AUGUSTA, Ga. >> When Justin Rose began his year at the Sony Open in Hawaii, a lot of folks did a double take.
The Englishman had a so-so campaign in 2016, despite pocketing the gold medal at the Olympic Games. Battling a faulty back, he managed only five top-10s, with his best finish a tie for third at the Wells Fargo Championship.
So, instead of waiting until the PGA Tour returned to the mainland, Rose opted to leave behind his home in the Bahamas and head west — way west — to play at Waialae Country Club because he likes the islands and the course.
He also would have hoisted the trophy had it not been for Justin Thomas playing out of his mind on back-to-back Sundays. Rose and Jordan Spieth went toe-to-toe to see who would go place and show behind the eventual winner, with Rose birdieing the 18th to finish alone in second.
Rose made a point to a small media contingent just how important it was to win that war with Spieth, saying that Thomas was at another level, and that the real battle was for second.
“I was pleased with how I played here,” Rose said. “The weather was perfect and I had a chance to work on my game. I haven’t played much the last three months and I was motivated to come out here and work hard. It makes you way more hungry.”
Fast forward three months to a Sunday afternoon at Augusta National where England’s Rose was not only in position to get a trophy this time around, but a nice green jacket that goes with winning the first major of the 2017 golf season.
He began the day tied for first with Sergio Garcia, a fellow 30-something still searching for his first major in 71 professional attempts. At the start of the day, the Ryder Cup teammates weren’t even the main event, as Americans Spieth and Rickie Fowler drew most of the patrons’ attention on the front nine.
Among these four golfers, it was Garcia who threw the first two effective punches, with birdies at Nos. 1 and 3 to take the early lead. Rose counter-punched nicely as he followed a bogey at No. 5 with three consecutive tweets at 6, 7 and 8 as he and Garcia went to 10 tied at 8 under.
They say that the Masters really begins on the back nine on Sunday. If that’s true, Garcia got a severe case of stage fright after several severe hiccups at Nos. 10, 11 and 13, with Rose managing several pars to take a two-shot lead. But that was shaved to one with a birdie at 14 by Garcia, who then drew even at 15 with an eagle and a birdie by Rose as both went to 16 tied at 9 under for the tournament.
Both went flag hunting at the par-3 16th, with Rose sinking his 10-foot right-to-left bender first, then Garcia following with his missed 6-footer that was on a straighter line. On to 17 with Rose holding a one-shot advantage that he gave right back to Garcia with a bogey after a 7-footer for par slid by. Garcia ran his 3-footer straight in to set up one of the more gut-wrenching finishes in Masters history. makable
Both missed makeable birdie putts at 18 to set up a one-hole playoff where Rose’s poor drive basically set the stage for Garcia’s 12-foot birdie putt that slipped in the left side of the hole to give him his first major championship on what would have been the 60th birthday of Garcia’s mentor, Seve Ballesteros.
Rose was a pure gentleman in defeat, telling his friend and colleague, “No one deserves this more than you.” While the ceremony was being held under the light of a silver moon, Rose was bravely answering questions in the media room, conceding the defeat was going to sting for a while.
This second-place finish was a little more difficult to take than that one to Thomas in January on an island far, far away from Augusta — and it will be remembered long after Rose has put away his clubs for good.
Paul Arnett, Star-Advertiser sports editor, provides daily insight from Augusta.
