Golden Rose hopes to keep rolling
FedExCup Playoffs, Ryder Cup next on golfer’s agenda
FARMINGDALE, N.Y. Justin Rose left his gold medal at the hotel Tuesday when he drove 5 miles to Bethpage Black to begin preparation for The Barclays, the first event in the lucrative FedExCup Playoffs.
It was the farthest he had been from the iconic piece of hardware since he defeated Henrik Stenson on the final hole of the Olympic Golf Course in Rio de Janeiro to win the men’s tournament in golf ’s return to the Olympics for the first time in 112 years.
“I’ve been wearing it a lot,” said Rose, who won the 2013 U.S. Open. “To come away with a gold medal and be called an Olympic champion is quite clearly just a huge carrot. For me it is right up there with anything I’ve achieved in the game of golf. But kind of it lives in a different world.”
It’s been a different world for Rose, a member of the successful British team. After winning the gold, he flew to London and visited places to give people a chance to touch the medal.
“Much easier to travel with than a normal trophy. You can just kind of slip it in your pocket and then carry on. So it’s around,” Rose said. “Everyone wants to feel the weight of it. And that’s the unique thing, and that’s what’s curious about it. Everyone goes, ‘Oh, how heavy is it? Oh, it’s heavy, isn’t it?’
“And you drink out of the Clar- et Jug, and I guess the Olympic gold would be a nice coaster for the glass of wine.”
Another golden moment came with his son, Leo, 7. Leo cried when his father called him and told him he had won a medal. And Leo had a blast when he saw the gold medal for the first time.
“He never really lets on that he’s that proud of me or lets on that he’s that excited about golf and some of the trophies I’ve been able to bring home. This one meant something a little bit different to him,” Rose said. “I don’t know if it’s because kids often get recognized with medals them- selves when they do something in sports at a young age. It kind of resonated differently for him.
“He was probably wearing it more than me for the first couple days I was home. Just to see him excited about it made it even more special for me.”
Now Rose has to wrap his head around the FedExCup Playoffs and the Ryder Cup. He is 51st on the points list for the FedExCup, a four-tournament postseason featuring purses of $8.5 million at each event and $35 million in bonus money. Then the week after the Playoffs’ culmination at The Tour Championship comes the Ryder Cup.
Rose is fresh, however, for the demanding stretch. A back injury this year forced him to the sidelines for six weeks.
“Basically it’s been about trying to get some recovery the past few days and get my head back on,” Rose said. “It’s going to be difficult for sure. Quite clearly there’s always more energy expended in terms of everybody wanting to congratulate you, but that brings good energy, too. I’m going to try and take the positives from it, feed off it. ... Obviously, I feel confident with my game. I’m beginning to putt well and beginning to be comfortable. My fitness is great; therefore, I’m beginning to hit the ball much better, so I feel like I’m rounding into form.
“I’m hoping that forced break will now begin to pay off for me.”
It already has.
“To come away with a gold medal and be called an Olympic champion is quite clearly just a huge carrot.” Golfer Justin Rose