Justin Rose & Billy Horschel

Justin Rose and Billy Horschel came so close to realising their dreams at Royal Troon.

But, as the dust settles on another classic Championship, the runners-up are already thinking ahead, 359 days to be exact, to The 153rd Open at Royal Portrush.

Rose and Horschel finished joint-second at The 152nd Open, just two strokes back from Champion Golfer Xander Schauffele. Just two strokes from glory.

It hurts. Being so close at The Open always hurts. But the two veterans leave the Ayrshire coast reinvigorated, re-energised and with their confidence re-discovered.

Rose has 21 top-10 finishes in the four majors on top of his 2013 US Open triumph, and was world number one as recently at 2018.

But the 1998 Silver Medal winner admits his game had stuttered while family life took over in recent times. He has won one tournament in six years and, before May’s PGA Championship, had not genuinely contended in a major in five.

But this season has re-affirmed his belief that he is not yesterday’s man. His dream of becoming Champion Golfer of the Year is as strong as ever.

“I've put a lot of time and effort and resources into my health and wellness, and hopefully I can stretch that out,” he said.

“I am still hungry for it, and this increases that hunger.

“That's what I'm working hard for. To have these big time moments in my career.

“I felt like [the Ryder Cup in] Rome was one of them a few months back.

“I put that up there in terms of what it meant to me, in terms of what I'm looking for toward the end of my career. I'm looking for those big stage moments, and this was nearly it. It was a lot of fun.”

By finishing joint-second, Rose has achieved plenty. He has won points and prize money, all very important in the race for the Fed-Ex play-offs.

But golf is about glory. And Rose is too.

“I walked ten steps off the 18th, and I'm choking back tears,” he added.

“That's the shift.

“For me, that's the best look in golf, those two long grandstands as you walk down and the big yellow leaderboard. That's what I associate as a magic moment. That is what I am chasing.”

At 37, Horschel is six years younger than Rose. But the American has considerably less experience in the business end of majors.

While Royal Troon showed Rose he can still do it, for Horschel, it showed him he can do it full stop.

He held the 54-hole lead thanks to a fine back nine on Saturday. And he did not melt in the white-heat of battle on Sunday. Indeed, he finished with three straight birdies to sign for a three-under-par 68.

“I'm very happy with how I played,” he said.

“I'm very happy with what I did this week. I did a lot of great things that I can take on to the next few years of majors.

“Hopefully one of these will be my time to step through the door and hold one of them.

“I've done a better job this week of seeing myself holding the trophy before I go to sleep every night, envisioning myself holding that trophy on 18, walking out to the crowd and being congratulated as Open champion.

“I'll get back on the grind and work harder to get back in a position like this again.”

Horschel is not surprised by Schauffele’s emergence. The Champion Golfer now holds two majors and will defend his Olympic gold medal in Paris.

The pair played together at the 2017 FedEx St. Jude Classic, the week before Schauffele made his major debut at the US Open, and Horschel predicted he would be a star.

“No one has played better than him in my opinion,” he added.

“He's got two majors. Obviously Scottie [Scheffler] has got five or six wins and a major this year, but what Xander has done this year, the consistency he plays with, he's taken his game to another level.

“He deserves to hold that Claret Jug right now.”

It is a long wait to found out who will hold it next. But Rose and Horschel leave Royal Troon hungrier than ever before.