Tag: Gleneagles

Darren Clarke birdies 72nd hole to win Senior Open Championship at Gleneagles Hotel Kings Course

Clarke needed a birdie on the 72nd hole to win by just one shot.

Darren Clarke stalked the upcoming shot, trying to decide what exactly he wanted to do.

The Northern Irishmen was sitting just off the green on his 72nd hole of the Senior Open Championship at Gleneagles Hotel Kings Course in Auchterarder, Scotland. Clarke and Padraig Harrington were tied on the leaderboard, but if Clarke found a way to birdie the final hole, he would be victorious.

Heavy rains caused disruptions to the final round, so Clarke had to decide whether to putt from the fairway short of the par-5 18th or to chip it. He went with a putter, and it was a great choice.

Clarke’s third shot from about 30 yards away settled a couple feet from the hole, and he was able to knock in the short putt for birdie, clinching his first senior major title. It’s his fourth PGA Tour Champions victory, and he becomes the fourth men’s golfer in history to win both the Open Championship (2011 at Royal St. George’s) and Senior Open, joining Gary Player, Bob Charles and Tom Watson.

“It was tough right there,” Clarke said. “You know, I’ve made no secret of the fact that I wanted to win this more than anything. From when I turned 50, this is the one you wanted to win, so I could set it beside the other one. Pretty good feeling right now.”

“To join that illustrious company is very special.”

Clarke made only two birdies during his final round of 1-under 69, but it was enough. He birdied seven of the eight par 5s he played all week, his only blemish Sunday coming on the 10th hole. He fought back with a birdie at the 12th hole and then grinded out pars until his birdie putt on the final hole.

Even with the weather, Clarke was always confident.

“Yeah, it’s what I grew up playing in,” Clarke said. “Don’t make it any easier, but you know at the start, it was a bit of a battle. Pars were almost a prisoner at the very start, and you’re trying to avoid making mistakes. And I was pretty much cruising until I made a terrible swing on No. 10, my second shot. All of a sudden, I turned an easy birdie into a bad bogey.

“So you know from there, keep my head down, hit some really good shots after that again. Kept giving myself chances but the putter was a little bit cold all week as you probably saw. I didn’t really hole anything of note this week but whenever I had to do it on 18 there, whenever I had to get one up close there, I managed to do it.”

After hitting his tee shot on the 14th hole, golfers were pulled off the course, and there was a delay of about two hours until players were allowed back on the course.

Harrington, who made six birdies on the back nine, was one of the first people to congratulate Clarke after the round.

Clarke, 53, finished the week at 10 under, shooting under par in all four rounds. Clarke, Harrington and Ernie Els, who finished in a six-way tie for third, were the only golfers to shoot under par in every round during the Senior Open Championship.

As for Clarke, he said he has options as to what he will drink out of the trophy come Sunday night.

“It will be good,” Clarke said.

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Colin Montgomerie’s secret to Saturday success at the Senior British Open? Jelly babies

The only problem the Saturday magic created was a need for more candy.

Colin Montgomerie knows a thing or two about winning golf tournaments in inclement Scottish weather.

He also knows when it’s time to take advice from others who also know plenty about winning big golf tournaments.

On Saturday, as wet weather made for a miserable day at the Gleneagles Hotel’s Kings Course in Auchterader, Montgomerie and his caddie tried to lighten the mood by chatting with Padraig Harrington about, of all things, candy.

“We were talking to Pádraig Harrington about jelly babies, actually, and we decided to eat jelly babies on the back nine, the best food for everything, apparently,” Montgomerie said. “I thought, oh, he’s won a few majors so we thought we would do the jelly baby trick today.”

The move paid dividends. Montgomerie finished with birdies on his final three holes of the day and while others struggled to deal with the wet conditions, his 68 pulled him within striking distance of the leaders heading into the final day. He’s at 6 under for the tournament, three shots behind leader Paul Broadhurst and two behind Jerry Kelly, Steven Alker and Darren Clarke.

The only problem the Saturday magic created was a need for more candy.

“Wow, the jelly babies worked. So we’re into Auchterarder and come into Auchterarder to buy a load of jelly babies to keep us going for tomorrow because the weather is going to be iffy tomorrow. So we’ll see how we go,” he said. “I said at the start of the week, I wanted to contend and not just compete. And now, we’re beginning to think we’re contending, you know. So we’ll see how we go.”

Montgomerie —who confirmed to reporters that he had a brief stay in a local hospital on Thursday, but didn’t elaborate on the reason — insisted he didn’t do much differently on the final few holes, aside from getting his putter rolling. And he said last week’s championship performance by Cameron Smith on the greens at St. Andrews should shed light on the strategy for success this week.

“The putter … that’s all it is, isn’t it? Hit it to 20-foot at 16th and holed it, 15-foot at 17th and holed it, and a good putt there at the last. It broke a mile. It broke a good 8-footer at the last,” he said. “But you know, you miss these, you shoot 71. You hole them, and you shoot 68. How often do we say this? How often do we say we’re going to hit the ball — everyone out here can hit the ball. Everyone can stand on the range and hit the ball. But it’s all about what happens on the greens.

“And look who won last week, the best putter in the world probably right now, Cam Smith. And who won The Open? THE best putter. That’s what it’s about. If I can hole putts tomorrow, if I can get the damn thing in the hole tomorrow, there’s a chance. You never know.”

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Photos: 2022 Senior Open Championship at Gleneagles Hotel Kings Course

Nothing like a little links golf in the rain.

During Saturday’s third round of the 2022 Senior Open Championship at Gleneagles Hotel Kings Course in Auchterarder, Scotland, the rain got heavier as the day went on.

The sound of rain thumping off umbrellas and sight of it dripping off caps were common, as the world’s top senior golfers meandered their way through the wet, cool conditions in the final senior men’s major championship of the year.

Playing golf in the rain may seem like fun on a Saturday afternoon with your friends, but it’s a lot different when there’s a major championship on the line.

Plenty of players are in contention as Sunday’s final round is right around the corner.

Here’s a look at some of the best photos from the 2022 Senior Open Championship.

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Watch: Bernhard Langer double-hits chip shot during Senior British Open

Even Hall of Famers double-hit the golf ball on occasion.

Bernhard Langer has hit his fair share of incredible shots during his Hall of Fame career. Yet during the second round of Friday’s Senior British Open, his chip shot near the ninth green is one he or the golf world won’t soon forget.

The 64-year-old was just off the green when he attempted to pitch a shot over a ridge and settle next to the hole. Shortly after he hit his shot, the ball ricocheted left after it struck his club a second time.

There is no penalty for Langer double hitting his golf ball, though it left him with a long par putt. He settled for bogey on the hole.

Langer sits tied for third at 5 under after two rounds at Gleneagles in Scotland, trailing leader Darren Clarke by three strokes.

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