Justin Rose Masters history: How English golfer's many leads at Augusta haven't translated to green jackets

Justin Rose hasn't won a major since the 2013 U.S. Open, but he continues to knock down the door and get closer to the pinnacle. At the Masters, near misses are all too familiar.

The veteran golfer has never won the Masters, but he routinely finds himself in contention and has even held numerous leads at Augusta National in his career.

After another heartbreaking finish in 2025, Rose is still on the hunt for his first green jacket.

Here's a look back at Rose's complete history at the Masters and how many times he's led at the end of a round.

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Justin Rose full Masters history

Rose made his Masters debut in 2003 and has only missed the cut three times at Augusta National. Here's a full recap of his results:

Rose has three runner-up finishes at the Masters, including two playoff losses. He suffered losses to Sergio Garcia and Rory McIlroy in playoffs and finished tied for second behind Jordan Spieth in 2015.

Here's more to know about Rose's time as the leader at the Masters.

MORE: When was Justin Rose's last major win?

How many times has Justin Rose led at the Masters?

Rose has led or been tied for the lead after nine different rounds in his Masters career:

Rose had a hard time sustaining his hot starts at Augusta National early in his career, slipping outside the top 20 despite leading after the top two rounds in 2004 and falling all the way to a 36th-place finish after leading the first round in 2008.

While Rose has better sustained himself in more recent Masters appearances, he hasn't been able to finish the job. Rose lost a playoff in both 2017 and 2025 and finished seventh after leading at the end of the first two rounds in 2021.

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Justin Rose best Masters finishes

Justin Rose has been the runner-up at Augusta three times, and two of those tournaments even went to a playoff. 

2015: T-2nd

Rose never actually led at the 2015 Masters, and his second-place finish alongside Phil Mickelson came with some distance between himself and winner Jordan Spieth. Spieth led wire-to-wire, entering the final round ahead by four strokes and finishing with a four-stroke advantage over both Rose and Mickelson. 

It wasn't until 2017 that Rose truly experienced heartbreak at Augusta.

2017: 2nd (lost in playoff)

Rose shot a 67 in the third round of the 2017 Masters to jump from 1-under to 6-under and a share of the lead alongside Sergio Garcia. Rose led by as many as two strokes during the final round and led by one with two holes to play, but a bogey at No. 17 and missed putts by both players at No. 18 forced a playoff. Garcia birdied the 18th hole in the playoff, while Rose couldn't recover after his tee shot landed among the trees and bogeyed. 

2025: 2nd (lost in playoff)

Rose and Rory McIlroy weren't paired together at the 2025 Masters, so Rose, who led at one point down the stretch in the final four, had to watch and wait to see his fate determined. After McIlroy missed a put at No. 18, Rose was ticketed for the second Masters playoff of his career. A missed putt for Rose in the playoff opened the door wide open for McIlroy to complete the career grand slam, and McIlroy delivered to deny Rose a green jacket.

MORE: History behind the famous Masters green jacket

How many times has Justin Rose missed the cut at the Masters?

Rose has now missed the cut only three times in 21 career Masters starts: 2019, 2022 and 2024. 

While all of those missed cuts are fairly recent, Rose has continued to contend time and time again at the Masters and in other majors, including his near-miss at Augusta National in 2025. 

With such consistency, it's surprising to many that Rose hasn't been able to find another win along the way.

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