Gareth bagged the best viewpoint
SPECTATORS will pay at least £75 to be at Royal Birkdale next Sunday – but 12 months ago Gareth Lord was paid to take up the best seat in the house.
He was lucky enough to be carrying the bag of Henrik Stenson as he played his part in an Open classic with American Phil Mickelson.
The final round at Royal Troon last year will be remembered for some of the highest quality golf ever played.
Stenson, 41, was in superb form as he carded an epic round of 63 which included a staggering 10 birdies.
The Swede finished at 20 under par, three shots ahead of Mickelson, who shot a gutsy 65 himself on the Sunday.
The pair were miles ahead of the rest, JB Holmes finishing a distant third at six under.
And Lord said: “The golf from Phil and Henrik was phenomenal. I had the best view in the house.
“The key was 15 for me, when he holed a putt to go two clear.
“If you’re making those putts it probably is your day and when he holed it I did think, ‘Now we’ve really got a great chance’.
“His attitude was phenomenal and I’ll remember it for a very long time – no question.”
Stenson, meanwhile, admits he has treated the Claret Jug like one of the family for the last year and will not enjoy handing it back to the R&A.
The defending champion said: “It’s kind of like before and after having kids.
“When you have kids, your life changes and it’s like you can’t believe what you did with all the time you had before you had children.
“It’s a little bit the same. I don’t know what I did with my time before I had the Claret Jug in my possession. And I kind of treat it like my baby, as well.
“It’s been a busy year but I don’t want to sit here and complain about it.”
Stenson, the world No.7, has watched the video of his final round at Troon several times and admits he could be tempted to do so again before he steps on to the first tee on Thursday to begin the defence of his title.
He said: “I sat down after the FedEx Cup last year and watched it.
“Even though I fast-forwarded a little bit when the other guys were playing, I watched all of my shots.
“I was there and I lived the moment and then to watch it from the outside, it’s slightly different.
“It’s certainly a career dream, a boyhood dream that came true and if I ever feel like I need a bit of inspiration I know where to find the tape.
“Maybe this week is not a bad one to take it out and look what happened last year.”