Seconds out for Will as he eyes Dunvegan party
Will Zalatoris once went round St Andrews in just 48 shots.
The American has no chance of repeating his video game heroics at the 150th Open next week.
But if he comes close enough and lifts the Claret Jug, he won’t have far to travel to celebrate as his mate runs the Dunvegan Bar 100 yards or so from the Old Course’s 18th green.
Zalatoris is rapidly becoming one of golf ’s Major men.
The 25-year-old has been runner-up at The Masters, the US Open and US PGA Championship in the past 15 months.
Given he has only been on the full PGA Tour circuit for less than two years, he’s building an outstanding reputation for delivering at the top table as he bids to emulate golfing heroes Lee Trevino and Lanny Wadkins.
Zalatoris can’t wait for St Andrews, even though he knows reality will be somewhat different to the virtual set-up of the Tiger Woods computer game.
He said: “I’m incredibly excited. I’ll have a lot of friends and family there, I’ll soak in history and I’ve got a friend who part-owns a pub.
“It ’s going to be a ridiculously cool experience and I’m going in with the attitude I had when I played my first Masters of soaking it all in.
“I did a really good job at Augusta, tr y ing to replicate other players’ memories, like Tiger’s chip at 16. I want to do the same at St Andrews.
“I remember watching it when Tiger won in 2000 – and I shot a few 48s on Tiger Woods 2005!
“A lot of guys told me it can be the easiest or hardest Major venue.
“I’m overly excited and the record I’ve got in Majors adds to that. I feel a calmness in them that I’m not sure I can explain.
“I’ve wanted to win a Major my entire life.
“Most guys maybe have a dream of being world No.1 or something but I’ve grown up around guys who won Majors and that has always been my focus.
“I want to be able to sit at the same table as them. Lee and Lanny have been great with me and they’re true heroes of mine.
“Lee is over 80 years old now and he’s still out there hitting balls. I went to high school with Lanny’s kids, he has helped me so much.
“Being able to pick their brains has been great.
“As for Lee, I try to emulate a lot of the cool things he does in his swing.
“Lanny texted me after US Open. I was telling him how much it stung and he said he’s ‘got eight silver medals, so I know how it feels, bud.’”
The latest bitter pill Zalatoris had to swallow came last month when England’s Matt Fitzpatrick pipped him to glory at the US Open, just weeks after Justin Thomas pipped him in a play-off at the US PGA Championship.
He would love to go one better at the Home of Golf but admitted: “I don’t have any regrets so far.
“The US Open was tough to swallow because I was right there but you have to give credit to Fitzy, that par he made on 18 was insane!
“As long as I walk off with no regrets, what can I change? Of course there’s a shot here and there you feel internally you’d like back. But I’ve finished second three times in Majors already and, while I really want to get over the hump, I have to see that as a positive and just keep doing what we’re doing.”