Emotional Lyle bows out in style
Scot ends Open career with superb 25-foot birdie putt at the 18th hole
Sandy Lyle’s last-ever Open Championship shot – his 9,504th blow in completed rounds in the event – was one to cherish. Finishing with a birdie on the toughest closing hole in championship golf was a fitting way for the big man to sign off in golf ’s oldest major after 42 consecutive appearances and 43 in total stretching back to 1974.
Thirteen years after Jack Nicklaus brought down the curtain on his Open career with a nine-foot birdie putt at St Andrews, Lyle emulated the game’s greatest player. His putt was from 25 feet, toppling into the hole as though the golfing gods were looking down on Carnoustie.
As he lapped up the applause ringing around the 18th-hole arena at the Angus venue, Lyle pulled out a tissue from his pocket and mockingly wiped away tears. He admitted after signing for his final score in this event – a 76 to follow his opening 75 – that it had indeed been an emotional farewell.
“I managed to stay away from crying, but definitely a lump in the throat,” he said.
His two playing partners, Martin Kaymer and Andy Sullivan, hung back as Lyle crossed the Barry Burn to a rousing reception. The stands were by no means full – the 1985 winner has probably outlived a lot of the people now attending this event – but that didn’t stop him receiving the farewell he richly deserved. “I was on cloud nine walking down the 18th. It’s quite a spectacular
thought this unnecessary, partly because he thought it tantamount to cheating, since there’s a rule – in tournament golf anyway – prohibiting practice on the course. You could certainly speed up the professional game if you made practice swings illegal. I would guess that a pro going round in 72 probably indulges in more than 500 practice swings (including practice putts a few inches wide of the ball). This would certainly cut out delays.
A still more drastic, but nevertheless interesting, experiment would be to get rid of caddies. This is perhaps a heretical suggestion, for caddies view to come down there,” he admitted.
The closing birdie followed back-to-back pars. “A great way to finish,” he declared, smiling. “For 20 years, I don’t believe I finished below par on the last three holes. To make that birdie was extra special. It’s not an easy second shot from the right-hand side of the fairway as there’s not much to land the ball on, so it was quite a challenge.”
The two-time major winner had been handed the honour of hitting the event’s opening shot on Thursday. “That was quite special to me,” he admitted. “It shows that they care, and they appreciate what I’ve done in the 40-odd plus years I’ve played in the tournament.”
To be teeing up at Royal Portush are as old as the game, or almost as old anyway. Caddies were originally the golfwise locals who instructed their amateur employers for the day about the mysteries of the course.
Now the pro golfer and the in 12 months’ time, Lyle needs to win next week’s Senioropen,whichisbeingplayed at St Andrews for the first time. “More punishment,” he joked. “No, you want to leave the gates open. There’s always a chance caddie describe themselves as a team and scarcely a shot is played without a previous and often long-lasting confabulation. These proceed with the solemn and intense deliberation of a Summit Conference, argument as to what sort of shot to play with which club evidently as weighty a matter as questions of war and peace. It might seem harsh to get rid of caddies and require even the likes of Tiger Woods, Rory Mcilroy and Jordan Spieth to pull their own trolley or shoulder their own bag – and having to do that might even retard their progress round the course. So it might I could play my way back into the tournament. I will try. I won’t totally, totally give up. In theory, though, it seems like it’s the last Open for me.”
If so, he’ll end up two short of Gary Player’s appearance record. “I’d like to have beaten Gary Player one time,” he said. “He had the 65 rule. I didn’t have that to play with,” he added, referring to the age exemption for past winners having now been reduced to 60.
This missed cut was the tenth time he’d made an early exit in the last ten years. “That’s never a nice feeling for any pro golfer,” he said. “And, as you get older, you know it’s going to happen more often and I think it did happen more often than I was used to. It’s frustrating, but I’ve managed to keep it
be sufficient to impose a law of silence on caddies, any infringement being punished by a two-stroke penalty.
Meanwhile, Carnoustie is still holding its own, though I see that Tommy Fleetwood has just finished his second round in 65. That’s six under par, which is just acceptable even to those who, like me, are pleased to see the course winning most of the battles. It’s when you find several golfers scoring eight or nine under par for a round that you think the balance wrong. (At least I do). In any case, Fleetwood is one of these exciting players who can have a magical streak, such going for 40-odd years and I’m quite happy. Will it take a few days for it to sink in that this is the end of his Claret Jug journey? “No, I don’t think it will,” he said. “I’ve accepted that this is going to be, most likely, the last one. I’m excited it’s coming to an end, but there’s always a chance for next week to perform well if I can make sure Mr [Bernard] Langer is not playing very well. I’ll maybe put something in his water.”
While Lyle’s name may no longer be part of the future in this event, he’s got that replica Claret Jug at home to remind him of his greatest memory from Royal St George’s. “I’ve also got a lot of players’ badges that are in a bag that probably weigh about ten pounds,” he said.
as his last-round 63 in the American Open last month on a course that defeated almost everybody and had some crying “it’s not fair” as if they were spoiled children.
Finally, I see that Carnoustie has won a significant battle. The world No 1, Dustin Johnson, has completed 36 holes and is six over par, meaning he misses the cut and has a free weekend.
On the other hand, his namesake Zach is, for the moment, in the lead.
Since he has already won one Open – at St Andrews – we can happily recognise him as a player comfortable with links golf.
Having recently unveiled a Women in Golf Charter to tackle gender imbalance in the sport, the R&A will be keen to see things change in the Open Championship media centre in the coming years. As reported on our news pages, of the 96 photographers from around the world covering the event, Scottish Sports Photographer of the Year Jane Barlow, formerly of and now with the Press Association, is the only woman. Our own Moira Gordon is in the same boat as far as the written British press is concerned, with Global Golf Post columnist Lewine Mair, one of the most knowledgeable golf writers in the world, an absentee on this occasion. nless you plonk yourself in the Spectator Village or sit inside all day in one of the swanky corporate hospitality units, one thing guaranteed at a day at The Open is a healthy walk. In fact, if you follow the entire spectator Red Route around the Carnoustie course, you will walk more than the recommended 10,000 daily steps (approx 6km) and the health benefits that come hand in hand with golf are being highlighted this week. The benefits of nine-hole golf are also being outlined on information towers, with that alone likely to involve a two or three-mile walk that will burn over 450 calories. It’s all part of the Golf & Health Project, supported by the World Golf Foundation, with a study by the University of Edinburgh suggesting that by playing golf and getting exercise, people could live five years longer. aul Lawrie, the 1999 winner here, may have missed out on the action this week due to foot and back injuries, but he’s still been a busy boy. He walked round with amateur Sam Locke, a product of the Paul Lawrie Foundation on Monday, before receiving the Golf Foundation’s Spirit of Golf Award for his work with youngsters. And he’s been non-stop since the event got under way. He’s been commentating for both Sky Sports and the World Feed, hit some putts at the “Sky Open Zone” and taken part in Q&AS with Colin Montgomerie in the Loch Lomond Whiskies tent. “This is the hardest I’ve ever worked,” he joked.
MARTIN DEMPSTER
U“I was on cloud nine walking down the 18th. It’s quite a spectacular view to come down there. A great way to finish”
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