Justin Rose breaks Jack Nicklaus record after stunning first round in Masters

Justin Rose revealed he was motivated to keep playing to win more Majors after taking the first-round lead at for a record fifth time. The Ryder Cup star nailed eight birdies for a superb opening 65 to take a three-shot lead in the first Major of the season.

, 44, broke the record he had shared with for topping the leaderboard after 18 holes at Augusta. The Golden Bear went on to win a record six Green Jackets and 18 Majors. and

After equalling his best score at the Masters in his 20th appearance here, the No.39 said: “To win Majors is why I keep working, keep practising and make all the sacrifices by being away from my family. I still feel I have more Major championships in me, or even a couple. That is what inspires me.”

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It is the eighth time that world No. 39 Rose has led or co-led after a completed round at the Masters - a record for anyone who has not won a Green Jacket. The Ryder Cup hero, who also shot an opening 65 in 2021, shared the lead with Sergio Garcia going into the final round in 2017 before losing a playoff to the Spaniard.

Asked if that stat is a compliment or an insult, he said: “You know what, I feel like I've played well enough to win this tournament. I just feel like I don't have the jacket to prove it. I feel like, no, it's a compliment. I've obviously played, I've played a lot of good rounds of here. Got a lot of crystal, which is obviously always nice.

“But ultimately, you want to be last-man standing on Sunday. Sergio and I in 2017, that was a real 50/50. That could have gone any which way down the stretch. A little bit of Lady Luck here and there is always the difference here at times. But I've had my luck on occasion and been a champion. But you've got to be playing the golf to keep creating those opportunities, and obviously the only way to do that is to get your name on the leaderboard. I definitely don't shy away from it.”

Rose said he was enjoying an “Indian summer” in his career as he finished tied sixth at the US PGA last year - and then qualified for the Open at Royal Troon and finished tied second.

“I think those couple weeks for me, and even the Ryder Cup in Rome in '23, they were big motivating weeks where I thought the hard work is still worth it, I still believe I can shake it with the best," he said. “And I'm excited about the Indian Summer comment. Of course, I'm 44. Golf is not going to get easier for me in the next five, ten years, whatever it's going to be. So your opportunity is less going forward, so you have to make the most of it.”

Rose added: “I think you always feel self-pressure to add more for sure. I do feel that I could make a statement with how well I played the back end of my career. That's a great opportunity, though, for me, not pressure.

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"I think to answer your question, yeah, I see it all as upside now. I think my resume is nicely rounded out. There's a few big glaring gaps. Obviously three major championships I haven't won. Maybe a Players Championship as well.

“So there's tons of opportunity to do things I haven't done before, but the major headlines are kind of all in place for me. So I should use that as freedom to take these opportunities and use them to kind of freewheel and use it all as upside, yeah.

Rose had the chance to break the course record of 63 after playing the first 16 holes in eight under par before making his only bogey at the last.

“I was definitely looking forward and looking to do something special today,” he said. “So overall, I think great day. And yeah, I played a lot of golf here at Augusta National. So to come away with my equal best score is certainly an achievement for me.”