Stone goes from 1,000-1 outsider to runaway winner... and a whisker away from breaking 60
South African storms to Scottish Open victory World No371’s putt for a 59 goes narrowly wide
Spectators arriving at the ASI Scottish Open were funnelled along the avenue of champions. Huge posters of past champions from the event’s 31-year history were designed to showcase the prestige of the event.
Stellar talents Ian Woosnam, Colin Montgomerie, Ernie Els, Phil Mickelson and Rickie Fowler stared imposingly down at awestruck punters. It was a point well made.
Yet none of those storied figures has ever eclipsed the mark set by Brandon Stone yesterday. The unheralded South African registered a course-record 60, and in the last two holes twice came within inches of the birdie that would have given him the first-ever round of 59 on the European Tour.
As his eight-foot putt at the 18th veered millimetres left of the hole, he sank to his knees, aware that a chance to etch his name into the record books had passed. Such was his disappointment that it was possible to momentarily forget that with a final round of 10-under, the man who started the tournament as a 1,000-1 outsider had dismantled Gullane to claim the winner’s cheque of $1,166,660 (£880,000) by four shots and book a tee-time at Carnoustie, where he will be joined by second-placed Eddie Pepperell and Swede Jens Dantorp.
Were one of the legends from the avenue of champions to have emulated his final round, it would have been viewed as an incredible achievement. From Stone, it seems scarcely credible. Ranked 371 in the world yesterday morning, the 25-year-old had missed the cut in nine of his previous 16 tournaments and his last top third finish was in October 2017. The best-known thing about the man from the sleepy backwater of Rustenberg is that he briefly played with Jordan Spieth at the University of Texas. Guys like this do not shoot 60 and win tournaments with a cumulative total of 20 under par, especially when they have just reverted to a blade putter.
“It’s incredible,” laughed Stone. “It was just one of those days where everything went well.”
Nor did his score heap pressure on him. Approaching the 18th, he had no idea he was leading, or in with a chance of shooting 59. “Walking on the 18th green, I didn’t even know what the scores were.