Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
COLD MEDAL Rose must up his game to make cut for Olympics
JUSTIN ROSE confessed he is worried about his chances of defending his Olympic title after making “mistakes” in his career since becoming world No.1.
The 2016 gold medallist (right) has fallen to world No.38 since agreeing and then cancelling a lucrative new equipment deal and twice switching caddie in a winless past year.
Rose, 40, is currently the UK’S sixth ranked player even with Rory Mcilroy opting to play for Ireland.
A maximum of four from each country can compete in the 60-strong field as long as they are in the world’s top 15 – otherwise the limit is two – with no wildcards. The Tokyo Olympics remain in doubt because of the pandemic. But Rose said: “I have concerns on both fronts. It’s not a concern if you’re not in the team. For the sake of golf, even if I’m not there I’d love it to go ahead. I’ve got bigger problems than that.
“Just because you did well last time, there’s no defending champion gets his way in. Four years is a long time between events. You have to earn your way back.
“I’ve got to focus on my own position, clearly the English lads are playing really well. There’s going to be quite a few guys to get past, but my goal would be to be in the top 15 in the world. That should be a pretty strong position to make the team.”
The 2013 US Open champion ended his 10-club deal with Japanese manufacturer Honma last season after only signing at the start of 2019 when he topped the rankings.
His long-term caddie Mark Fulcher had to step down for health reasons and after Gareth Lord, he now has Dave Clark on his bag. Rose is also moving back to the UK from the Bahamas. The Ryder Cup star said: “I’ve made some mistakes the last couple of years and they are only really mistakes in hindsight. You make the best decision you can at the time thinking it’s the right decision.
“When I’m on the slide it makes me want to come out swinging and with my back against the wall a little bit, I kind of like it that way. It keeps me motivated and it keeps me hungry.”