On-song Ramsay’s in hunt for Rich pickings
AT ROYAL BIRKDALE ICHIE RAMSAY will carry the hopes of a nation at the Open championship at Royal Birkdale this weekend as he bids to become Scotland’s first major winner since 1999.
Ramsay was just a 16-year-old schoolboy when Paul Lawrie triumphed around Carnoustie to lift the Claret Jug but it was a moment he will never forget.
Now the Scot will look to emulate that achievement after getting himself into contention with a second-round score of 70 that leaves him two-under par, tucked
Rin just behind the leaders. He will go out to battle the elements today looking for another low score that will keep him in the hunt. The 34-year-old said: “You grow up dreaming you’ve got a 10-foot putt on the final green to win The Open and fortunately I’m now in a position to compete for it which is something I probably haven’t done over the last few years.
“I wanted to compete with the best in the world in a major and I feel like I’ve done that the first two days. Whether I do that over the next two days, I really don’t know, but I’ll just give 100 percent.
“Anytime I play I’m representing my country which is a big thing. Having the saltire on the yellow leaderboard – it stands out.
“I remember watching Paul win the Open. I think he birdied 17 in the play-off. I remember watching that vividly. And I remember the 4-iron he had on 18, which was an incredible shot under arguably the biggest pressure and the hardest golf you’re ever going to play for a major.
“So it was definitely something that I noticed and picked up on and used that as motivation for me to do well.
“I think there’s a good crop of young Scottish guys coming through. We know there’s a void at the top and we want to fill it.”
Ramsay admitted having a 16-month-old daughter to look after helps keep things in perspective. He added: “I’m a little bit more patient. Olivia teaches me a lot. And I think it settles you down as a person.
“It kind of takes your mind off probably playing golf. When I was younger I definitely thought too much. If golf wasn’t going well, things weren’t going well. But now I kind of try and set golf aside.
“Last week I had a bit of a bad finish and I walked in to the players’ lounge and Olivia caught me from about 20 yards away, her hands went up and there was a smile on the face, and that just cheers you up. It’s brilliant. When she smiles, I smile.”
Treatment of all injuries in golfers begins with some degree of rest.
This can usually be achieved by a reduction in time and frequency of practice sessions, which avoids the continued, repetitive stress.