In this hard-nosed world of professional golf, where sponsors queue up to dispense wads of cash to men doing what millions do for fun, it's liberating to discover some innocence amidst the inflated egos. Yesterday, on the first day of the 68th US Masters, was one such day, and the source was Justin Rose.

An Englishman of South African birth, Rose had endured such a wicked start to his professional career that many wondered why he stuck at it. As a teenager, he was a sensation: he held a plus-three handicap at 14, played Walker Cup at 17, and finished fourth in the British Open as an amateur in 1998. He turned professional the next day, and there followed endless misery as he failed to make the cut in his first 21 professional tournaments.

Those dark days are behind, though. Now 23, he has won twice on the European Tour and also on the Japanese Tour and the Southern Africa Tour. He has tour cards in Europe and America and, pretty much, can pick and choose where and when he wants to play. And, despite his maturity, he still retains a boyish innocence to the whole dream unfolding.

Yesterday, Rose, now ranked 67th in the world, shot a five-under-par 67 in the first round here which could have been even better. The round, it seemed, had come from nowhere. Yet, an indication of Rose's intent to perform well in his second visit to Augusta National (he finished 39th in his debut appearance a year ago) comes from the fact that he spent eight weeks working with his coach, David Leadbetter, in Florida, since he lost in the first round of the Accenture Matchplay. His performances in regular US Tour events have been reasonably nondescript, his best showing coming in the Bay Hill Invitational, where he finished tied-24th.

"I'm delighted, it's a dream start," enthused Rose, "but, in a way, it has been coming . . . I wasn't particularly swinging the club well at the beginning of the year. I felt it was foreign to come over here for just a week or two, so I decided on a long period so that I could do some hard work on my game.

"David's been really pleased with the way I've been swinging it, it was just a matter of flow really."

This round was all a far cry from his introduction to Augusta a year ago. "It was such a shame, trudging through all that mud . . . (now) the course is in perfect shape. The fairways are like carpets, just how I pictured Augusta to be. It's a joy to be out here."

Many more rounds like yesterday's will have him walking on cloud nine.

Although he took 32 putts, including two three-putts, there was much to like about how Rose negotiated a route around the course. For much of the way, his ball-striking was pure; and on the odd occasion when he found himself in trouble, like on the 14th, where his tee-shot finished behind a tree, he manufactured a shot that showed imagination and boldness.

In that instance, he hit a "big, running sort of snap-hook" with a seven-iron that ran up to the green. "There was some guesswork involved," he conceded, "but I hit the ball exactly how I wanted to."

He saved par, to stay at three-under, and then capped off his round with birdies on the 17th and the 18th, the last of which had his caddie, Phil "Wobbly" Molby, raising his hands to the sky in a gesture reminiscent of when he carried the bag for Ian Woosnam in his win over a decade ago.

So, how will Rose approach the next three days, now that he has put some expectations on his shoulders? "I remember playing in the (British) Open as an amateur and I was blissfully unaware of the level I was actually playing at . . . I think if you can sort of kid yourself into that mindset again, just letting your natural abilities take over and not tend to worry too much about this being the Masters, then you have a good chance."

He may be 23, but it would seem that he still retains the innocence of youth.