Matt Cooper's Open Championship diary: Saturday's notes from Portrush

Hammer time

“Bryson!” “Bryson!” “Bryson!” “Bryson!” “Bryson!” “Bryson!”

It’s extraordinary to follow a few holes with Bryson DeChambeau and experience the relationship between the big-hitter and his fans, not least because the latter shout his name – and very rarely anything else for variety – repeatedly in his direction.

There’s a touch of Alan Partridge’s “Dan!” about it.

It’s not a one way process either because when he has a chance the 31-year-old returns the affection. Leaving the 16th green he high-fived tens of fans, and leaving the 17th tee he ran down a long line of them slapping hands with a big grin on his face.

It was not all plain sailing, however, and it turned out there was another reason he was running because he and playing partner Nathan Kimsey were on the clock. He wasn’t happy about it either, grumbling to the referees and chuntering under his breath right up to the 18th green.

Afterwards he was asked what he’d do about slow play because he clearly felt the current system is unfair.

“It’s very simple,” he said. “It’s not difficult at all. You time everybody for their entire round. Nobody wants to do it because people are scared to get exposed, which I am an advocate for. I’d love to be timed, and I have no problem with that.

“I think it would be more fair towards everybody. If somebody is playing slower, the guy can go up to him and say, hey, man, you’re over par with your time. You just time them for every single shot. It’s not rocket science.”

There’s something else about DeChambeau that stands out from the crowd: the intensity and sense of might of his tee shots. It feels as if you are watching a discus or hammer thrower. It was perhaps appropriate that he was off to the Giant’s Causeway after his round.

Echoes of the past

What do you make of biorhythms? Science or nonsense? I tend towards the latter, but Nathan Kimsey does seem to have an interesting time of it every mid-July.

In 2014, his first season on the Challenge Tour, his only two top-10s finishes were in mid-July. The following year his only top-20 came in the same spell. (The less said about all of 2016 the better.)

He earned a DP World Tour card in 2017 and one of his few decent efforts was a flirtation with the lead in Paris at the Open de France. In 2018 he landed three top-20s in a row in July when back on the Challenge Tour.

In July 2021 he grabbed a Challenge Tour first round lead in Italy and in 2022 he won the first of two titles on the second tier that helped him return to the main tour.

2022 was peak Kimsey mid-July madness: play-off defeat in the Barbasol Championship, co-sanctioned with the PGA Tour. 2023, however, was the absolute opposite because he’d fractured his hand and was out of action.

This mid-July he is back on the DP World Tour and enjoying the thrill of playing in front of huge Open galleries alongside DeChambeau. “Most were chanting for him, but I had a few family and friends out there,” he said.

The near-miss on the PGA Tour is a peculiar memory: “It feels like two weeks ago and about ten years ago at the same time. It’s been a weird year.”

He’s confident about the future, however: “I’ve had some good weeks. It’s been a little inconsistent, but I’m adapting back to the travel and the full schedule again. I’ve been hitting the ball well for a while and very pleased to come here and kind of show as much.”

The Open experience

I’m a big fan of the platforms that are now a regular feature at the Open. They’re a superb addition to the spectating experience and I got chatting to Open veteran Mike Nelson on one of them.

This year was his 31st Open, but his first trip to Royal Portrush. He had a good excuse for missing out in 2019 – he went to the Masters with two friends to celebrate turning 50 and Tiger Woods delivered the perfect present.

His first Open was in 1991 at Royal Birkdale where the first thing he heard was “On the tee, Jack Nicklaus.”

“For many years Opens were easy to attend, you paid on the day and there were no ticket ballots,” he recalled. “There were true golf fans, it was less commercial and corporate, and a more relaxing experience. Going to the Open as a group of friends was easy and became a July ritual.

“The event is still superb but many more Americans make the trip and no doubt spend loads in the merchandise tent.”

Nelson loved his first trip to Northern Ireland for an Open. “Royal Portrush is superb,” he said. “The course and setting are incredible, right up there with the best. Needing to travel over the Irish Sea is fun, too, and increases the expectation.

“Getting in and out of the course was easy logistically and that’s noticeably improved over the years as the event copes with increased numbers.

“It’s just a shame that it is now more difficult to get tickets as a group unless you use expensive options. If some sort of recognition of prior support for the event could come into play when tickets are allocated it would be a positive move and fairer to those who look to attend every year.

“It’s still great value and prices for children and youths are exceptional value.

“I’m looking forward to attending many more Opens. It would be great to get to 50. Mind you, I’d be in my late 70s by then so fingers crossed!”

Ryder Cup 2031

A nice little scoop for the Associated Press this week when they got wind that Spanish newspaper La Vanguardia was reporting that Girona’s Camiral Golf Resort will host the 2031 Ryder Cup.

Ramon Nogué, president of the Catalan Golf Federation, confirmed the news and said that it will become official next week.

Camiral was formerly known as PGA Catalunya and hosted European Tour Q School as well as the Spanish Open. It’s well located for the terrific city of Girona but also the Costa Brava and even Barcelona.

Tapping away

It was a tough afternoon for my colleague, and room-mate this week, Nick Rodger of the Glasgow Herald. His laptop is ailing and, as the leaders hit the turn, the R and the T stopped working on his keyboard.

Robert MacIntyre quickly became Bobby Mac.

With that it’s time to close the diary for 2025. Thanks for all the kind words and comments. See you in 12 months at Royal Birkdale.