Sullivan finishes off in style after double trouble almost ruins a memorable round
WITH a flawless day’s work on the verge of being completely ruined, the downpour at Dundonald was enveloped by red mist. Plainly, Angry Andy was not a happy camper.
As he stood on the 16th tee, Andy Sullivan’s scorecard belied the unrelenting difficulty of the conditions which confronted him.
Having started the day at two under, the Englishman did not drop a single shot as he compiled a magnificent six birdies in 15 holes, duly surging to eight under.
It was a telling thrust up the leaderboard — all the more impressive given that he was threatening to break the course record of 65 in truly foul conditions.
Disaster struck, though, when a bogey on the 16th was followed by a double at the 17th.
It’s the kind of thing that causes mere mortals to snap clubs — or at least remove the club from whichever bush it has been deposited in — but it was not long before the smile was back on Sullivan’s face.
A rollercoaster final three holes was completed on the 18th; a golden ferret repairing much of the damage after he holed his third shot from a greenside bunker at the par five.
‘I was absolutely seething standing on the 18th tee,’ said Sullivan, whose 67 remained the lowest round of the day.
‘I was waiting for the ambulance to appear because there were a lot of sirens going off in my head.
‘We had a bit of a wait on the tee because one of the guys in the group ahead lost a ball. That did me a lot of good because it gave me time to clear my head and compose myself.
‘So it was nice to finish the way I did on 18 because it felt like I had got my rewards after knocking it round quite nicely in some really difficult weather.’
Sullivan sits just two shots off the lead going into today’s final round and is a man who knows exactly how to get the job done, having won three times in the space of 10 months back in 2015.
That purple patch of his led to qualification for the Ryder Cup at Hazeltine last year, but he admits he has somewhat fallen away since then, with missed cuts being punctuated only be the odd top-ten finish.
Asked if this could signal a revival in form, the affable Englishman said: ‘I certainly hope so and I will take a lot of confidence into the final round given how nicely I’ve played.
‘I feel I’ve been getting back to the old Andy Sullivan the past three or four months.
‘I’m doing a lot of things right and learning from a few mistakes I have been making. It would be great to climb the Order of Merit again.
‘In 2015, I was in a good place and then I lost my way a little bit. Now I am back out there, enjoying it and having a laugh the last three or four months. That has showed in my results, which have been getting better and better.
‘I am more relaxed and not putting pressure on myself. That’s what I did through 2014 and 2015 when I didn’t let anything bother me.’
Having teed off at just after 8.30 yesterday morning, Sullivan was back in the clubhouse at lunchtime. Was he tempted to sit back and watch the leaders on television as they battled the elements?
‘Absolutely not,’ he added. ‘I can’t be doing with watching golf.
‘It’s like a guy going to work and building cars. You wouldn’t want to sit and watch another guy building cars in your spare time, would you?’