SOUTHPORT, England — I was there 28 years ago standing to the right of the 18th green at Royal Birkdale when Justin Rose hit the shot of his life (at the time) and looked like he was about to be catapulted from a cannon into the stratosphere of golf stardom.
It was July 19, 1998, on a late Sunday afternoon with the sun casting long shadows over Birkdale’s marvelous dunes on Northwest English coast and Rose, then a 17-year old rosey-cheeked amateur, holed out a 60-yard chip for birdie on the 72nd hole of that British Open.
The shot was the last of Rose’s amateur career and it earned him not only low amateur honors for that Open but a tie for fourth in the world’s oldest major championship.
In the 22 British Opens Rose has played since (as a pro), he has bettered that tie for fourth just twice — with runner-up finishes in 2018 at Carnoustie and 2024 at Troon.
