LOS ANGELES, California — Justin Rose fired seven birdies in another dominant display on Torrey Pines’ formidable South Course on Saturday (Sunday in Manila), his four-under par 68 giving him a six-shot lead in the US PGA Tour Farmers Insurance Open.
The 45-year-old from England got off to a blistering start and held his nerve on Torrey’s testing back nine to build a 54-hole total of 21-under par 195.
“I thought that was the round of the week from tee to green anyway,” said Rose, whose 12 US tour titles include a 2019 triumph at Torrey.
He led by eight shots and finished the Day 6 strokes in front of American Joel Dahmen, who had five birdies and a bogey in his 68 for 201.
Japan’s Ryo Hisatsune and South Korean Kim Si-woo shared third on 203, Hisatsune posting a 68 and Kim a 69.
Rose had set a 36-hole tournament record at 17-under par to start the day with a four-shot lead.
He picked up right where he left off with a birdie at the second, sticking his approach 6 feet from the pin.
He did the same at the fifth to launch a run of three straight birdies, two-putting from 33 feet at the sixth and landing his approach in tight again at the seventh.
Rose was leading by eight strokes after another six-foot birdie putt at the 10th before he was slowed by back-to-back bogeys at 11 and 12.
He righted the ship with a birdie at the par-five 13th, where he missed the green but chipped to 3 feet from dense rough well below the green.
He gave back a shot at the par-three 16th, where he was unable to get up and down from a greenside bunker, but punctuated his round with a birdie at the par-five 18th.
“There’s never going to be any complacency,” Rose said of his mindset heading into Sunday. “There’s always enough respect for the game of golf in the back of your mind that you’ve got to do everything right tomorrow.
Five-time major winner Brooks Koepka, who battled to make the cut in his first non-major PGA Tour start since he defected to the renegade LIV golf circuit in 2022, carded a one-over par 73 to finish the day in a share of 61st on two-under 214.