Justin Rose’s revival started with a choice, but a simple secret made it possible

Justin Rose had a choice.

The one he made led him to where he sat at the winner’s press conference at Torrey Pines on Sunday after an emphatic, record-breaking win at the Farmers Insurance Open. It was his second victory in six starts, the 13th of his PGA Tour career and it dropped him to No. 3 in the Official World Golf Rankings. He’s 45, and if you ask his caddy, Mark Fulcher, this is the best he’s ever played. Rose would tell you he can’t think of any new tricks, but his ball speed has increased, his approach game is among the best in the world and most importantly, Justin Rose still has dreams. And a deep desire to make those dreams come true.

It was those dreams that made him decide in 2022. The dream that led him here to a mid-1940s renaissance that has become the greatest story in golf.

By 2022, Rose’s play had declined. The former world number 1 had fallen in the OWGR in the 60s and LIV called. The Saudi Arabia-backed leading group collected names and CVs. It paid for past performance, hoping the big winning names would generate initial interest. While Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson, Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood and others said yes, Justin Rose said no. It was fitting that during the week that Brooks Koepka returned to the PGA Tour after a more than three-year journey with LIV, Rose continued to validate his decision with a romp that broke Tiger Woods’ 72-hole scoring record.

Rose was able to do that because he wanted more. He was able to do it everything because he wanted more.

“My career goals have always only been achievable by staying on the European Tour and the PGA TOUR, as access to them is not possible the other way around,” Rose said Sunday of his decision to turn down LIV and its ripple effects.

“But obviously I want to play among the best players in the world. For me, that’s obviously what keeps me motivated, what keeps me hungry, what keeps me pushing. So yeah, it would have been easy to potentially do other things, but none of that really interested me, I don’t think. And none of that gave me access to what I wanted to achieve. So I always felt like my childish self wouldn’t feel very good about making that decision and giving up those dreams.”

Justin Rose’s dreams were not for sale. And his climb back to the top – what he has dubbed his “Indian Summer” – in pursuit of those childhood dreams may be a little different than it initially seemed.

There’s nothing better in sports than the old great who refuses to let Father Time steal his gifts. There’s nothing more endearing than the Old Lion refusing to let the sun set even as the shadows threaten to envelop him.

They have it all, the great ones. It’s in their DNA: self-confidence wrapped in an unparalleled work ethic, supplemented with a love for their profession.

Be with Patriots Hall of Fame InductionTom Brady explained the greatest career in NFL history in simple terms.

“To be successful at something, you don’t really have to be special,” said Brady, wearing a red sport coat. “You just have to be what most people aren’t: consistent, determined and willing to work for it.”

Tennis great Roger Federer put a twist on that during a commencement at Dartmouth: “Discipline is also a talent. And so is patience. Trusting yourself is a talent. Embracing the process, loving the process, is a talent.”

“I didn’t get where I got on pure talent alone. I got there by trying to outsmart my opponents… I believed in myself. But you have to earn belief in yourself.”

Said Le Bron James: “No matter how good you can be at what you love to do, you have to commit to it. You can’t want something but not work for it.”

On Sunday, there was Justin Rose on the 18th green of Torrey Pines, who had just walked off the field. He jokingly apologized to Woods for breaking his score. He then offered a glimpse of the same secret – a secret that has seen him take two second-place finishes in his last five major starts and makes him believe he can block the sun, confident that the horizon contains what he was looking for. He just has to achieve it.

“I still love it,” Rose told CBS’ Amanda Balionis. “I still work hard. Of course you have to love to work hard. I still believe that there are some very good things ahead for me.”