robert MacIntyre – Page 2 – Syndication Server

A year after heartbreak, Robert MacIntyre birdies 72nd hole to win 2024 Genesis Scottish Open

What a win for Bobby Mac.

Scotland’s Robert MacIntyre realized a dream on Sunday, holing a 22-foot birdie putt at the last to win the Genesis Scottish Open by one stroke over Australian Adam Scott.

“In my head I just kept saying to myself, this is what you do, Bob,” MacIntyre said of his winning putt to claim his national championship in the tournament co-sanctioned by the PGA Tour and DP World Tour. “I’ve done it.”

MacIntrye played the final five holes in four under to shoot 3-under 67 at The Renaissance Club in North Berwick and become the first Scot since Colin Montgomerie to win on home soil in 25 years and just the second to do so in the 42 times it has been played since first being contested on the DP World Tour in 1972.

“A lot of people might say, he doesn’t quite have this, he doesn’t quite have that, but I’ve got fight and that’s all I need,” MacIntyre said.

Scottish Open: Photos | Prize money

The 27-year-old lefthander and pride of Oban, MacIntyre made just one birdie and two bogeys in his first 13 holes to trail by three shots with five holes to go. He benefited from a rare off day from Swedish sensation Ludvig Aberg, who led by two heading into the day but shot 3 over on the round after hitting only five fairways to place T-4. Scott looked out of the trophy hunt too after he made double bogey at No. 8. But he holed a bunker shot for birdie at the ninth and added three birdies against a single bogey on the closing nine for 67. He was searching for his first victory in more than four years.

“A shame to come up short but Bob did what he had to do to win. Eagle, par, birdie, that’s great stuff,” Scott said.

Momentum shifted to MacIntyre when he sank a 41-foot birdie putt at 14 and he benefited from a rules official granting free relief at the par-5 16^th when it was determined that he was standing on a sprinkler head in deep rough.

Robert MacIntyre of Scotland celebrates victory on the 18th green during day four of the Genesis Scottish Open at The Renaissance Club on July 14, 2024 in North Berwick, Scotland. (Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images)

“I’m shouting and I’m swearing when I’m getting up to the ball because I know that that’s my chance to really make birdie coming in. I got over the ball, looked at it, thinking, I’m in a bit of trouble here. Might manage to move it maybe a hundred yards,” he explained. “Look, I got a bit of luck on 16 and you need a bit of luck to win golf tournaments. I couldn’t believe when I heard a spring under my foot where my spike is at and I’m like no way. It was covered, and I thought, I got lucky; it was meant to be.”

Thanks to a drop in shorter grass, he nailed a 6-iron from 248 yards to 6 feet for eagle to tie Scott for the lead.

In the tournament within a tournament, Richard Mansell shot a course-record-tying 61 to finish T-10 and earn one of three places into next week’s British Open along with Alex Noren and Aaron Rai as the top finishers not already exempt into the final men’s major of the year. Rory McIlroy, in his first start since finishing second at the U.S. Open last month, opened with 65 and shot a stroke higher each day to finish T-4 in his title defense.

🙌 @SRTheegala https://t.co/wiFOOpMjLB pic.twitter.com/OnznIKscFH

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) July 14, 2024

Last year, MacIntyre had his heart ripped out after McIlroy birdied the final two holes to steal the trophy. This year, the tables turned.

“I thought it was short,” MacIntyre said of the winning putt.

The double-breaker just dripped in the front door, for a winning total of 18-under 262, and MacIntyre pumped both fists in the air and screamed so loud he claimed he had lost his voice.

MacIntyre won his first PGA Tour title, the RBC Canadian Open, last month. With the win in his native country, MacIntyre became only the second Scot to win twice in one PGA Tour season, joining Sandy Lyle in 1988.

“I wanted the Scottish Open and I got it,” he said.

If Robert MacIntyre never wins a Scottish Open he’ll ‘struggle to forgive’ Rory McIlroy for stealing one

The probability that McIlroy would birdie both the 17th and 18th was just 0.15 percent.

Robert MacIntyre admitted he might struggle to forgive Rory McIlroy for snatching victory from his grasp if he fails to add the Genesis Scottish Open title to his resume.

MacIntyre had set a daunting clubhouse target last year thanks to a sensational birdie on the 18th, just the second of the day on the closing hole at the Renaissance Club as strong winds made for testing conditions.

However, overnight leader McIlroy birdied the par-three 17th to get on level terms and then hit a stunning 2-iron approach into the last – which has since been commemorated with a plaque – before holing from 10 feet to seal an improbable win.

According to Ryder Cup statistics guru Edoardo Molinari, the probability that McIlroy would birdie both the 17th and 18th was just 0.15 percent.

“I don’t think I’ll ever forgive him if I don’t win a Scottish Open,” MacIntyre said with the hint of a smile. “If it’s not a major championship, this is the one I want.

“It was an incredible golf shot he hit. That was the winning shot, really. It was a good shot and it was a bit heartbreaking.”

Asked if he had spoken to McIlroy about it when they were teammates on Europe’s Ryder Cup side two months later, MacIntyre added: “I asked him one question at some point during the party.

“I had not spoken to him at all about it since the day it happened, and I always wanted to ask him about the putt (on 18). He thought he had missed it and it went in. So it just shows you, it doesn’t have to be perfect for it to work out.”

Scottish Open: Leaderboard | Photos

MacIntyre’s decision to take up his PGA Tour card this season certainly did not look like working out earlier this year, the left-hander openly admitting he was struggling to adapt to being away from home before benefiting hugely from a three-week spell back in Scotland.

Robert MacIntyre tees off on the 14th hole during the final round of the 2023 Genesis Scottish Open at The Renaissance Club in United Kingdom. (Photo: Octavio Passos/Getty Images)

The 27-year-old returned to the United States and finished eighth in the US PGA Championship before winning the RBC Canadian Open with his dad caddying, but will not be renewing the lease on his rental property in Florida when it runs out shortly.

“I’m still going to play over there,” MacIntyre said. “I’m just not going to pay a lot of money for a rental that I’m not staying in. I’ll maybe take a house for maybe a month, two months when I’m there.

“I’ve joined Isleworth so that will always be a place I go and practise in the wintertime, but there’s nothing like home. Scotland, this is where I want to be.”

MacIntyre admitted he was a bundle of nerves when he played alongside McIlroy in the Scottish Open in 2019, but it will be a different story when the pair are joined by Ryder Cup teammate Viktor Hovland for the first two rounds this week.

“Obviously with the Ryder Cup, being part of a team, I know him a lot better personally,” MacIntyre said.

“I’m still miles away from being one of his close pals, but I feel like if I ever need anything or ever want to ask a question, I can pick up the phone and ask. And Viktor I’ve known since we were 14, 15 years old playing boys’ golf.

“This is probably the most calm I’ve been (coming into a Scottish Open). It’s not been as frantic. Things have been under control. Yeah, my game has been up and down but it’s been up and down my whole golfing life.

“But this is the one that, as a Scot, I really want.

“Last year I came really close but there may not be another opportunity like that in my career playing golf. I’ve just got to try and play it as another event and give it my absolute best, which I will do.”

Robert MacIntyre withdraws from signature event at the Memorial a day after first PGA Tour win

“I would love to go home for a party,” MacIntyre said Sunday after his win at the RBC Canadian Open.

Less than 24 hours after claiming his first PGA Tour win, Robert MacIntyre has withdrawn from the Memorial, the limited-field, big-money signature event at Jack’s Place.

MacIntyre played his way into the Memorial as well as the U.S. Open and the next signature event after that, the Travelers Championship, but it appears some much-needed rest is on tap in the short term.

“This is my fifth event in a row,” the Scotsman said in the afterglow of his win at the RBC Canadian Open in Hamilton, Ontario, with his dad, Dougie, working as his caddie. “I was planning to do U.S. Open qualifier tomorrow [Monday], 36 holes with my dad on the bag. Thankfully that’s off the cards.”

When asked specifically about playing the Memorial, he said: “I’ve not even spoken to my mom, my family, my team, my managers. I mean, I’m guessing I’m going to have to (smiling). I mean, I would love to go home for a party, but I think we’ll probably play next week.”

The PGA Tour made the announcement about the WD mid-day Monday, which opened a spot for Davis Thompson via the Aon Swing 5. There are 73 players in the field at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio, where the total purse is $20 million and first place is good for $4 million.

Robert MacIntyre didn’t like the buzzing of the CBS drone one bit and let them know at 2024 RBC Canadian Open

The big wasp in the sky failed to sting MacIntyre on Sunday.

HAMILTON, Ontario – Robert MacIntyre doesn’t like drones.

“If it didn’t go away, I was going to start throwing my clubs at it,” he said. “That’s how annoyed I was getting.”

During Sunday’s final round of the RBC Canadian Open, the CBS Sports drone following his pairing bothered him to end.

It had started on Saturday on the 18^th hole but it began in earnest on the drivable par-4 fifth hole when the crowd went silent.

“It’s a big wasp. I asked ’em to get rid of it. They did,” he explained. “Next hole, I’m in the bunker, and sure enough everyone’s silent and all I hear is this buzzing again. I look up and here it is. And, I don’t know, one of the guys must have been getting sick of me. I just kept turning to him because I knew he was the man to go to when that drone starts annoying me because yesterday on 18 it was the same guy. And he just radioed, ‘Get that drone out of here.’”

RBC Canadian Open: Photos | Merchandise | Leaderboard

MacIntyre could be heard saying, “I told you once, I’m not going to tell you again.”

On the CBS broadcast, Jim Nantz, Dottie Pepper, who was following the group, and Trevor Immelman understood that it was disturbing MacIntyre but pushed back that drones are now part of the coverage. A request for a comment from CBS Sports wasn’t answered.

“They were horrible,” MacIntyre’s father, Dougie, who served as his caddie this week, said. “He was getting a wee bit agitated. It takes your concentration. In the back of the head you’re thinking about the buzzing so he called the rules official over.”

That occurred at the ninth fairway when MacIntyre was preparing to hit a wedge to the green.

“All I can hear is this drone again, and I had had enough at that point. Rules official from the R&A was just beside us, and I brought her over, and I said, ‘Look, this drone needs to get out of here. I’ve said it three times now. The drone is annoying me, the drone’s putting me off, it’s too close.’ I mean, it’s easier when the blimps up there, but it’s obviously the weather and stuff and it’s just, I had a job to do, and anything that was getting in my way was getting told to get out of the way. I was focused today and that drone was doing my head, and so I told it to get away.”

MacIntyre’s father said he helped calm down his son, who focused on the task at hand and earned his first Tour title.

“He gets grumpy. That’s his downfall. When he gets grumpy and mad at himself the game goes. He knows it himself,” Dougie said.

But the big wasp in the sky failed to sting MacIntyre on Sunday.

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Winner’s Bag: Robert MacIntyre, 2024 RBC Canadian Open

A complete list of the gear used to win on Sunday.

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A complete list of the golf equipment Robert MacIntyre used to win the PGA Tour’s 2024 RBC Canadian Open:

DRIVER: Titleist TSR2 (9 degrees), with Graphite Design Tour AD DI 7 X shaft

[afflinkbutton text=”Shop Bobby Mac’s driver” link=”https://worldwidegolfshops.pxf.io/rQYX65″]

FAIRWAY WOOD: Cobra Aerojet (14.5 degrees), with Graphite Design Tour AD DI 8 X shaft

[afflinkbutton text=”Shop Bobby Mac’s fairway woods” link=”https://worldwidegolfshops.pxf.io/Py7b3X”]

HYBRID: TaylorMade Stealth 2 (19 degrees), with Graphite Design Tour AD DI Hybrid 105 X shaft

[afflinkbutton text=”Shop Bobby Mac’s hybrid” link=”https://worldwidegolfshops.pxf.io/5gon99″]

IRONS: Titleist 620 CB (4-9), with True Temper Dynamic Gold X100 shafts

[afflinkbutton text=”Shop Bobby Mac’s irons” link=”https://pga-tour-superstore.pxf.io/Vm7Nra”]

WEDGES: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (46), SM9 (50 degrees), with True Temper Dynamic Gold X100 Onyx shafts, (56, 60 degrees), with True Temper Dynamic Golf S400 Onyx shafts

[afflinkbutton text=”Shop Bobby Mac’s wedges” link=”https://worldwidegolfshops.pxf.io/eKYNVD”]

PUTTER: TaylorMade Spider Tour

[afflinkbutton text=”Shop Bobby Mac’s putter” link=”https://worldwidegolfshops.pxf.io/an7eab”]

BALL: Titleist Pro V1

[afflinkbutton text=”Shop Bobby Mac’s golf ball” link=”https://worldwidegolfshops.pxf.io/Gm7gzr”]

GRIPS: Golf Pride Z-Grip Cord (full swing) / SuperStroke Zenergy Pistol (putter)

DP World Tour grads raid top of the leaderboard at 2024 RBC Canadian Open, which could have back-to-back Canadian champs among 5 things to know

HAMILTON, Ontario – DP World Tour graduates Robert MacIntyre and Ryan Fox are taking advantage of earning PGA Tour privileges this season north of the border. MacIntyre, a Scotsman who represented Team Europe at the Ryder Cup in Rome, and Fox, a New …

HAMILTON, Ontario – DP World Tour graduates Robert MacIntyre and Ryan Fox are taking advantage of earning PGA Tour privileges this season north of the border.

MacIntyre, a Scotsman who represented Team Europe at the Ryder Cup in Rome, and Fox, a New Zealand native, were among 10 DP World Tour pros who graduated to the PGA Tour this season for the first time. Earlier this year, Frenchman Matthieu Pavon won the Farmers Insurance Open and Finland’s Sami Valimaki finished second at the Mexico Open.

The agreement to give cards to DP World Tour pros was one of the final deals produced by former DP World Tour commissioner Keith Pelley, a Canadian, who must love seeing this leaderboard. When Pelley announced he was taking a new post outside of golf back in his native country with Maple Leaf Sports Enterprises, MacIntyre was asked what his legacy would be. “He got me to the PGA Tour, didn’t he?” MacIntyre said. “He’s given me a pathway to achieve dreams I’ve always wanted to achieve.”

RBC Canadian Open: Photos | Merchandise | Leaderboard

The Scotsman is bogey-free through 36 holes and shares the lead with Fox with a total of 10-under 130 — and that much closer to achieving that dream of winning on the PGA Tour.

Here’s four more things to know about the second round of the RBC Canadian Open.

Scotland’s Robert MacIntyre is bogey-free through 36 holes with dad, Dougie, on the bag as his emergency caddie.

“He jumped at the chance,” the PGA Tour rookie said of his old man, who serves as a greenkeeper back home at Glencruitten Golf Course in Oban, Scotland. “It’s good to just spend an extra week with loved ones.”

MacIntyre, who fired a 4-under 66 at Hamilton Golf & Country Club on Friday, parted ways with his previous caddie after missing the cut last week. He called his father Saturday to ask him to fill in this week and he hopped on a flight the next day. It’s the first time MacIntyre has had his dad, who he tabbed a good golfer in his own right, on the bag since he caddied at DP World Tour Q-School seven years ago. For more on this story, click here.

Nick Taylor ended the 69-year drought without a Canadian native winning the RBC Canadian Open. Wouldn’t it be funny if they had back-to-back champions?

Mackenzie Hughes, who grew up nearby and took lessons at host course Hamilton Golf & Country Club as a junior, thrust himself into the conversation, ridding a sizzling hot putter to a 6-under 64 on Friday.

“I walk around this place often and think about myself as a young kid. I was here a lot as a young kid watching these tournaments in 2003 and 2006. I remember thinking how cool it was back then. I wanted to get close to the players, get autographs and all that,” Hughes said. “Yesterday on the first tee when they announced me and they say Dundas, Ontario, like just knowing how close that is to here it kind of hit me that it was really, really special. Doing it here does feel different. Being in Toronto is obviously still home, but I spent time here as a kid.”

After an opening 1-under 69, Hughes, who started on No. 10, birdied three of his first six holes and holed a 60-degree wedge from 79 yards at No. 12 to shoot 5-under 30 on his first nine and join the fray. After another birdie at No. 1, Hughes attempted to tee off first in his group but it was Shane Lowry’s honor.

“You got to give me that tee at least once today,” Lowry said.

Lowry wouldn’t have the tee for long because Hughes canned a 12-foot eagle putt at the fourth.

Hughes needed the oven mitts for his sizzling putter. He took just 22 putts and leads the field in SG: Putting through 36 holes. The Canadian faithful were loving it and Hughes was feeding off their energy.

“Those putts just seemed to be going in the middle of the hole and it got loud and it got really exciting there. I know the weekend will be even more amped up than that and I’m excited for it,” he said.

After the eagle at four, Hughes, who figures he’s played Hamilton some 50 times, realized he could shoot a special number.

“I knew standing in 7 fairway if I birdied the last three holes it was 59 too, so I was definitely aware of it coming down the end,” he said.

But Hughes made what he termed “two mental mistakes” at Nos. 7 and 8 that resulted in bogeys and left him settling for 64, the best round of the day.

“While the finish was disappointing, I look at the whole body of work,” he said. “Starting today if you told me I was going to shoot 64, I would have taken it. So it gets me into contention for the weekend and that’s all I can ask for.”

Hughes is low Canadian through two rounds at 7-under 133 and T-4, and his words from the pre-championship press conference are starting to ring true.

“I’m here to win this trophy, it wouldn’t matter if it was for a thousand bucks or a million bucks, I’m here to play well and win this tournament,” he said.

Joel Dahmen hadn’t played in the Canadian Open in five years, but the PGA Tour Canada Player of the Year from a decade ago is happy to be back. He fired a 5-under 65 on Friday and sits in third place, just two shots back of the lead.

“I came here on Tuesday and I just kind of had great vibes again,” Dahmen said. “I almost felt bad I hadn’t been back. The schedule didn’t work out previously. It is, it’s a really special place.”

And special for Dahmen for good reason: he played 45 events over five seasons on PGA Tour Canada (2010-2014) and won twice in 2014 to earn his Korn Ferry Tour card.

Asked what has been working for him this week, Dahmen, who ranks No. 119 in the FedEx Cup standings, said, “Kind of done everything well.” Indeed, he ranks 22^nd in SG: Tee-to-Green, fifth in proximity and fourth in SG: Putting.

Dahmen credited the pre-shot visualization work he’s been working hard on to commit to each shot.

“Having a clear plan, which sounds weird that I’ve played golf a long time without a clear plan,” he said. “But, yeah, it’s doing the same thing over and over again and it’s worked out great.

Harry Higgs talked about it a lot the last two weeks, and it’s kind of the same thing, really, you accept where it goes and you go and you do it again. It frees me up to play golf and let my body take over. My body knows what to do if I just kind of stay out of the way.”

So far, so good.

New Zealand’s Ryan Fox sunk a 12-foot birdie putt at the ninth hole, his 18^th hole of the day, to tie for the 36-hole lead.

Fox fired a 6-under 64, tied for the low round of the day, to tie MacIntyre.

“I drove it great, I hit may irons really good, and had a few more putts drop today. It could have been really silly,” Fox said.

It marks Fox’s first 36-hole lead/co-lead on the PGA Tour.

“Golf course kind of suits my eye,” Fox said. “Similar grass to what we play at home. Similar kind of old style, tree-lined golf course, which is what I grew up on.”

At No. 63 in the Official World Golf Ranking, is the highest-ranked Tour member that has not played in a Signature event this season. He entered the week No. 8 in the Aon Swing 5 standings and is currently projected to move to No. 1 and earn a spot in next week’s Memorial Tournament.

Fox is seeking his first Tour title, but the 37-year-old pro counts four DP World Tour wins on his resume.

In addition to having his dad on the bag, Robert MacIntyre will enjoy being paired with Ryan Fox, a friend from there DP World Tour days.

“He’s a great kid,” Fox said. “We get along really well. Played together a bunch of times in Europe. Played together the first two days at Myrtle Beach this year. We both went pretty well there. Hopefully, we can have a bit of fun tomorrow and feed off each other and be in that final group again on Sunday.”

Speaking at the Myrtle Beach Classic earlier this month, MacIntyre explained why it’s tough traveling alone on the Tour.

“It’s difficult for all the European guys, all the guys in Europe, coming out here this year. Obviously Foxy has got his family out with him. It’s a completely different lifestyle in the U.S., and good or bad, some people love it, some people hate it. It’s just a different culture, different style of life,” he said. :It’s good to have people in the same boat as you. I’ve struggled out here with the lifestyle.”

Robert MacIntyre, who admitted he ‘might be the problem,’ surges into lead at 2024 RBC Canadian Open with dad on bag

“I think I might need to negotiate a wage this week,” said MacIntyre’s dad.

HAMILTON, Ontario – Father knows best.

That’s been the case for the first 36 holes of the RBC Canadian Open for Scotland’s Robert MacIntyre, who is bogey-free through 36 holes with dad, Dougie, on the bag as his emergency caddie.

MacIntyre fired a 4-under 66 at Hamilton Golf & Country Club on Friday to improve to 10-under 130 and take the early lead during the second round of play.

MacIntyre had been using caddie Mike Burrows while his usual boss Danny Willett was sidelined with injury earlier this season and did a five-week trial run with Scott Carmichael, but they parted ways last week after MacIntyre missed the cut. He called his father Saturday to ask him to fill in this week and he hopped on a flight the next day. It’s the first time MacIntyre has had his dad, who he tabbed a good golfer in his own right, on the bag since he caddied at DP World Tour Q-School seven years ago.

RBC Canadian Open: Photos | Merch | Leaderboard | Tee times

“We did all right there,” MacIntyre said. “He’s learning on the run and I’m kind of trying to stay as calm as I can. When I do miss a shot, I’m not trying to get too annoyed.”

There hasn’t been too much to be annoyed about so far. He birdied three of his first four holes en route to 64 on Thursday, and said he kept things simple for his dad. “He’s a bit out of his depth,” MacIntrye said.

Aware that Hamilton is a hilly golf course, he was able to secure for his father a lightweight bag with a kickstand from Titleist after walking nine holes on Monday in the rain with his usual Tour staff bag. MacIntyre said his 59-year-old father is fit enough to do 18 but he also plans to play in the upcoming U.S. Open qualifier in Toronto this coming Monday. (Dougie MacIntyre declined to speak for this story, saying, “I’ve been instructed by Bob not to.”)

Robert MacIntyre plays his shot from the 18th tee during the second round of the 2024 RBC Canadian Open at Hamilton Golf & Country Club. (Photo: Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images)

“I thought 36 holes for my dad carrying that tour bag ain’t going to be pretty, so I’ve gone a bit easier on him,” he said.

MacIntyre also is going a bit easier on himself. He’s found the adjustment to playing on the PGA Tour a lonely existence and he’s only been home three weeks since January 3, so having his father by his side has been a benefit on multiple levels this week.

MacIntyre has recorded three top-10 finishes this season, most notably a T-8 at the PGA Championship earlier this month. MacIntyre has credited his strong play of late to an attitude adjustment. When asked why he needed one, he said, “Because I think my golf game’s not changed in the last, I don’t know, four, five years. Nothing’s changed. Only thing that’s changed this year is the environment that I’m in on the PGA Tour instead of the DP World Tour. So, I’ve got the golf game to compete anywhere in the world, and I knew that, from playing obviously Open Championships and the Masters my first time. There was something stopping me. There was something stopping me from competing. I felt like I had a terrible start to the year. [He missed three of his first four cuts.] Something was stopping me.

“We dug in deeper into stats and whatnot and we’re like, ‘Everything’s all right here, what is it?’ And then you got to look at yourself, you got to look yourself in the mirror and go, ‘You might be the problem.’ We sat down, we spoke about it, and I think my attitude was a problem. Just now I’m working hard on that, trying to just stay as even-keeled and just deal with whatever comes.”

So far, the Canadian fans have adopted the lefthander as one of their own.

“Lefties rule!” a fan bellowed.

“Right on!” another said.

Right to the top of the leaderboard and with his father doing his best to keep up with his son. As they walked off the last green after a tidy up-and-down par, Dougie turned to his son and said tongue firmly in cheek, “I think I might need to negotiate a wage this week.”

Robert MacIntyre, contending for first PGA Tour win, admits life away from native Scotland is a challenge

“I’m from a small town on the west coast of Scotland. A lot of people never leave.”

Robert MacIntyre is heading into the weekend in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, a shot off the lead as he seeks his first PGA Tour victory. He nearly claimed his maiden victory at last year’s Genesis Scottish Open, his 18th-hole 3-wood wowing the gallery before Rory McIlroy spoiled all his fun.

MacIntyre has status on the DP World Tour as well but is committed to making the most of his time on the PGA Tour. However, it’s not always easy moving thousands of miles away from home and settling into a new life.

After his second round Friday, MacIntyre opened up on the challenges of living far from home.

“I’m from a small town on the west coast of Scotland. A lot of people never leave Oban. They go on holidays and stuff, but they’re born there, they work there, they ultimately die there. My whole family and friends are there. They’re probably always going to be there,” he explained.

“It’s just difficult when I come over here, me and my girlfriend. We’re trying to make it home, and it’s difficult when you’ve not got that family connection. We’re giving it our best shot, but it’s completely different to home life.

“Obviously I got home there for three weeks and managed to have somewhat of a normal life for three weeks.”

He was then asked about his U.S. homebase.

“What is your home life like? Obviously you’re traveling a bunch. Where are you living in the U.S., and is it a permanent home?” was a question from the media at The Dunes Golf and Beach Club.

“No, it’s not a permanent home. Again, it’s a trial period. We’re trying to test out where home is going to be. Renting a place in Orlando, practicing out of Isleworth. The facilities are absolutely incredible.

“I thought that moving to the U.S. was the only way of achieving my dreams in golf. I don’t know if that’s the answer.

“I feel like a happy Bob MacIntyre is a dangerous Bob MacIntyre on the golf course, and home life makes me happy. That’s why I’m probably going to go home after the next couple events. I’ll go home to Scotland rather than go to Orlando.”

He was then asked how long he thought he was committed to playing on the PGA Tour.

“I’m trying to keep my card out here. It’s not easy. I’ve not had the greatest of starts, or after an alright start, I’ve not played the way I wanted to play. I want to be one of the best players in the world, so whatever I’ve got to play, I’ll play, whether it’s in the U.S., whether it’s in Europe, whether it’s further afield. It doesn’t faze me. I’m used to traveling.”

“Is that why you came to the U.S. and the PGA Tour, to try to be the best in the world, and how difficult of a decision was it actually to make to actually pull the trigger?” he was asked.

“It wasn’t a difficult decision. The world ranking points, the financial gain and the practice facilities, it can only benefit me if I play good golf.

“I can go back to European tour anytime I want. I’ve obviously got that grace period with the 10 cards that we’ve got this year, and I’ve obviously got one in the back pocket from playing Ryder Cup. I’m comfortable. I’m just trying to become one of the best players in the world.

“I don’t know what limit I’ve got in golf. I don’t know where my limit is. I’m just trying my best every day to accept what score I get and work harder.”

Chris Gotterup storms up Myrtle Beach Classic leaderboard after late birdie blitz

The 2022 Haskins Award winner is in contention in Myrtle Beach.

Chris Gotterup birdied six of his last eight holes, including four straight to close out his round of 64, to grab the solo lead after 36 holes at the inaugural Myrtle Beach Classic.

The third opposite-field event on the PGA Tour’s 2024 schedule is being held at The Dunes Golf and Beach Club in South Carolina, where the 2022 Haskins Award winner went on a late tear, chipping to two-feet for a tap-in birdie on No. 15, sinking a six-footer for birdie on No. 16, draining a 50-footer for birdie on the par-3 17th and closing with a 17-foot birdie putt on 18.

“We were really just executing shots pretty solidly down the stretch there,” the former Oklahoma Sooner said. “It got pretty windy, so definitely a good finish for me today.”

Robert MacIntyre, tied for the lead after an opening 64, held the solo lead for the good part of Friday before Gotterup stormed up the leaderboard with his birdie onslaught. Still, MacIntyre shot 64-67 and is at 11 under, just a shot back. Should he hoist the trophy Sunday, MacIntyre would be the 16th left-handed golfer to win a PGA Tour event.

Jorge Campillo is solo third at 10 under and there are four golfers at 9 under, tied for fourth.

There have been six first-time winners in 2024. Twelve of the top 14 golfers on the leaderboard after 36 holes are seeking their first PGA Tour win.

Blades Brown, 16, a three-time boys golf individual state champion in Tennessee, made the cut in his PGA Tour debut. He shot 72-67 and finished 3 under, one better than the cutline of 2 under. He’s the latest youngster to make noise at the professional level.

Under-the-radar Myrtle Beach Classic debuts on PGA Tour with Beau Hossler, Robert MacIntyre tied for lead

Two first-timers are tied for the lead after 18 holes. There have been five first-time winners in 2024.

With the golf world’s attention on the PGA Tour’s sixth signature event of 2024, the Wells Fargo Championship, as well as the Cognizant Founders Cup, where Nelly Korda is going for a record sixth LPGA win in a row, 132 golfers are competing this week in the inaugural Myrtle Beach Classic.

The field includes the likes of Matt Wallace, Erik van Rooyen, Kevin Kisner, Sam Ryder, Brandt Snedeker and Joel Dahmen.

After 18 holes at The Dunes Golf and Beach Club, it’s Beau Hossler and Robert MacIntyre tied for the lead after each posted 7-under 64s.

Hossler had a stretch of birdie-birdie-eagle-bogey-birdie on Nos. 11 through 15 before closing with consecutive pars. Hossler is playing his 189th PGA Tour event. He’s made more than $10 million in his career but has only five top-5s on his resume. MacIntyre, one of the few lefties on Tour, had eight birdies and just one bogey. He’s also seeking his first PGA Tour win.

There have been five first-time winners in 2024.