JUSTIN Rose admitted that he could find the gear he needed to mount a final-day challenge for The Open Championship.

The north Hampshire golfer went into the final day on -9, three shots off the lead and level with eventual winner Zach Johnson.

However, while Johnson was able to put together a six-under-par round of 66 to get himself into a play-off and ultimately win the event, Rose was unable to muster a similar charge.

The 34-year-old failed to take full advantage of a favourable wind on the front nine, making his only birdie at the fifth hole.

By the time he reached the turn, Rose had too much ground to make up. A birdie at 12 briefly gave him hope, but he dropped a shot at the following hole before making birdie at the 18th to card 70 (-2) and finish the tournament on -11, four shots off the pace.

Speaking after his round, Rose said: "I needed another gear that I couldn't quite get today.

"It was one of those days when everybody else was making birdies, but I just didn't feel that easy on the front nine. It felt hard to get the ball closer than 15 or 20 feet."

However, Rose did finish in a tie for sixth, his best performance at The Open since 1998, when he finished fourth as a teenage amateur.

He was also pleased with the performance of a new putter and is hoping he can build on a solid display heading into one of the busiest periods of the season.

“I changed putters, so that was a bit of an unknown coming into the week and that felt really good," the former Robert May's School pupil said. “I holed out really well from inside six feet this week, and I think that’s something I can really build on for the rest of the year.”

Rose got his Open campaign off to a good start, finding himself four-under-par through seven holes, but he struggled playing into the wind on the back nine and ended up carding an opening round of 71 (-1).

He made his move on day two, a four-under-par round of 68 moving him up to 14th, five shots off the lead.

Play was suspended for most of Saturday due to high winds but when Rose resumed on Sunday, he was again in fine form, another round of 68 (-4) moving him into a good position heading into Monday's final round.

Rose, who is up to fifth in the world rankings, looks set to return to action next weekend, when he will attempt to defend his Quicken Loans National title at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club, in Virginia.