Stone makes nostalgic return to East Lothian
Brandon Stone took an enjoyable trip down memory lane at Gullane on Monday night but wasn’t brave enough to try again with the putt that would have seen him shoot the first 59 in European Tour history.
The South African had the opportunity from seven feet in the final round of the Aberdeen Standard Investments Scottish Open at the East Lothian course 12 months ago but sank to his knees as the putt at the 18th agonisingly missed on the left.
His consolation was the biggest victory of his career and, after arriving on Scotland’s Golf Coast for his title defence, albeit at a different venue this year, Stone took the chance to return to the scene of that triumph.
“My dad, Kevin, wasn’t here last year, so I took him to Gullane after we arrived quite late on Monday and we stood on 18 green and tried to recreate the putt that we had. It was quite cool taking a trip down memory lane, but I never even took the putter away as I couldn’t handle the emotional scarring!”
Having shown signs of a return to form last week with an encouraging effort in the Irish Open at Lahinch, the 26-year-old is now looking forward to a new challenge at The Renaissance Club.
“It’s definitely not boring,” he said of the Tom Doakdesigned course. “The greens are quite severe with a lot of tricky sloping and it should prove a true test. If the wind picks up like it might, that typical Scottish links breeze, it might be a little bit more penal. But the course is in fantastic condition, it really is, and the greens are great.” He may have suffered a double dose of Ryder Cup disappointment already since bursting on to the scene as the first Scot to win a World Golf Championship, but Russell Knox has not thrown in the towel in his bid to join a long list of compatriots to play in the biennial event. Far from it, in fact. “I’m thinking about the Ryder Cup already,” declared the 34-yearold, even though the 2020 contest at Whistling Straits in Wisconsin is still 444 days away.
In some respects, that admission came as a bit of a shock. He’d have been forgiven, after all, if the event was now off his radar altogether after being in the mix for a wildcard pick in both 2016 and 2018 only to be overlooked by Darren Clarke and Thomas Bjorn for the matches at Hazeltine and Le Golf National respectively. Watching the latter, in particular, though from afar, has made him more determined than ever to tick it off his “to do list”.
“It’s totally changed for me,” added Knox, speaking in his press conference for this week’s Aberdeen Standard Investments Scottish Open at The Renaissance Club, where he is set to spearhead a 15-strong home challenge in the $7 million Rolex Series event. “I’ve had enough of not making that team. When my caddie and I, David Clark, sat down on 1 January, his No 1 goal and my No 1 goal is to make the Ryder Cup Team. Since then, I think about it every day.
“I’m going to do everything I can not to miss that team when it comes around. Everything that I kind of do, that’s the end goal. There’s going to be plenty of baby steps along the way to make that team, but it just comes down to it’s as simple as if I play good, I’ll be right there, and if I don’t, I’ve got no chance.”
After missing out in 2016, Knox spoke about how he felt something of an “outsider” on the European Tour, having carved out his professional career in the US after staying on there after he finished a spell at college in Jacksonville. He’s played a bit more on this side of the Atlantic since then, making a few more friends over here in the process, but claims nothing has changed as far as the Ryder Cup is concerned.
“I’m always going to be an outsider. Nothing is ever going to change. I don’t honestly see ever getting picked,” he said. “I’m a US citizen. My dad, Mike, is a US citizen. My whole family live over there. At the same time, I feel like I am obviously Scottish. I grew up here. I was born here. Lived here until I was 18. I know I’m going to have to earn my way on the team, as is everyone else.
“I don’t expect to be picked, maybe because of that (his citizenship). I would say in the last year or so, I’ve become a little friendlier with a few people on the team, which obviously is helpful. But at the same time, if you play good, you’re going to be on the team even if you’re best friends with everyone or you’re not. That is something I would look forward to: being around a few of the guys a little bit more, developing friendships, so when the time comes, it’s more of an obvious shift hopefully.”
The battle for spots on Padraig Harrington’s team will start with the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth in September and finish with the same event next year. Nine automatic spots are up for grabs after the Irishman decided to cut his wildcard selections from four to three.
“I’ve been very close the last two times and, if I see myself as being in the top 12 players in Europe, I have to have the mindset of to put myself