JUSTIN Rose made a massive gain of ten places during Sunday's final round of the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic in California.

The Englishman, who has blown hot and cold so far this season, continued in the same vein - dropping down the leaderboard after his opening 65 had put him in a tie for sixth place.

However, his final day 70 in the 90-hole event took him from 39th overnight to a finishing position of 29th - three birdies and only one dropped shot helping him pass ten players in the most difficult scoring conditions of the tournament.

The 24-year-old now lies 69th in the PGA Tour order of merit with winnings from three events approaching $80,000 - more than $1m behind money leader Tiger Woods!

Rose's solid finish was, however, upstaged by one of his closest golfing pals - Ian Poulter finishing in a tie for eighth on 338 (-22), five shots better than his fellow countryman.

Home player Justin Leonard posted his first win for nearly two years, his total of 332 (-28) ensuring a three-shot triumph and a cheque for more than $800,000.

Leonard, who posted a five-under-par 67 to win for the first time since the 2003 Honda Classic, started the final day three shots behind leader Joe Ogilvie, birdied three of the first four holes and started the back nine with a pair of birdies to take command.

Ogilvie, chasing his first PGA Tour victory, fell apart with bogeys on two of his first three holes and, after a double-bogey on ten, could not recover. He shot 73 and tied Tim Clark for second place, three behind Leonard.

Defending champion Phil Mickelson shot a 71 and finished tied for 12th at 21 under.