Latest news with #DanielYoung
Scotsman
6 days ago
- Sport
- Scotsman
Late finish on day one in The Open leaves Scot feeling 'deflated'
Daniel Young and Cameron Adam both finish rounds in near darkness at Royal Portrush Sign up to our daily newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Daniel Young was left feeling 'deflated' after dropping four shots late on as he played his final few holes in near darkness along with fellow Scot Cameron Adam in the first round of The 153rd Open. As play finished at 10.13pm at Royal Portrush after the later groups took six hours to get round, Young had to settle for a four-over-par 75 in the penultimate three-ball. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Playing in the group ahead, Adam carded a 73, matching fellow amateur Connor Graham's effort earlier in the day on the County Antrim coast, but he, too, felt his score had been hampered by play finishing so late. Daniel Young tees off on the first hole during day one of The 153rd Open Championship at Royal Portrush |'Yeah, very frustrating,' said HotelPlanner Tour professional Young, who was two over after four holes on his major debut before picking up four birdies in seven holes only to then finish bogey-par-double bogey-bogey as the light faded. 'I battled very well to get back and I was pushing to get into the red coming in there. Caught a bunker at 15, so that's a bogey pretty much straight away, which was disappointing. Then I hit a great tee shot into 16, made par. 'Then the hardest part at 17 is getting a tee shot away. Hell of a tee shot and then just hit a terrible, terrible wedge shot, just probably a lapse in concentration more than anything. Just being here for so long, not that that's an excuse. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'But it was pretty dark there coming in, certainly on 18, where none of us saw any of the tee shots. Yeah, pretty disappointed, a bit deflated at the minute, to be honest. 'There was no refs talking to anybody I think about pace of play and stuff, which is disappointing. I think it's one of them where they just want your round.' Adam, one of nine amateurs in the field, reckoned the daylight had already started to go when he came close to making a hole-in-one at the 13th - one of three birdies on his card. 'I didn't really realise how long it actually was until we were standing on the 17th tee and I was like, daylight is getting really bad; what's the time?' said the Royal Burgess man. 'We're like quarter past 9pm; it's getting late. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'I feel for the guys still out there. We were trying to read putts on the 18th going, this is bad. But it's part of the game, isn't it? You get a late tee time, you've just got to deal with it.' With the top 70 and ties making the cut, Adam sits right on the projected cut-off mark heading into the second round while Young is joint-114th. 'It was okay,' said Adam, winner of The Open Amateur Series, of his opening effort. 'I felt like I played probably better than I shot. Cameron Adam tees off in the third last group on the opening day at Royal Portrush |'The frustrating thing for us was I dropped some shots through calculations today where I actually put pretty good swings on it and just the calculation wasn't right and resulted in a dropped shot. But I've got to take a lot of confidence from how I hit the ball. Making the cut is definitely the plan. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'It's been an awesome week. A lot of the guys have been great with me and just been trying to learn as much as I can, but I'm also here to compete. While I'm a little bit frustrated by the score, just got to take the positives from my game and it could be a different story tomorrow.' Young said he'd 'struggled' over the opening few holes before 'playing some really good stuff' as he picked up shots at the fifth, seventh, tenth and 12th.
Scotsman
16-07-2025
- Sport
- Scotsman
The Open 2025: Perthshire pair Daniel Young and Phil McKenna team up at Portrush
Daniel Young pictured during a practice round for The 153rd Open at Royal Portrush | Tom Russo/The Scotsman HotelPlanner Tour player aims to shine on major debut before bidding to secure DP World Tour card Sign up to our daily newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Daniel Young is determined to follow in David Law's footsteps by becoming a winner on the HotelPlanner Tour this season and then secure a step up to the DP World Tour - but that can wait! A debut major appearance in The 153rd Open is the job at hand and, naturally, the Perth man is excited about stepping on to the first tee at Royal Portrush on Thursday, albeit having to wait until 4.05pm in the penultimate group. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'Yeah, it's been a good experience so far,' said Young, who secured his spot in the Claret Jug event through one of the Final Qualifiers at Dundonald Links in Ayrshire a fortnight ago. Daniel Young pictured during a practice round for The 153rd Open at Royal Portrush | Tom Russo/The Scotsman 'I feel like Monday was a bit of just getting used to everything being a bit bigger than what I'm used to anyway. Then went out yesterday, got our work done and stuff and, yeah, it's been great.' Tuesday's practice round was in the company of the three other Scots in the field as he joined world No 14 Bob MacIntyre, as well as amateur duo Cameron Adam and Connor Graham for nine holes. 'Yeah, it was good to see Bob,' said Young of his conqueror in the final of the Scottish Amateur Championship at Muirfield just under nine years ago. 'I've obviously not seen him in a wee while, so it was good to catch up with him and play with the younger lads as well. Yeah, everybody was in good spirits and stuff and we just had a good time, to be honest. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'All four of us are obviously rooting for each other to do well being from Scotland, but, at the end of the day, you want to beat all three of them. I asked Bob a couple of questions just from 2019, obviously, when he played well here (finishing joint-sixth), but his memory was lacking a little bit (laughing). 'But we're all trying to do our prep and figure it out and we've all got different games as well. How he sees stuff and how I see stuff and Connor and Cammy as well, we all see stuff differently. So it's just doing our own prep and seeing how I see it.' Daniel Young celebrates with his caddie, fellow Perthshire man Phil McKenna, after coming through one of The Open Final Qualifiers at Dundonald Links | Ross Parker/R&A/R&A via Getty Images Young's caddie this week is fellow Perthshire man Phil McKenna, who was also on Bradley Neil's bag when he played in this event at Royal Liverpool in 2014 then for Korean Gunn Yang, the US Amateur champion at the time, at St Andrews the following year. 'Yeah, he's got more experience than me,' joked Young. 'It's great to have him on the bag. We've done a few events now, so he knows my game as well as most people do. But it's nice to just have a friendly face. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'We just have fun. We know when to get serious and when to have a laugh and things like that. And he knows when to say the right things as well, which is important for a caddie, especially in an environment like this. It's nice just to have that sort of calming influence, I suppose.' Helped by top-three finishes in his last two outings, Young sits tenth in the HotelPlanner Tour's Road to Mallorca Rankings, with Law up to third after his win in the D+D Real Czech Challenge on Sunday. 'That was fantastic,' said Young of his compatriot's title triumph, with the top 20 at the end of the season securing DP World Tour cards. 'It's looking like it could be a really good season for the Scots, absolutely.
Scotsman
02-07-2025
- Sport
- Scotsman
In-form Daniel Young delighted to be back on same stage as Bob MacIntyre
Finalists in 2015 Scottish Amateur at Muirfield will be teeing it up in The 153rd Open Sign up to our daily newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Just under ten years since they met in the Scottish Amateur Championship final at Muirfield, Bob MacIntyre and Daniel Young are set to be reunited in the 153rd Open at Royal Portrush. MacIntyre, who won that title decider in East Lothian, is now one of the game's leading lights, having broken into the world's top 20 on the back of two triumphs on the PGA Tour last year and then coming close to winning last month's US Open at Oakmont. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad For Young, meanwhile, the subsequent switch to the professional ranks has been a slow-burner, but the Perth man is beginning to make headway in his bid to be back playing against the likes of MacIntyre on a regular basis. Daniel Young celebrates a closing birdie The Open Final Qualifying Dundonald Links on Tuesday | Ross Parker/R&A/R&A via Getty Images He shot a 60 in the closing round of the HotelPlanner Tour's BlotPlay 9 event a week past Sunday to finish in a tie for third then, in the second leg of a double-header in France, backed that up by securing a share of second spot in the Le Vaudreuil Golf Challenge on Sunday. Oozing with more confidence than he's ever had in the paid ranks, Young then came through Tuesday's Final Qualifier for The Open at Dundonald Links in Ayrshire to join MacIntyre and amateur duo Cameron Adam and Connor Graham in the line up for the season's final major in a fortnight's time. 'It's a big, big step in my career,' admitted the Perth man - he played his amateur golf at Craigie Hill - of securing a major debut and doing so at a time when he is playing some of the best golf of his career. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'Yeah, just a bit of confidence,' he said of his recent sparkling form. 'Pléneuf (venue for the BlotPlay 9 event) is not a course where you normally shoot anything below four or five under, so to go that low was a really good round of golf. It's not often you can go from 30th to third in any event on a Sunday, so that was great. 'Graeme Leslie (his stats man) would tell you that I have been getting a little bit impatient this year as I felt my game was a lot better than my results were showing. It was just a case of staying patient and being a bit kinder to myself on the course and just let things come. 'I guess shooting ten under gives you that freedom a little bit and then I just continued it into last week and now at Dundonald as well.' Daniel Young celebrates with his caddie Phil McKenna at Dundonald after qualifying for The Open along with Lee Westwood, Angel Hidalgo, Jesper Sandborg and Connor Graham | Ross Parker/R&A/R&A via Getty Images Young had already won the South African Amateur Championship in 2015 before finding himself up against MacIntyre in the final of the Scottish equivalent in East Lothian. At the halfway stage in the 36-hole title decider, Young found himself four up before his younger opponent came roaring back in the afternoon round to pull off a stunning two-hole victory. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'Yeah, a good few years ago now,' he said, smiling, of that meeting. 'We had a great final. Went 36 holes and he pipped me at the last. No hard feelings if I can turn around my career into what he's done so far (laughing). 'Golf is ruthless. Everybody's where they are for a reason. I'm on the HotelPlanner Tour for a reason. Bob's where he is for a reason. If you just keep ticking away, playing good golf, the rest will take care of itself.' Having given his best account so far last year when making it to the season-ending Grand Final in Mallorca before ending up 32nd in the rankings, the 33-year-old's main goal this season is to graduate to the DP World Tour from the second-tier HotelPlanner Tour. Sitting sixth after his recent purple patch, it's very much a possibility. 'Just wrap up the card for the DP World Tour, really,' he said in reply to being asked about his aspirations for the season beyond The Open. 'Yeah, as soon as I can. First and foremost, I'm just trying to win every time I tee up. But the ultimate goal is to get to the DP World Tour.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Bob MacIntyre beat Daniel Young by two holes in the final of the 2015 Scottish Amateur Championship at Muirfield after being four down after 18 holes | Scottish Golf A strong showing in Northern Ireland would be helpful in that respect and, unlike fellow Dundonald Links qualifier Graham and Adam as well, Young has a bit of experience when it comes to Royal Portrush. 'In my last year as an amateur, I played it in the Home International, so I'm relatively familiar with it,' he said. 'But it'll be interesting to see the changes (made for the event's long-awaited return to the County Antrim venue in 2019).
BBC News
01-07-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Westwood wins at Dundonald to seal Open place
Lee Westwood booked his return to The Open after a three-year absence by winning his qualifier at Dundonald 52-year-old posted scores of 70 and 67 for a seven under par total in blustery four different courses, Westwood was one of eight Englishmen to claim the 20 spots available at Royal Portrush from 17-20 July."I've always said it's the greatest championship in golf," said Westwood, who finished in a tie for fourth at Portrush in 2019 and was runner-up at St Andrews in 2010."As a British player, you get phenomenal support and I really enjoyed Portrush last time."I won't really have any expectations. I'm playing at Valderrama next week in LIV and I'll try and sharpen my game up."I think of any major championship, you can compete on links courses as a senior. Tom Watson proved that around Turnberry in 2009 and then Greg Norman a couple of years later at Birkdale. You have to use a bit of cunning and guile with the wind."Westwood, a former world number one, will be playing in his 28th Open and 93rd major, while Scottish duo Daniel Young and Connor Graham will be making their debuts after finishing in the top five at amateur Graham had to come through a play-off with compatriot Paul O' from Perth, said: "It's a big, big step in my career."It's a tricky enough course and they set up a few tough pins, so you've just got to be pretty patient like I was this morning when I didn't probably have my best stuff. And then I strung together a lovely round this afternoon." Poulter & son miss out in Kent Westwood's former Ryder Cup partner Ian Poulter came up short in his qualifying bid, while his son Luke was also in the field at Royal Cinque men finished in a tie for 13th on one under par after Poulter junior had been leading at halfway with a round of Ryder Cup veteran and LIV player, Graeme McDowell, finished on the same mark, missing out on the chance to play a second Open at his hometown trio Nathan Kimsey, Curtis Knipes and Sebastian Cave were among the top five finishers in more Englishmen; Harry Hall, Frazer Jones and and OJ Farrell, came through at Burnham & Berrow, while George Bloor did the same at West Lancashire, finishing third on six under par.
Scotsman
01-07-2025
- Sport
- Scotsman
Lee Westwood seals Open return after 4,700-mile trip from Dallas to Dundonald
Scottish duo also secure spots through Ayrshire qualifier Sign up to our daily newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... He'd travelled 4,700 miles from Dallas to Dundonald, hadn't played the Ayrshire course before and only got one-and-a-half hour's sleep. Despite all that, Lee Westwood is heading to Royal Portrush in a fortnight's time to tee up in the 153rd Open. After showing his class by posting rounds of 70 and 67 for a seven-under-par total, the 52-year-old Englishman claimed top spot in one of four Final Qualifiers, securing his 28th appearance in the Claret Jug event and a 93rd start in a major. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Lee Westwood acknowledges the crowd on the 18th green following his second round ion The Open Final Qualifier at Dundonald Links in Ayrshire | R&A via Getty Images Scottish duo Daniel Young and Connor Graham, Spaniard Angel Hidalgo and Swede Jesper Sandborg secured the other spots up for grabs at Dundonald Links, but, on a day when he was followed by a large crowd from start to finish, it was Westwood who undoubtedly took pride of place. 'Not really that tough,' he said of making 27 successive starts in the world's oldest major before seeing that run ended in 2023 then sitting it out again last year. 'If I'd have wanted to play in them that badly, I would have come along and tried to qualify. But this time around, I thought, why not? 'I only made up my mind last week really. Didn't get in until seven o'clock last night from Texas. I hadn't played the golf course before and walked it last night. I only had an hour and a half sleep last night as well. So if I collapse, then you'll know why (laughing). 'Yeah, it's a strange route, isn't it? Dallas to Dundonald. Obviously it's not the ideal preparation, but it's the greatest championship in the world and I felt like I've played well the last few tournaments on LIV with a 62 and finishing tenth in Washington. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'I played solidly last week and there was a bit of breeze blowing and felt like my game was in decent shape. So I thought, come along and give myself an opportunity. You don't want to turn up at qualifiers if you haven't got plenty of game, but I felt like I'd got plenty of game. It was just not knowing the golf course that was really the conundrum for me.' His morning effort contained an eagle at the third but also a double-bogey 7 at the 14th. In a polished afternoon performance, he made birdies at the tenth and 11th going out before adding gains at the second, third, fifth and seventh coming home. His sole dropped shot came at the par-4 13th. 'Good but tired,' he said with a smile in reply to being asked how he felt. 'It's a while since I've played 36 holes in a day and didn't really give myself the best chance, really. The first time I played it was this morning and that was the second time. 'There were times out there where there were a couple of club winds and I get the feeling that you can score around the front nine and you have to hold on around the back. I was quite happy getting through the back nine in one under par this afternoon and three-under for the tournament and then feeling like I could put my foot down around the back nine.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Lee Westwood watches a tee shot in the first round at Dundonald Links | Ross Parker/R&A/R&A via Getty Images Westwood, who now plays for Majesticks in the LIV Golf League, finished a distant runner-up to Louis Oosthuizen in the 2010 event at St Andrews while he was joint-third in both 2009 and 2013 at Turnberry and Muirfield respectively. 'I've always said it's the greatest championship in golf,' said the former world No 1. 'As a British player, you get phenomenal support and I really enjoyed Portrush last time (in 2019). I finished fourth and played nicely, so I'll be looking forward to going back there. There's no walk like walking down the 18th in an Open with the stands surrounding the 18th green.' Asked about his expectations - Justin Rose finished runner-up at Royal Troon last year after coming through Final Qualifying - Westwood replied: 'I won't really have any. I'm playing at Valderrama next week in LIV and I'll try and sharpen my game up. I'm looking forward to the next few days having some time off. I'll work on my swing a little bit, keep working on my putting. Putting was good today. 'And maybe turn up at Portrush on the Tuesday afternoon! I feel like I've played it before. I can get a practise round in on Tuesday afternoon and then maybe play nine holes on Wednesday and try and be as fresh as possible. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'I think of any major championship, you can compete on links courses. I think Tom Watson proved that around Turnberry in 2009 and then Greg Norman a couple of years later at Birkdale. I think if any form of golf gives seniors a chance, it's links golf because you get a bit of run on the ball and you have to use a bit of cunning and guile with the wind.' Daniel Young maintained his recent sparkling form on the HotelPlanner Tour to secure his Open debut | Getty Images Maintaining his recent sparkling form, having recorded back-to-back top-five finishes on the HotelPlanner Tour, Young progressed on six under along with playing partner Hidalgo, the Spaniard roaring with delight as the Perth man finished with a birdie on the ninth as he added a 67 to a morning 71. 'Absolutely,' said Young of feeling he could come through the test. 'I've been playing great the last month. I finally had a nice result to back it up and then followed it up last week with another good week. I've played well around here before, coming close last year, so I feel quite comfortable on the golf course. 'I know the scoring never gets probably as low as people might think. It's a tricky enough course and they set up a few tricky enough pins today. So, yeah, you've just got to be pretty patient like I was this morning when I didn't probably have my best stuff. And then I strung together just a lovely round this afternoon.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Blairgowrie amateur Connor Graham secured his spot at Royal Portrush through a play-off in Ayrshire | The R&A Graham, the 18-year-old Blairgowrie amateur, secured the final spot as he birdied the first extra hole in a play-off with Tartan Tour stalwart Paul O'Hara. 'It feels pretty good and I am delighted,' said Graham, the 2022 Junior Open champion. 'It was pretty nervy in the play-off but, thankfully, I got the job done.' He'd played with Westwood and Jamie Donaldson earlier in the day. 'There were big crowds following us and I managed to deal with the pressure I was under pretty good and that definitely helped me in the play-off,' he said with a smile.
