Justin Rose has targeted a 'dream' victory at this week's Open Championship at Royal Birkdale, nearly two decades on from his breakthrough success at the same venue.

The world number 12, who has one Major to his name, finished fourth in the competition in 1998 as a 17-year-old.

Rose is hoping for a "full-circle moment" in Southport by using his previous success there as inspiration, having failed to achieve a better finish in the 19 years since.

"It's the one tournament that I've dreamed about since I was a young boy, and I think especially at Royal Birkdale," he told reporters. "You take an Open Championship anywhere, you take a major championship anywhere, but if they happen to line up a special venue...

"I feel fortunate that I was able to win at Merion because that club has a little something extra about it, and obviously for me, here, to do it at Royal Birkdale, would be obviously a full-circle moment, based upon what I did in 1998.

"It surprises me after all these years that is still the best finish. I don't want to say that if I don't win this it's going to be a huge sort of hole in my career, but it was the one tournament that even before I finished fourth here as an amateur, I got to final qualifying at the age of 14 and created a bit of a story then."

Rose won his only previous Major at the US Open in 2013, finishing two shots ahead of Jason Day and Phil Mickelson.