The Open :: Neeps & Tatties :: Round 3

Scoring might have been unusually low this week – certainly compared with recent Open Championships – but there have still been more bogeys than birdies. By the end of the third round, there had been 1,163 birdies as compared with 1,274 bogeys. Eagles? There have been 34 of them. So there.

Ask a silly question #2

Ian Poulter, who missed the cut, tweeted this after his round:

Nobody who works for bunkered, before you ask!

Italian job

Edoardo Molinari admits he probably won’t win the Open this year but isn’t especially fussed – not when his career was at risk a year ago. “I wasn’t even sure if I could keep on playing golf,” admitted the two-time European Tour winner, who has been plagued by wrist injuries.  “It will probably never be the same but it’s good enough to play and that’s fine with me.” Respect.

Walking tall

Many people have remarked, particularly this week, about what good physical condition Tom Watson is in for a 64-year-old. His secret? Well, there’s not one, really. “I’ve walked 36 miles this week,” said the US Ryder Cup captain. “That’s a lot of walking. That keeps you in pretty darn good shape.”

Weathering the Open storm

The picture below is taken from the front door of the media centre, just 20 minutes after play was completed for the day…

Looks like the R&A made the right call, on this occasion.

Seventh heaven… or hell?

The hardest hole so far this week, for those who are interested, is the seventh. It has averaged out at .398 of a shot over par, yielding no eagles and just 20 birdies, as compared with 78 bogeys and seven doubles or worse. The easiest? The tenth. It’s averaging out at .358 under-par, with 11 eagles and 152 birdies.

Aussie, Aussie, Aussie!

A huge tip of the cap to Bryden Macpherson. The young Aussie took some gentle ribbing from us earlier in the week after carding rounds of 90 and 80 to finish (comfortably) last on 26-over-par. But, as he proved today, it’s not the mistakes you make but how you handle them that define a man. Check this out for a classy tweet…

Sponsors and tournament promoters, this is the kind of guy you want to be giving your invites to.

The Open :: Discuss the action

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Michael McEwan is the Deputy Editor of bunkered and has been part of the team since 2004. In that time, he has interviewed almost every major figure within the sport, from Jack Nicklaus, to Rory McIlroy, to Donald Trump. The host of the multi award-winning bunkered Podcast and a member of Balfron Golfing Society, Michael is the author of three books and is the 2023 PPA Scotland 'Writer of the Year' and 'Columnist of the Year'. Dislikes white belts, yellow balls and iron headcovers. Likes being drawn out of the media ballot to play Augusta National.

Deputy Editor

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