Quarantine was worth it after ashley booked his ticket for Standrews
The 150th Open Championship at St Andrews next summer is the event that everyone in golf wants to attend.
Tiger Woods admitted last week that he would do anything to make it on to the first tee at the Old Course as he continues his rehabilitation from the horrific leg injuries sustained in a car accident in February.
English golfer, Ashley Chesters, will be there, and that thought is keeping him going as he endures 10 days of quarantine, stuck in a London hotel room.
Chesters, who grew up playing at Sandy Lyle’s old club, Hawkstone
Park in Shropshire finished third in last week’ s abridged Joburg Open, which was enough to claim one of the three Open spots available.
The tournament ended up being reduced to 36 holes as news of the discovery of the Omicron variant in South Africa caused many European countries to close their borders to southern Africa.
Scottish trio Liam Johnston ( inset above), Craig Howie and Richie Ramsay were among a host of players to withdraw after 18 holes in a desperate bid to catch a flight back to the UK before quarantine rules kicked in.
Chesters decided to remain, and the yellow Open Championship flag sitting on the desk of his room is the perfect reminder of why he carried on.
“I have just lost my Tour card and, knowing my tournaments would be limited, I didn’t think I could be too picky,” he told The Sunday Post.
“I shot a five- under 66 on day one, so I felt like I couldn’t go home, although I’m not sure I what the quite full was realised extent going of on.
“IN the second round, I could barely concentrate for the first three holes.
“I missed a five- footer for par on the third, and I didn’t even think about the putt.
“I got to the next tee and said to myself: ‘ I’m here, so I might as well play as well as I can’. I eventually shot two- under, but it was a strange feeling all day.
“With so many UK players withdrawing, you’re thinking: ‘ Should I be doing something different?’. But some of the lads who did that couldn’t get a flight in time, and they’ve ended up in the same hotel as me doing this.
“Liam is in the room opposite me!”
As Ashley serves his time in quarantine, the start of the newlynamed DP World Tour has not been what the players would have imagined.
This weekend’s South Africa Open was downgraded to a Sunshine Tour event only, while the Alfred Dunhill Championship at Leopard Creek was cancelled altogether.
Bob Macintyre would have gone to that one, along with a number of other Scots. Instead, their Christmas break started early.
But Chesters gained valuable ranking points from Joburg as he bids to regain full status, as well as his ticket to St Andrews, where he finished 12th as an amateur in the 2015 Open.
“The cheque I’d have earned that week would have been higher than any cheque I’ve had as a pro,” he admitted.
“My putting that week was amazing. I was lights out on the greens. I had played so much links golf, I had very good pace from distance, while I holed a few long ones as well.
“I always said I wanted to go back to St Andrews as a pro, as I didn’t enjoy it as much as I should have.
“You’re so focused on the job, I maybe didn’t appreciate the crowds, the atmosphere and the walk up the 18th.
“It was a strange week, though. I didn’t hit a ball from Friday to Sunday, and then we had the Monday finish.
“Five amateurs made the cut and one of us, Paul Dunne, was leading after three rounds. American Jordan Niebrugge won the Silver Medal, tied sixth.”
As Chesters dreams of his walk over the Swilken Bridge, his next significant walk will be up the aisle with fiancée, Hayley, on December 18, providing he is all clear with his next PCR test.
“I’m not sure both of us realised quite how difficult it would be for me to get home,” he added. “I rang last Sunday night, and said there was a chance I might not make it back in time.
“Luckily, Hayley didn’t sound too annoyed. She’s in charge of everything to do with the wedding anyway.
“She’s great, and I told her what she was getting into at the start of our relationship in going out with a golfer!”