Justin Rose's father dies of cancer

Ken Rose, Justin Rose's father, has died after a long battle with cancer at the age of 57.

He occasionally caddied for his son during the early stages of his career and was a major influence on his fledgling professional career.

He was on hand for his son's first victory on British soil at the British Masters at Woburn in June.

In July, Rose's father was well enough to follow his first two rounds at the Open Championship at Muirfield when his son played with world number one Tiger Woods.

He also travelled to Minnesota for the PGA Championship, where Justin made his US debut and finished 23rd.

A spokesperson for Justin Rose's management company, IMG, released a statement which read: "Our thoughts are with the family at this very sad time and may we please ask that the Rose family are left alone to grieve in private."

Rose, 22, is currently enjoying his best season since turning pro after finishing fourth in the 1998 Open Championship as an amateur.

He has won four titles this year and has climbed to 37th spot in the world rankings.

Rose dedicated his first career win earlier this year in South Africa to his father, who was recovering from chemotherapy at the time.

He said then: "My dad's not so well and he is the guy I owe most to.

"He's put a lot of time, a lot of hours into my game. This win is for him more than anybody."

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