Plant blossoming as top amateur on brink of joining pro ranks
YOU could hardly move for horticultural references at Birkdale yesterday, not with Alfie Plant having already secured the Silver Medal for top amateur.
The 25-year-old former postman shot a 69, putting him a shot ahead of Toby Tree at three-over par. He is assured of following on from Justin Rose and Chris Wood in being the leading non-professional at a Birkdale Open.
And then he revealed that his watching girlfriend, part of the Alfie Army, is called Daisy Meadow.
‘That will draw a few chuckles at the church if things go as planned,’ said Plant. ‘All the girls out there, I end up with a Daisy. What’s the chances?’
His support crew from South East London was a little depleted yesterday, although it remained in evidence: ‘There’s still a few out there, but it’s quite an expensive week so a few have gone back,’ he said.
He has been inundated with messages from former colleagues: ‘My phone has been going a bit crazy. I don’t think there’s been much work going on in Dartford Sorting Office.’
Plant will compete in a few premium amateur events before turning professional but he looks like he belongs in this company already. ‘I had a bit of a target of 68 today. Under par in your first Open is nice. I think I’d have taken any of the majors, but this is great for family and friends to be able to come up and watch.
‘It’s nice to be out here and competing with these guys and I’ve played with some very good players the last few days. My score is great.’
Plant is in some august company in winning the medal, with five of its recipients, including Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods, having gone on to win majors. England’s Matthew Fitzpatrick is another recent winner, although the award does not come with any surety of a glittering professional career.
Tom Lewis won it in 2011 after leading on the first day, but the great things predicted for him have yet to materialise and he is 563 in the world. 2004 winner Stuart Wilson is now a golf club professional, while 2006 winner, Norway’s Marius Thorp, became disillusioned with the game and quit touring five years later.
Of course Plant is amateur in name only and plays full-time. About the only thing Corinthian about him is his sunny demeanour and strong sense of etiquette, such as picking up his divots and frantically shouting ‘Fore’, as he needed to when hitting onto the spectator bank on the sixth hole. Some of the pros can no longer be bothered.
His playing partner, Belgium’s Ryder Cup player Thomas Pieters, certainly had greater power, but Plant lacked nothing in finesse.
He now has one more day in the sun, but only when he gets among the hard-nosed world of the pros will we know if Alfie’s Army will be a regular fixture at The Open.