," Spieth said on Sunday. "I feel a good run coming for the second half of the season. Each day I've felt better and better with the wedges and the putter and the short game, today was no different." Grade: B-