The Englishman, whose last triumph came in February 2023, is now second in the six-player list of Team Europe’s automatic qualifiers for the Ryder Cup in September, live on Sky Sports, so is set to make a seventh appearance in golf’s famous biannual event.
“There’s a pretty short list of guys that are competitive in that 45 to 50 sort of age range,” said Rose.
“Obviously Phil Mickelson bucked the trend. He won a major at 51. I feel like that’s good motivation.
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“I still feel like there is that golden summer of my career available to me. That’s what I’ve been pushing for. Moments like getting close at Troon and then obviously getting close at Augusta, they’re signals that it’s possible.
“This is another really, really, really important signal that I’m on the right track with my game, and actually maybe even getting a little bit better at the moment.”
Rose’s only major victory came at the 2013 US Open but he has since finished runner-up at the Masters three times, including in April this year in a dramatic playoff defeat to Rory McIlroy, and is only the second golfer to lose two Masters playoffs in his career – the other being Ben Hogan in 1942 and 1954. He has also twice been second at The Open in 2018 and 2024.
Should Rose win a major after 2026, he would become the oldest European to win one of golf’s four biggest events, and he is “excited” to see how the latter stages of his career develop.
“Will I ever be the best player that I was when I was maybe 2018 No 1 in the world? I don’t know, but I don’t have to be, I don’t think, as long as I can find it at the key times,” he said.
“I’ve been able to do that, I’ve shown good signs, I think. But winning is winning. I think proving that to yourself, even though I’ve come close and I felt good in contention, getting over the line is still difficult, and obviously I’ve won, like, twice in six years now, but this one felt good.
“I felt like I had to hit the shots, I had to step up again and again and again in the playoff. I felt ready for it. I felt calm. I felt collected. I think that’s when you learn most about yourself.”