J.T. Poston noted that he had to show "a lot of grit" to win the Memorial Tournament on Sunday, having edged out Ryan Gerard in a thrilling play-off in Ohio.

Gerard missed a six-foot putt on the second hole of the play-off, after the duo finished level at the top of the leaderboard of the tournament founded by Jack Nicklaus.

Poston had led by four shots going into the fourth round, having only completed his third round earlier on Sunday due to storms halting the action the previous day.

Four bogeys in the first 13 holes allowed his competitors to close in, with Tommy Fleetwood briefly taking the lead after the 15th, with Wyndham Clark and Sam Burns also in the mix.

Fleetwood bogeyed the 17th to finish tied for fourth with Burns, two shots back of Poston and Gerard and one behind Clark in third.

And after steadying himself at the end of the fourth round, it was Poston that ended a gruelling day with the trophy, saying: "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 walking off the 18th green.

"I wanted to be proud of that handshake, regardless of how it turned out. I'm thrilled it happened this way."

A wild final round with J.T. Poston escaping as champion!

Time to rewind the best moments from @MemorialGolf.

(In partnership with @ROLEX) pic.twitter.com/iDuT1isVKI

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 8, 2026

Poston's victory ensured qualification for the final two majors of the year – the U.S. Open and The Open Championship – and means he will not have to participate in U.S. Open qualifying on Monday, referred to as "golf's longest day."

"I sort of told myself in the play-off that this was my U.S. Open qualifier," Poston said. "This was my chance to get in. I want to play in the majors. I want to play in big events. 

"This is a huge boost of confidence for me and my game, knowing that I can compete in those and play in those. I'm just thrilled to get it done."

Alex Fitzpatrick and Kristoffer Reitan were tied for sixth at the Memorial, with Rory McIlroy, Scottie Scheffler and Justin Rose all tied for 12th, eight shots back of Poston and Gerard.