16 Players Secured Open Spots at Final Qualifying

In the hunt for a spot in The 152nd Open at Royal Troon, Justin Rose and English amateur Dominic Clemons stood out among the sixteen qualifiers who secured their place through Final Qualifying.

YOU may be surprised to learn that Justin Rose found himself in a position where he was not exempt for The Open Championship at Royal Troon - I know that I was. It would have been all to easy for the former US Open champion to shrug his shoulders and opt to give the year’s final major a miss. But Rose is not built that way - and so he found himself teeing it up with a bunch of other hopefuls at final qualifying at Burnham and Berrow.

And Rose being the man he is, the Englishman finished top of the pile alongside amateur Dominic Clemons. Playing 36 holes in a day, he and Clemons both finished on eight under par and progress to Troon alongside LIV golfer Abraham Ancer and Charlie Lindh, who both squeezed in on five under after parring the first hole in a three-man play-off for the final berth.

(Image Credit Kevin Diss - Sunningle Event)

Rose said: “The Open’s been a bit of a fairytale and love story for me since I was 14 and I qualified at Scotscraig. Obviously there was winning the Silver Medal at Royal Birkdale a couple of years later, so The Open has always been super special.

“Sometimes you take it for granted – you’re exempt, you turn up and play for many years, but as you get older, things get a little harder so in some ways it’s good to have to qualify because it makes you appreciate The Open a little more and how special it is. Coming back to Burnham & Berrow was also special – first time back here since ’97. I was grateful to be back here and walk down memory lane.”

England’s Sam Hutsby led the qualifiers at Dundonald. The 35-year-old eagled the 5th in his afternoon round on his way to an eight-under-par total to secure his place in The Open for the first time.

Angel Hidalgo and Irish Walker Cup player Liam Nolan were tied on five-under-par and also qualified for Troon. The Spanish DP World Tour player clinched his place by holing his wedge shot from 120 yards for an eagle at the last. The final place was resolved after a three-player play-off between local favourite Jack McDonald, Daniel Young and Tim Widing. McDonald, from nearby Kilmarnock (Barassie), holed a 25 ft birdie putt to win. McDonald follows in his grandfather Gordon Cosh’s footsteps after he played in The Open in 1977.

Hutsby said: "I’m a bit lost for words at the moment. I’ve missed out by a shot twice. It has always been a childhood dream to play in a major.

“To be a British player playing in your home Championship, I couldn’t have dreamt of that. I was working in a golf shop two years ago but I’ve put an unbelievable amount of hard work in and hopefully this is reward for the sacrifices I’ve made.”

Meanwhile at Royal Cinque Ports, England’s Matthew Southgate claimed the first qualifying place with rounds of 61 and 67 for a six-under-par total of 138. This is the fifth time he has earned his way into The Open via Final Qualifying.

Australian Elvis Smylie and Spanish amateur Jaime Montojo will make their major championship debuts after finishing in a tie for second on three-under-par. The final qualifying place went to another Spanish amateur, Luis Masaveu, who came through a three-man playoff alongside Branden Grace and Jamie Rutherford after the trio finished tied on two-under. Masaveu won with a birdie on the second playoff hole.

Other notable players who missed out on qualifying included 2010 US Open champion Graeme McDowell, DP World Tour player Thomas Detry and seven-time Asian Tour winner Jazz Janewattananond.

Southgate said: “I don’t want to sound brash or arrogant, but I have such a big relationship with The Open. I’ve already lost the plot crying today. I have such a heavy connection to The Open because of my dad. He took me to every Open Championship from 1999 until I played my first Open in 2014.

"Every time I turn up for [Final] Qualifying I know I’ve got that in my armoury. I’m not on the first tee messing around - I’m here to get a spot because it means everything to me.”

English amateur Matthew Dodd-Berry will tee it up in The Open for the first time after he and Sam Horsfield led the qualifiers at West Lancashire on six-under-par.

The Royal Liverpool member was followed by a large home support and a birdie at the last generated the biggest cheer of the day as he booked his place at Royal Troon to the delight of family and friends.

They will be joined by Daniel Brown and Misahiro Kawawura, who finished tied for third place one shot back on five-under.

Two-time Open runner-up Sergio Garcia missed out on qualifying at the Lancashire links for the second year-in-a-row after falling short and finishing on the three-under mark alongside Carlos Ortiz and Mexican amateur Omar Morales.

Horsfield said: “I had zero expectations coming into today, so obviously it’s a huge step to qualify and play a major for the first time in a couple of years. I always say to everyone that The Open is my favourite major. I’d never had that feeling before, the one when they call your name on the first tee – that was the coolest experience. I’m really looking forward to getting back and hopefully continuing to play well. These are the stages you want to play on.”

16 Places Secured at Final Qualifying

Burnham & Berrow Qualifiers (to par)

• Justin Rose -8
• Dominic Clemons (a)  -8
• Abraham Ancer* -5
• Charlie Lindh* -5

Dundonald Links Qualifiers (to par)

• Sam Hutsby -8
• Angel Hidalgo -5
• Liam Nolan -5
• Jack McDonald*  -4

Royal Cinque Ports - Qualifiers (to par)

• Matthew Southgate -6
• Elvis Smylie -3
• Jaime Montojo Fernandez (a)  -3
• Luis Masaveu (a)* -2

West Lancashire - Qualifiers (to par)

• Matthew Dodd-Berry (a)  -6
• Sam Horsfield -6
• Daniel Brown -5
• Misahiro Kawamura -5