Bob MacIntyre overcame a drone distraction on the first tee to card an opening round of 67 at Royal Birkdale, describing it as 'almost a perfect' start to his Claret Jug bid at the 154th Open Championship. The Scottish golfer then headed home to relax in a hot tub with his baby son Findlay.
Drone Disruption on the First Tee
MacIntyre, 29, was announced to the crowd for his early-Thursday start but had to back off his opening strike due to the buzzing of an overhead drone. 'Aye. I could hear it coming in and I'm like: Please, just keep flipping over the top of me. And then it just sat above me,' MacIntyre said. 'Then they announced me on the tee and I was like: I'm not hitting until that drone is out of the way. I don't know who spoke to it, but someone did!'
The incident recalled a similar moment at the Canadian Open two years ago, when MacIntyre also asked for a drone to be removed and went on to win the event. 'Maybe it's an omen,' he added.
Strong Start with Birdie-Birdie Opening
Once the drone was downed, MacIntyre sank a 45-foot putt on the first hole and followed with a birdie on the second, launching his round in style. He dropped a shot only at the eighth, but otherwise produced a surgical round that left him purring. 'I knew from the practice days this was going to be a real test of my patience, real test of my mind and I thought I done a great job,' he said. 'It was great discipline.'
MacIntyre described Royal Birkdale as 'one of the hardest links courses I've ever played' due to the strategic placement of pot bunkers. 'Someone is going to stand up there and smash driver and could potentially get away with it, but it could switch the other way,' he noted. 'I'm just playing it my way and did a decent job.'
Hot Tub Reward and Loud Attire
After his round, MacIntyre planned to 'go home now, probably go in the hot tub with the wee man. It's not too hot. It's like a swimming pool. It's like a cool bath. Chill out and think about golf again probably tomorrow when I'm driving in.'
He also stood out in vibrant clothing, joking: 'They obviously thought I wasn't playing good enough this year with a quieter shirt, so they went a wee bit louder.' The crowds at Birkdale were loud in support, and MacIntyre relished the atmosphere. 'The Open crowd is the best every time,' he said. 'If you hit a wedge into 20 feet, there's applause.'
MacIntyre, a European hero from the Ryder Cup, fed off the support and holed a 39-foot birdie putt on the 12th to back up his thrilling opener. He fully believes he can win The Open, saying: 'I'll openly say it. I'll say it until I'm blue in the face. It would be all my goals that I ever dreamed of complete if I done that, but there's a long way to go.'
