Justin Rose came out of almost nowhere to finish runner-up to Rory McIlroy at the Masters on Sunday.
Rose shot a final-round 66 to force a playoff against McIlroy. He lost to McIlroy after missing a 15-foot putt. He came out of the gate strong with a first-round 65, but it was 75 in the third round that forced him to climb uphill in the final round.
It was the third time Rose had finished in second or tied for second at the Masters. It was the second straight second-place finish overall, as he was a runner-up at the Open Championship last year.
“The past two majors I’ve played, I’ve finished in second place, and it’s more evidence that I’m doing some really good work,” he said, via BBC. “At Royal Troon and again here at the Masters, when it gets to the real business end I feel like I’m really calm and ready for it, which again I’m proud of but it does hurt.”
In 2017, Rose lost to Sergio Garcia in a playoff. He forced this year’s playoff with a 20-foot birdie on the 18th hole.
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He joined Ben Hogan as the only players to lose twice in the playoffs at Augusta National. Hogan did win the Masters twice.
“It’s the kind of putt you dream about as a kid, and to have it and hole it, it was a special feeling,” Rose said. “And unfortunately, the playoff, they always end so quickly. If you’re not the guy to hit the great shot or hole the great putt, it’s over. But not really anything I could have done more today.”
The PGA Championship is next on the docket.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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