Robert MacIntyre has an advantage over the majority of the field at The Open Championship this week.
The Scotsman grew up playing links golf courses regularly, so he knows exactly how to deal with the challenges of Royal Portrush.
After a disappointing title defence at the Scottish Open, MacIntyre even admitted that the Open venue is his favorite course in the world.
In his pre-tournament press conference, he explained what is different about the greens on links courses and why he typically putts well on them.
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Robert MacIntyre compares greens in America vs links golf courses in UK
MacIntyre is an average putter on the PGA Tour. He ranks 88th this season in strokes gained with an average of 0.055 per round.
However, he’s confident that his putting ability on links golf courses is better than most because he understands how to navigate them differently from normal PGA Tour courses in America.
“Compared to America? I mean, so different,” MacIntyre said. “For one, the grass is different. The slopes are more subtle.
“When you play in the regular tour, whether it’s PGA Tour, DP World Tour, the slopes are normally just, they’re there. They’re obvious. But as you play links golf, it’s very subtle.
“I use AimPoint, and I think the reason I normally putt well on links greens is I use the AimPoint not as a science, not as if I’ve got the answer. I use it as a guide, and I go down and look at it.
“There are so many… You use AimPoint on the putting greens, and you can maybe feel a 1, and you move it four or five inches, and it’s a 1-1/2. I think there are so many subtle moves. So I think that’s a big factor.
“Also, the wind. The wind, if it blows 20 miles an hour, it’s hard to stand the way you normally stand because you’ve got to try and brace yourself for the wind that’s gusting. It’s not just a constant buffer, so you start moving a bit. Thankfully, I’m used to that.”
Robert MacIntyre reflects on making major championship debut at Royal Portrush
MacIntyre made his major championship debut at the 2019 Open Championship at Royal Portrush.
He admits that he was lucky to be on the right side of the draw with the weather, but he still had to play well to finish in the top 10.
“Yeah, it was tough, standing on that first tee, the nerves,” MacIntyre recalled how he felt before his first round got underway.
“You’ve always dreamed of playing in these. You’ve watched it on TV since you were a young kid. I got to live another dream.
“Yeah, it was difficult, but I got a little bit lucky when I managed to finish in just the proper time when the storm came in in 2019. I remember sitting in the player dining, and it just kept blowing. I thought the roof was coming off the place.
“I was just like, ‘keep coming, keep coming.’ I was just watching it, watching me get further up the leaderboard. It’s a different week this week, but just looking forward to it.”
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