JUSTIN ROSE makes the first of what will be only two appearances on the European Tour this week.

On Thursday, the 24-year-old Hampshire player tees off in the Dunhill Championship on a new venue at Leopard Creek near the Kruger National Park.

Rose has a great record in the event, having won at Houghton in 2002 and finished second to Adam Scott the year before on the same course.

Traditionally Rose plays well on home soil. He was born in Johannesburg and cut his golfing teeth on the grainy texture of the South African courses.

Of his four tournament wins, two were in South Africa and he has played the Leopard Creek course where there's the perfect incentive to keep the ball straight - the rough is infested with poisonous snakes!

It's Rose's last event of a year which has taken on a new direction - across the Atlantic and into America, where he is now a fully-fledged member of the PGA Tour.

That's where he'll spend most of 2005, returning only to play in the Volvo PGA Championship at Wentworth in May and - if he qualifies - The Open at St Andrew's.

He has to make the most of his two European Tour starts to retain his playing rights, which expire at the end of the year.

The youngster, who has homes in Fleet, Putney and now Florida, won't be sorry to see the end of 2004 - a year of unfulfilled promise.

He got himself into winning position in several tournaments, including the US Masters and the Volvo PGA Championship, but couldn't finish the job and it was the same in Japan last week where, with ten holes to play, he was just one off the lead in the Casio World Open.

But he dropped four shots at his next five to fall back into ninth place - still a good effort, but he admitted: "It was disappointing getting myself in a position to win and not making the most of it."

Rose invited his old North Hants pal Paul MacDonnell to caddy for him. "It's a pity I couldn't send him back him with a few dollars more," he said with a wry smile.

The result left him 68th in the world rankings and Rose needs to make a fast start to the new season to move into the top 50, where he needs to be to qualify for the majors in 2005.

His new neighbour on the banks of Lake Nona in Florida is best golfing buddie Ian Poulter, who will be joining him on the USPGA Tour next year.