Golf

2024 PGA Tour: Robert MacIntyre Bags Second Win of the Season at Genesis Scottish Open

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Jul 16, 2024 / 8687 Views

Evan Walker

Robert MacIntyre has emerged victorious at the Genesis Scottish Open, marking his second win of the season.

Right through his career, 27-year-old Robert MacIntyre has had to put up with the talk that he didn’t have it in him to become a leading golfer. Two wins on the DP World Tour and the huge vindication with the breakthrough on the PGA Tour at last month’s RBC Canadian Open was his response to the naysayers. Ticking off his to-do list spurred by his family’s sacrifices and father Dougie’s dreams, MacIntyre was eager to make his rise from the sleepy Scottish town of Oban a lot more impactful. There couldn’t have been a better way to do that than win his national Open, the 2024 Genesis Scottish Open, before thousands of delirious home fans.

Sunday, July 14 was a stark reminder of one time-tested fact: Fortune favours those who give themselves a chance. Hailing from a family that did not have it easy early on, MacIntyre grew up knowing that he had to chart his course in his chosen sphere. Golf it was, given his father’s work as the head greenskeeper in Oban. Like his career path, MacIntyre’s victory at the Renaissance Club was one more display of his resolve to make things happen.

Purple patch

Going into Sunday, there was not much on the horizon other than a probable chance and the two-shot gap separating overnight leader Ludvig Aberg and MacIntyre. Even when MacIntyre made the turn after completing his front nine at even-par, the birdie on the 5th cancelling out the bogey on the 2nd, the focus was on the other sub-plots playing out side by side at the Renaissance Club.

Three shots back with five holes to play, and later two back with three to go, MacIntyre decided he had to seize destiny in his hands. “I just kept saying to myself, just take a chance, take a chance. I took it,” said MacIntyre. The crowd was behind him, but beyond the noisy support, McIntyre was hurting, triggered by history.

Spurred by history at the Genesis Scottish Open

The honour of becoming a PGA Tour winner in the USD 9 million event, joint-sanctioned with the DP World Tour, could have been his last year; however, Rory McIlroy denied him with a late flourish that matched MacIntyre’s effort this time.

The birdie on the 14th set MacIntyre up, and the turning point was the tee-shot on the 16th landing in a spot where the thick grass offered very little relief. Cursing himself from the tee to the spot where the ball had landed, MacIntyre, though upset, was aware of the surroundings. As he was getting ready with a practice swing, the sound of his spikes hitting metal alerted him. He was standing on a sprinkler head, which meant a free drop from a less threatening grassy spot came his way in the ruling.

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“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,” said MacIntyre, reliving the buildup to the momentum shifting eagle.

By the time he landed on the 18th green, MacIntyre had ensured the spotlight was firmly on him, and no home fan had moved from the scene of the closing action. It was youth versus experience as he was up against celebrated Australian player Adam Scott. MacIntyre, in a tie for the lead, had to birdie the last to prevent a playoff.

The gap between the Scotsman and glory was 22 feet, and groans went out in unison after MacIntyre felt he had left the birdie putt short. On another day, it may have stopped short, but this was about a gritty young man proving to his loved ones once again that their investment over the years had not been in vain.

The collective roar after the ball rolled into the cup was deafening, but overpowering the upsurge was vindication of a family’s belief, and above all, the champion’s faith in himself.

“It’s (Scottish Open) the one I wanted and it’s the one I got. It’s just, I’ve watched it as a kid growing up, and it meant a lot. It was really the only one that I could go and watch (given the constraints),” said MacIntyre.

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Stepping up in a way that saw him go 4-under in the closing five holes, MacIntyre’s feat served to enrich the already flavorful history of Scottish golf. As the only one in the tournament’s history to finish runner-up and winner in back-to-back starts, MacIntyre became just the second from his country to win the national Open after Sir Colin Montgomerie in 1999.

Amid the major gains like the USD 1.575 million top prize and other benefits like the climb on the Official World Golf Ranking order to a career high of 16th place as well as a rise on the FedExCup standings after earning 500 FedExCup points, MacIntyre proved true to his upbringing.

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Winning twice in the season also ensured the 2024 PGA Tour Rookie of the Year title was all but his, but MacIntyre did not allow himself to be swayed. “You’ve got to celebrate the good times because it doesn’t happen a lot… When I was young, it was never given. I’m from the West Coast, it’s been difficult, obviously, weather-wise, but your face doesn’t fit exactly because you’re not a central built guy, and I just had to graft at it. The biggest thing for me was never give up,” he said.

Fire burns bright

At 43, contending with players half his age isn’t easy. Yet, Adam Scott hasn’t stopped grinding, firm in the belief that he has enough fuel in the tank to figure prominently on the leaderboard, as well as add to the 14 wins on the PGA Tour and career highs elsewhere.

The sole second got him his 15th runner-up result on Tour and first since the 2021 Wyndham Championship, and the second top-10 of the ongoing season.

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Heading into the Open Championship at Royal Troon, Scott is the very picture of satisfaction. He had no control over Sunday’s finish, but playing at a high level after a while provided the hope he needed to push forward.

“It doesn’t get any easier but I’m working at everything all the time, and trying not to get frustrated, and use that experience. It feels good to play in contention and hopefully I get another crack at it at The Open now,” said Scott.

Beacon of hope

Richard Mansell’s 2024 season has been an extension of his search for that first win on the DP World Tour. The quest continues, but he has reason to believe that he is on the right track.

Equaling the course record at the Renaissance with a 61, the T10 finish in the heavy-duty field could well be the thrust Mansell needs to kickstart the season.

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Recounting the lengthy chat with his manager on Saturday night, Mansell gave a glimpse into his state of mind going into Sunday.

“I was moaning a little bit as Golfers do about where my Game is at and stuff like that. Then said, ‘I can’t the way I’m playing, I can’t shoot a low round at the moment. He (manager) was like, well, ‘it’s got 65 all over it’. ‘I said, how about 61?’

Mansell birdied the last hole for the 61 to add his name to the short but glorious list, and he came away bewildered. “It just made me realise even more that this game is just insane, and like you say, you’re never as far away as you think you are. I’m hoping that that can kind of kick start my season now,” he said, on qualifying for the Open Championship as one of the top-three finishers not otherwise exempt.

Hint of regret

Rory McIlroy finished alright on the leaderboard at T4 for his sixth top-10 finish in 15 starts this season, but his hopes of defending the title were hurt as he got a shot worse over the four days — 65, 66, 67, 68.

“I had a lot of chances that I wasn’t able to convert, and that was sort of the story of the week. There were a few scrappy bits here and there but overall, it was a good week,” he said.

Also, experiencing links Golf after a year’s gap will come in handy going into the season’s final Major. Despite playing Royal Troon eight years ago, the details are vivid, and McIlroy sounded confident that solid ball striking and play around the greens will keep him in the mix through the 152nd Open.

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