Early return lets Rose walk on from misery
Justin Rose went back to Augusta national last week to cleanse his mind of any bad vibes following his devastating loss to sergio Garcia in a play-off for the Masters title last year.
the englishman doesn’t want any negative thoughts clouding his judgment when he steps on to the property for the season’s first major next week.
‘i think especially after you lose a play- off, when you walk the course for the first time you’re inevitably thinking about certain shots and where things could have changed,’ he said.
‘that was something i needed to do because i didn’t want those feelings in the week of the tournament. i wanted that first walk out of my system, if you like. execution is what it’s all about at Augusta and mentally you’ve got to be so sharp. now i’ll return feeling really excited to be back at a place where i’ve played so many good rounds.’
He is certainly right about that, for Rose has done everything bar win a green jacket in his dozen appearances over the years.
in previous editions he has led after the first, second and third rounds and feels his game is in the right shape to finally complete the set this time.
‘My game feels a lot better than last year,’ he said. ‘i’ll be going into that tournament feeling more confident. i’m hitting the ball better and definitely putting better than i was last year. i’m comfortable with the feeling of knowing i’m one of the favourites and it’s my time really to do it.’
it is hardly surprising that Rose is playing first in the Houston open, starting today, because he has gone on to finish runner-up at the Masters after each of his two appearances.
As well as last year, he also competed here in 2015, when he went on to play beautifully at Augusta only to finish a distant second behind Jordan spieth.
‘i took the Match Play off last week because that format doesn’t sit well with me so close to a major,’ explained Rose. ‘We’re all so competitive that when you lose a head-to-head match you walk away from the week feeling mad and that’s not an accurate test of where your game is at. the other thing is, i don’t want two weeks before the Masters without having a scorecard in my hand, because that’s what we do for a living and for me it’s important not to feel out of touch with scoring.
‘it’s worked really well playing here. the mowing patterns they use at this tournament are similar to the Masters, so i can put some new wedges in the bag and get an accurate gauge for Augusta.’
if you want to know how fine the margins are at the Masters, consider that Rose is using a fivewood this week with a slightly shorter and heavier shaft than normal. the reason? ‘ i want to test it out here because i’m looking to hit that club 240 yards instead of the usual 245 because that will suit me better on the par fives at Augusta,’ he said.
Rose’s first walk around the Georgia masterpiece this year might have been filled with thoughts of ‘could have been’ and ‘should have been,’ but it didn’t take long for the sense of privilege and joy to return.
‘that was the other reason for going up there,’ he said. ‘i mean, you’ve got an opportunity to play Augusta. Why wouldn’t you play?
‘i just want to win the Masters once in my career, whether it’s this year or five years down the road. i know i will get more chances to win, so i don’t want to place too much emphasis on this year. But just to win it once, well that would be amazing.’