Major heritage not protected by new schedule, says Rose
Fedex Cup priority ‘does not allow recovery time’ World No4 has skipped all events since US Open
Justin Rose has criticised golf ’s new schedule for leaving insufficient time between the four major championships and appearing to prioritise the Fedex Cup over the historic tournaments that will define a player’s career.
An overhauled schedule has meant that the four biggest events of the year, the US Masters, the US PGA, the US Open and the Open, which starts tomorrow at Royal Portrush, are being played monthly between April and July.
It has led to Rose opting not to play a single tournament since the US Open, which ended on June 16, in his attempt to be fully reinvigorated this week. The players will then face a wait of almost nine months until the next major at Augusta. “It’s too condensed,” Rose said. “I think it’s pretty much driven by the Fedex Cup, wanting to finish on a certain date, everything else having to fit in where it can.
“For me, a major championship should be the things that are protected the most. That’s how all of our careers ultimately are going to be measured. Thirty or 40 years ago there wasn’t a Fedex Cup, so if you are trying to compare one career to another career, Jack [Nicklaus] versus Tiger [Woods], it’s the majors that are the benchmarks. For them to be tweaked so much I think is quite interesting at this point.”
Rose’s comments are especially striking given that he was the last winner of the $10million (£8.1million) Fedex Cup bonus for a series of PGA Tour events which will finish this year in August rather than September.
The specific difficulty, Rose said, is trying to come down from the added intensity of a major and then rediscovering optimum form and focus in the space of a few weeks. Rose led after the first round of the US Open before tying for third, and subsequently decided that it would be counterproductive to play any of the four PGA events in between.
Woods, Adam Scott and Xander Schauffele have mirrored Rose in not playing a tournament since Pebble Beach. The last player to win the Open after missing every event since the US Open was Johnny Miller in 1976, and Rose accepts that it will be a case of trial and error as he adjusts.
“As a professional in terms of trying to peak for something, the process that’s involved can be detailed and it can be longer than a month,” Rose said. “I think we’re all trying to adapt. It’s about trying to peak, valley and peak again in such a short period of time. This is uncharted territory for me to take time off between majors.”
One other notable element of Rose’s preparation has been arriving early in Portrush and spending time last week getting to know the town and area.
“The people are very proud of their little piece of the world up here and it is very special,” he said.
“It feels a little bit different up here, for sure, than the routine venues that we’re used to in the [Open] rotation. I had a few Guinnesses the other night. I like coming up to these places before the tournament starts. They do feel like mini boys’ trips. You have Portrush to yourself in Open Championship condition, and you get to go to the pub for one or two. Who wouldn’t want to do that? Once championship week rolls around, you’re in bed early.”
Relaxation, then, will be provided by having his family in attendance, and especially the demands of his son Leo, 10, following England’s victory in the cricket World Cup. “My little boy has suddenly gone cricket mad. He’s in the garden until the sun goes down saying, ‘Dad, can you bowl a few at me?’ If you’re in contention, it’s a great distraction to take your mind off the golf and just enjoy having your family around.”
Rose practised for nine holes yesterday afternoon – describing his game as “ticking along in the right direction” – but was especially keen to fathom the likely wind direction.
He said his tie for second place at Carnoustie last year helped him fall “back in love” with the Open and was even talking yesterday about how victory could be a springboard for a career grand slam of golf majors. “The next one is really important for me, because it makes the next two feel possible – you’re kind of at the tipping point.”
Currently ranked fourth in the world, Rose has finished second at three majors and won an Olympic gold since winning the 2013 US Open and intends to make defending that Olympic title a “huge priority” next year. “I think golf in Tokyo is going to be well supported by all of the top players,” he said.