Poston's Dramatic Playoff Victory
J.T. Poston Secures Memorial Victory in Playoff After Overcoming Four-Shot Lead Loss
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J.T. Poston won the 2026 Memorial Tournament on Sunday in dramatic fashion, blowing a four-shot lead midway through the final round before fighting back to force a playoff with Ryan Gerard — and then winning it. The victory, at 12-under par (276), gave Poston his fourth PGA Tour title and his first win at a Signature Event, according to Associated Press.
Poston earned $4,000,000 from the $20 million purse. More importantly, the win transformed his season overnight — punching his ticket to the U.S. Open, the Open Championship at Royal Birkdale, and the 2027 Masters, Golf Channel reported.
Four Bogeys in 13 Holes Almost Sank Poston
Poston looked untouchable Sunday morning. He completed his rain-delayed third round with three straight birdies, building a four-shot cushion at 12-under par. Muirfield Village was playing soft after Saturday's storms, and the lead felt safe. It wasn't.
In the final round, Poston made four bogeys in his first 13 holes. Gerard, meanwhile, was surging. Gerard drained a 40-foot birdie putt on the par-4 17th to grab a one-shot lead with one hole left, according to Golf Monthly. Poston needed a birdie on 18 just to survive.
Poston Holes a 7.5-Foot Birdie to Force Overtime
Facing elimination, Poston stuck his approach on the 72nd hole to 7.5 feet. He drained the putt. The birdie tied Gerard at 12-under and sent the tournament to a playoff — the same hole, played again. Poston later said: "That was a lot of holes and a lot of grit. I didn't play my best over the first 13 holes but I knew I was going to shake Jack Nicklaus' hand... and I wanted to be proud of that handshake," per Associated Press.
On the first playoff hole, both players made par. Poston missed an 8-foot birdie chance for the win. The tension carried into a second trip around the 18th.
Gerard's Three-Putt from 60 Feet Ends the Drama
The playoff ended not with a great shot, but with a costly miss. Gerard faced a 60-foot putt on the second playoff hole and three-putted. He then missed a six-foot par save. Poston rolled in a three-and-a-half-foot putt to win, Golf Channel reported. Gerard had called Muirfield Village a "monster" and a "test of patience" — in the end, it caught him too.
Wyndham Clark finished one shot outside the playoff after a final-round 67, taking third place. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, bidding for a third straight Memorial title, shot 71 and finished T12, per Field Level Media.
Win Erases a Slumping Season and Opens Major Doors
Poston had not finished in the top 20 in any of his previous 13 starts in 2026 before this week, according to Associated Press. The turnaround started with a second-round 65 — nine strokes better than the field average — that shot him to the top of the leaderboard. He led the field in Strokes Gained: Putting with +4.11 during that round, per DataGolf.
The win sent Poston from roughly 94th to inside the top 40 in the world rankings, earning him 69 Official World Golf Ranking points. That move was enough to skip the grueling 36-hole U.S. Open qualifier, secure the last available Open Championship spot, and book a return to the Masters in 2027. He also jumped to 32nd in the FedEx Cup standings with 700 points added, Golf Channel reported.
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