Rose Gains Confidence from Past Masters Near-Misses | 'I Can Achieve It!'

Justin Rose believes his past near-misses at Augusta National will only fuel his conviction to win The Masters. The former world No 1 has already secured a PGA Tour victory this season at the Farmers Insurance Open and boasts an impressive record at The Masters, including a narrow loss to Rory McIlroy last year, his third runner-up finish at the event. Rose has finished tied-second to Jordan Spieth in 2015 and lost in a play-off to Sergio Garcia in 2017. He has registered 10 top-10 finishes in majors since, including a runner-up finish to Xander Schauffele at The Open in 2024 and a play-off loss to McIlroy at The Masters. "These close calls should only boost my confidence that I can win at The Masters," Rose stated. "I feel I've done what it takes to win; I just haven't crossed the finish line. I've executed well enough to have won. "I don't feel like I need to find something within myself to do something different. I genuinely believe that. I don't feel like Augusta National owes me anything. I come here with a positive attitude, and I enjoy this place." Rose took a three-shot lead after the opening day last year and held a one-shot advantage heading into the weekend. However, he fell seven behind after a third-round 75 before his dramatic Sunday comeback. "When you're that close, you can almost taste victory," Rose admitted. "You know what it feels like to win. I could see the celebrations; it all played out in front of me. I sensed everything, but without the positive emotions that come with winning. "I'm frustrated about Saturday afternoon - that's the day I feel I missed my opportunity. I had 40 putts or something crazy like that. That was the day I lost it, but I did a great job on Sunday and walked away feeling like I gave it my all." If Rose wins this year, he would become the second-oldest winner of The Masters in history, just a year younger than Jack Nicklaus when he claimed his 18th major title in 1986. "I don't think about my age on a day-to-day level," Rose said. "I'm happy that the narrative around it is more positive than negative. There's motivation to keep going, to find new habits and ways to improve, realizing it's difficult to get better at this stage of my career. "There are areas of my game that I can significantly improve without age being a factor. I'm still enjoying the work, and that's the most important thing. When you enjoy it, you don't feel your age." The Masters will be exclusively live from April 9-12 on Sky Sports. Live coverage of the first round begins on Thursday from 2pm on Sky Sports Golf.