Since he burst onto the scene as an amateur with a T4 at The Open at Royal Birkdale in 1998, Justin Rose has gone on to enjoy an extremely successful career, claiming multiple titles including the 2013 US Open, as well as a gold medal at the 2016 Olympics.
A former World No.1, Rose has not just made a big impact on the course, but also off it, starting his own Rose Ladies Series alongside his wife, Kate, in 2020. In this piece, we get to know her a little bit better.
The pair met in 2000, when Kate Phillips (now Kate Rose) was working at IMG. At the time, IMG represented Rose, and as a result, University of Sussex graduate and former international gymnast Kate, who was born in 1980, traveled to the tournaments Rose was playing in. The couple married in December 2006 and the pair have two children, Leo, who was born in 2009, and Lottie, who arrived three years later.
Nowadays, Kate is heavily involved with the Kate and Justin Rose Foundation. The Foundation, which was established in 2009, aims to help fight childhood hunger in the Orlando area and also provides impoverished children with education and experiences.
In 2021, Justin earned the Payne Stewart Award on behalf of the foundation, which is given to the individual who has shown 'character, sportsmanship and commitment to charitable giving.'
After receiving the award, PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan paid tribute to the work of the couple, saying: “The inspiring progress that he and Kate have made through their family’s foundation is a terrific representation of how Payne chose to focus his efforts away from the golf course, by giving back and treating people the right way.”
On top of the Foundation work, Kate was also the driving force behind the funding of a run of ladies tournaments called the Rose Ladies Series, where the couple donated £35,000 to sponsor the events.
The couple are one of the most well-known on Tour, with Kate regularly appearing at tournaments and events. Kate also owns her own racehorse, which was bought for her by Justin, and is named ‘Master Merion’ after the venue of her husband's 2013 US Open victory, but according to Justin, "the horse's name had nothing to do with me."
The closeness of the couple is obvious with Justin even changing the number on his golf ball to 99 because Kate’s lucky number is 9. He made it 99 to double the luck. Kate has also been an occasional caddie for her husband.
The couple were also among several famous golf faces to attend the 2024 Wimbledon tennis championships. They were in the Royal Box on day three to watch Daniil Medvedev defeat Alexandre Muller. That came the day after Justin had played 36 holes in final qualifying to make it to The Open at Royal Troon.
