What a week we’ve had so far for the marvellous Dunhill Championship. The skies are diamond blue and the light is extraordinary in the Auld Toon where spectators can get in for free and professionals and celebrities combine to play over Kingsbarns, Carnoustie and the Old Course.
The kilted caddie is not working this week and strolled down to the 18th of the Old yesterday only to see his old work colleague (yes he once had a proper job!) Richard Muckart hit a splendid pitch into the last. His professional playing partner Mark Otto had an interesting last hole, to say the least. His drive on eighteen hit the road, ten metres from me, and took one massive bounce towards the window of the Rusacks Hotel. It narrowly missed the glass and rebounded off the wood and back on to the fairway in a rather good position. Anyway he then hit a brilliant pitch to five feet and holed it for a birdie.
Even more impressively wayward was the amateur Phipps who hit his first drive down eighteen on to the road but without any fortuitous bounce back into play. He then hit an even more outlandish ball which looked like it was heading half way up Grannie Clark’s Wynd but somehow hit the top of the roof of number 12 Golf Links and rebounded back on to the fairway. All great stuff the Dunhill.
It reminds me of a certain character, Mr Currie, whom I have the pleasure of knowing, who played here a few years ago with Constantina Rocca. He seemingly hit a wonderful drive down the 17th of the Old and was in two minds with his caddie over whether to play safe or go for the green in front of a sizeable crowd. Of course Alistair pulled out his 3 wood and hit a remarkable duck hook which travelled towards the poor chap manning the scoreboard on the left, who took a lifesaving dive and the ball clattered off the scoreboard. The crowd were seemingly rather amused by this shot and by all accounts Constantina and Currie got on famously and were indeed still appreciating the finer merits of Amarone in the Fairmount at 4am the following morning.
The Dunhill is what golf should be all about of course and that is great fun and comradeship.
However beware of a ‘fore right’ down the last !