Scotland’s golfing hero Robert MacIntyre was crowned king of the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship on the iconic 18th green at St Andrews after taking route 66 to the title.
MacIntyre, the pride of Oban, won his fourth DP World Tour event and his second in Scotland exactly seven days after starring for Europe in the magnificent Ryder Cup victory against the United States at Bethpage Black.
He said: “It’s brilliant, a special win, and as a Scotsman there is no other place I’d want to win more than St Andrews. I’ve won a Scottish Open last year, and now a Dunhill Links here – and also a Ryder Cup in between.
“The only thing that would top this is if I could win an Open Championship at St Andrews, so we’ll try our best to celebrate it tonight. Not sure how we’re going to do that after the celebration we had in New York last Sunday, but it’s going to be nice, especially with family having travelled over to watch me play today.”
With huge home galleries cheering him every step of the way around the Old Course, MacIntyre shot a six-under-par 66 – his third 66 of an event trimmed to 54 holes due to the persistent high winds that caused Saturday’s scheduled third round to be cancelled.
MacIntyre is the first Scottish winner of the Dunhill Links since Colin Montgomerie in 2005 and only the fourth Scot to experience the thrill of holding the trophy aloft at the Home of Golf. Stephen Gallacher triumphed in 2004 and Paul Lawrie claimed the inaugural title in 2001.
Ever-popular Bob is now only the second Scot after Montgomerie to win both the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship and the Scottish Open. Montgomerie won his Scottish Open title in 1999.
“To have my name on trophies that carry some of the great names in golf is really something special and as a kid I used to watch events like the Dunhill and dream of being able to play in them.
“And I’ve loved to come to St Andrews. I’ve been coming here with the family for years, sometimes just to walk on the beach and to be in the town rather than to play golf. But the whole place is golf heaven and I will always play here whenever there is a tournament on.”
BOB RUNNING ON EMPTY
MacIntyre also joked about becoming Dunhill Links champion after arriving back in Scotland “running on empty” and with few expectations following the hype and pressure of an away Ryder Cup.
“To be honest I don’t know how I’ve done it this week. I’ve done everything against the book. I came here just wanting to enjoy it and try to play well but I only pitched up on Wednesday, played just 11 holes or so on the Old Course and have done everything this week that I would not have done in a normal week.
“And it’s not just been no real preparation, although obviously I know the three courses well. My diet has not been good either this week – I’ve eaten plenty of fish and chips and other takeaways. Nor have I done any of my gym work.”
MacIntyre picked out the second of his three 66s as the key to his victory, a tour de force at Kingsbarns to defy heavy rain and strong winds that forced play to be suspended just after he had finished his round.
“All three rounds were important, of course, but Kingsbarns was the round that could easily have got away from me,” he added. “I even shocked myself with that 66. It was unbelievable. I know the level that I can play at, but I do keep shocking myself at times but to go out and do it this week and get over the line this week is very special.”
As for the future, next April’s Masters at August is a massive focus now for MacIntyre. “It’s no secret that it’s Major Championships now that I want,” said the world No 9.
MacIntyre won by four shots from his fellow Ryder Cup hero Tyrrell Hatton, who shot a seven-under-par 65 at St Andrews to finish on 14-under-par.
For Scoring click here for pro’s and here for team.
The post BOB MACINTYRE MAKES HISTORY IN ST ANDREWS appeared first on Golf News.
