Darren Clarke accepts offer to hit first tee shot of the Open at Royal Portrush
Darren Clarke has said he had no hesitation in accepting the R&A’s offer of a ceremonial role to hit the first tee shot of this week’s Open Championship. Clarke, a member of Royal Portrush with a home in the town, was approached by the R&A’s chief executive, Martin Slumbers, in June with a view to him getting the Open’s return to the venue for the first time since 1951 under way. “Mr Slumbers asked me about three weeks ago if I would do them the honour of hitting the opening tee shot,” Clarke revealed. “It’s Royal Portrush and, when the R&A ask you, it’s a definite yes. I said I’d love it.”
Clarke’s approach to the 6.35am tee time on Thursday may raise some eyebrows. The first blow of the championship is generally reserved for golfers who, though worthy of recognition, the organisers generally believe will not compete for the Claret Jug. Clarke won the Open in 2011 and his course knowledge is in theory a strong advantage here. Perhaps privately he is of a mind to prove some people wrong.
“But that’s part of it, isn’t it? That’s what they do,” said Clarke in reply to whether he was comfortable in this guise as starter. “It’s Royal Portrush, it’s the first time we’ve been here since 1951 and he asked me to do it and I happily accept.
“Sometimes it can be a good draw teeing off here at half six in the morning. We shall see. As soon as he asked me it was always going to be a yes.
“Will there be tears? No. I’ll just be very proud that we have it back here in Northern Ireland. It goes without saying it’s a huge thing to have it back here in Northern Ireland again. It’s going to be an amazing tournament. All the practice tickets are all sold out. The atmosphere is going to be sensational.
“It doesn’t seem that long ago they announced the Open was coming. It’s all happened very quickly with all the work they’ve done to get the course ready and then we’re in Open Championship week. Thursday morning is going to be exciting. I just hope I manage to get one going straight down the fairway.”
While Clarke was not of a mind to talk down the Open hopes of his compatriot Rory McIlroy, he offered an intriguing alternative when asked to pick a Portrush hope. Umpteen of the 148th Open field have turned to Clarke either for venue advice or to play some holes in the build-up. “Obviously I’d take Rory, wouldn’t I? Who else would I say?” Clarke added. “I’ve played quite a bit with Adam Scott the past couple days. And he has been – what’s the best word? – imperious is the best word to describe him. He’s been very, very impressive. Adam has a very good ball flight. That’s why he played well in Open Championships before. Adam has been very impressive.
“The standard of guys up here, the top players in the world are all very good. And it’s who gets the most comfortable with the golf course are the ones that are going to be the most successful. That’s the easy way to say it. Of course I want to beat them but at the same time they’re all good guys; I like them all. I’ve been giving them whatever information they wanted and a little bit more.”
Clarke’s Monday media duties understandably touched on experiences during the Troubles. While working in a bar at his home in Dungannon just before Christmas in 1986 Clarke brushed with the kind of tragedy which afflicted Northern Ireland for so long.
“The bomb scare came at 8.30, everybody out, bomb went off at 9.00 and the place was flattened,” said the 50year-old. “That was life in Northern Ireland. Bombs were going off quite frequently. And a lot of people, unfortunately, paid a heavy penalty for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. That was our life back there at that stage.
“You think at that stage, when everything was going on, about whether we were ever going to have a tournament such as this. It was beyond the realms of possibility. It was just never going to happen. So to get to the point where you guys are all sitting here doing this has been an incredible journey for what we’ve all come through.”
Clarke’s early rise was just one interesting facet of a draw which paired McIlroy with Paul Casey and the US Open champion, Gary Woodland. McIlroy’s quest to win the Claret Jug for a second time begins shortly after 10am. Tiger Woods will have to wait until after 3pm to sample Portrush in competition format. Woods partners Patrick Reed for the first time in a major and, as an apparent reward for progress in Europe over the past 18 months, Matt Wallace. Woods played 18 holes for the second day in succession from 8am on Monday, with Rickie Fowler and Dustin Johnson.