As Sergio Garcia won the green jacket at Augusta last year, amongst all the joy there was one man not as happy as the rest.
Justin Rose had played four days of sublime golf, and it hadn’t been enough.
Up by one shot with two holes to play, a mistake pegged him back on nine-under-par with Garcia, and a playoff proved too much for the Englishman.
Rose is no stranger to success, though. A US Open champion in 2013, and the winner of the first ever golf gold medal in Rio de Janeiro.
But, to do it at Augusta National, in the most impossibly perfect setting is something everyone who was ever clutched a golf club has surely dreamt of.
Not to be discouraged by coming so close last year however, Rose actually feels as though he’s in better form than he was going into the tournament last year.
I’m coming into the tournament generally more confident, I think playing better, and definitely putting better than I was last year,
But we’ll see what that means. It doesn’t mean much right now.
Referring to last year’s preparation, Rose said:
I was trending nicely and had a nice run on the west coast last year, so I felt good going into Augusta. I felt like I was going through the gears slowly this time last year and obviously began to peak at Augusta, which was lovely.
Amidst the best golfers in the world however, the race for a jacket is never an easy one. But, Rose feels confident:
I know the golf course and I’ve played well there before. I know my chances are going to come again, so I’m not putting too much emphasis. My other thought is there’s really not one blade of grass that is there that was there last year, so it’s a fresh body of work and that’s kind of how I’m going into it.
My outlook is I would like just to win a Masters in my career, whether it’s next year, whether it happens five years down the road. I would like to win more majors than one given the true choice, but just to win Augusta once would be amazing.
