Who Is Justin Rose’s Wife?
Since he burst on to the scene at Royal Birkdale in 1998, Justin Rose has gone on to enjoy an extremely successful career, claiming multiple titles on the PGA and DP World Tour, as well as a gold medal at the 2016 Olympics.
Being a former world number one, as well as a Major champion, 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 first met in 2000, when Kate Phillips, (now Kate Rose) a graduate from the University of Sussex and former international gymnast who had retired from competition, was working at IMG.
At the time, IMG was the firm that represented the Englishman and, consequently, Kate ended up travelling to the tournaments Rose was playing in. The couple married in December 2006 and now have two children, Leo, born in 2009, and Lottie, born in 2012.
Set up in 2009, Kate is now heavily involved with the Kate and Justin Rose Foundation. The Foundation, which aims to help fight childhood hunger in the Orlando area, also provides impoverished children with education and experiences. In 2021, Justin actually earned the Payne Stewart Award on behalf of the foundation, an Award given to the individual who has shown 'character, sportsmanship and commitment to charitable giving.'
After receiving the award, PGA Tour commissioner, Jay Monahan said “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. For 2021, the series saw an expansion from 8 to 11 events. This also included an increase in prize money, with the winner of each event walking away with £10,000 (double the amount of 2020), while the final tournament featured a £20,000 first prize.
The couple are one of the most recognized on Tour, with Kate regularly appearing at tournaments and events. Kate also owns her own racehorse which 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 actually changing the number on his golf ball to 99 because Kate’s lucky number is 9. He made it 99 to double the luck.
To learn more about the Englishman, check out our posts on his caddie Josh Cassell, or Justin Rose's what's in the bag setup.
