SOUTHPORT, England — Justin Rose could feel the warmth and adulation as he walked up the 18th hole in the British Open. He just wishes he could have changed the day of the week.
Rose had left himself too big of a hole and didn’t make nearly enough putts to make the cut at Royal Birkdale. He closed with a 2-under 68 – he shot 76 in the first round – and his exit was more ceremonial than it was a celebration.
“I was trying to get out of my own head at that point and just enjoy the glorious walk that an Open Championship 18th hole is,” Rose said according to AP.
He knows from experience, particularly at Royal Birkdale. It was in 1998 when Rose, the 17-year-old amateur, chipped in on the final hole to tie for fourth. He’s not been able to capture that moment since then, but the adoring spectators sounded just as loud.
“I could feel that they wanted it for me,” Rose added. “I think up 18, it was just about the warm reception. Obviously, I think people often remember yesteryear, me walking up that hole at Birkdale, but I think it´s a lot of appreciation for the career I´ve had since then, and I just really wanted to enjoy it with them.”
English hopes were high for this British Open because of players like Rose, at No. 10 in the world, and Matt Fitzpatrick with three wins this year and rising to No. 3 in the world.
Fitzpatrick also missed the cut – his younger brother, Alex, goes into the weekend four shots behind – and the frustration was evident with every missed putt. He often gave a pronounced thumbs-up over his misses. Fitzpatrick chalked it up to the quirks and bounces of links golf.
“I´ve hit decent shots, gotten no luck and come away with 4-over par. That´s the way links golf is,” Fitzpatrick said.
“You need to have that rub of the green sometimes, and I didn´t have it this week.”
Low scoring at Royal Birkdale – highlighted by the record-tying 62s by Lucas Herbert and Sam Burns – put the cut at 1-over 141.
It was the second straight year that 1-over par made the cut (it was 143 at Royal Portrush, which plays to a par 71).
