Rose left with predicament due to superb form

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  • November 6, 2017

Justin Rose is tempted to change his schedule and keep his momentum going following two hugely successful weeks on the European Tour.

The Englishman is finishing the season like a house on fire, capturing victories at the WGC-HSBC Champions and Turkish Airlines Open.

As a result, Rose is single-handedly turning the year-end Race to Dubai into a real fight.

Tommy Fleetwood looked to have secured the European No 1 spot, but his lead has now been trimmed to less than 135,000 points with only two events remaining.

The problem is, Rose is currently not in the field for the penultimate tournament of the year – the Nedbank Golf Challenge in South Africa – as he was keen to reserve his energy rather than playing four weeks in a row. He is also committed to playing in the Hong Kong Open the week after Dubai.

“I put myself in a predicament about next week,” said Rose after his victory in Turkey on Sunday. “I didn’t quite fully anticipate being so close to Tommy, but we’ll have to see. It’s in Tommy’s hands still, but I just know I need to go and play well in Dubai. That’s been my mentality from the outset and it not going to change, but it’s exciting to be within touching distance.

“Playing four in a row is not something that I do scheduling-wise. I’ve done it many times and I feel like by the fourth week, you’re hoping to play well, not knowing you can play well, at least for me. And especially travelling through all these time zones, I’m kind of banking on trying to freshen up and continue my good form and momentum in Dubai.

“I think I’m focusing on if I win there, then Tommy is going to have to play some good golf next week and in Dubai to beat me, and if he does, hats off to him. I’ll set my stall out, and I’ll stick to it.

“I made the decision based on what I know works for me as a golfer, and having been a pro for nearly 20 years, I kind of know what works for me and what doesn’t. I know that when I do play, I want to be ready and prepared to play.”

Rose is also conscious of not spending too much time away from his family.

“My decision was based around what works for me, and also family commitments,” he added. “Being away from the kids for six weeks is not something that I do. Some things aren’t worth the sacrifice, and I really try to be around my family as much as I can and I try to limit the time away to three weeks.

“So those are some of the ways I try to run my life, and you need to make decisions according to that. If I were young, single and could carry on, it would be a much easier decision.”

European Tour Justin Rose Race to Dubai

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