Justin Rose has his sights set on finishing the year on top of the world rankings.
To get there the Englishman will need a two-way tie for 12th or better at this week’s Indonesian Masters. Rose is defending his title this week, a year after torching Royale Jakarta Golf Club en route to a 29-under winning score and a wire-to-wire, eight-shot victory.
Outside of Rose and Ryder Cup teammate Henrik Stenson, the Asian Tour event is light on star power, boosting Rose’s hopes of a high finish. He has finished no worse than eighth in any of his past seven worldwide starts, dating to late August.
“I’ve always had the mentality that the golf course doesn’t recognize who is the best player in the world,” Rose told reporters Wednesday. “I don’t tee off ahead of these guys because of my ranking. It’s about a great week’s work. There is no complacency from that point of view.”
This is the final week of tournaments that could have a bearing on the world rankings. After bouncing back and forth with world No. 1 Brooks Koepka, Rose trails him by 0.402 points heading into this week’s event.