Scotsman Robert MacIntyre claimed a home win on Sunday at the $9 million Genesis Scottish Open, part of this week's British Open at Royal Troon.
Hometown hero McIntyre electrified the crowd with a 22-foot birdie on the final hole at the Renaissance Hotel to beat Australian Adam Scott (67) by one stroke for his second PGA Tour victory since last month's Canadian Open.
He shot a final-round 67 to make up for the disappointment of losing to Rory McIlroy 12 months ago, who finished tied for fourth this time.
“I think I lost my voice after the screaming on that hole. I thought I was short,” said MacIntyre, who became only the second Scotsman to win the National Open after Colin Montgomerie (1999).
“I had tears in my eyes before I hit the ball,” he said. “I was emotional before I even read the putt. But I had work to do. This is what I wanted and this is what I got. I can't believe this happened.
“How do I move on from this situation? I don't think I will,” he added. “I guess I just try to roll with the punches. The Open means a lot to me, but you have to celebrate the good times because they don't come around very often.”
Frenchman Romain Langasque finished two shots behind Scott in third place with a 64, while six players, including South Korean Im Sungjae, McIlroy and Indian-American star Sasith Tigala, tied for fourth at 14-under 265. Two-time tour champion Im Sungjae birdied the final hole at North Berwick to end the week with a 1-under 69.
The PGA Tour said Ren had missed the cut in three majors this season, but a sixth top-10 finish of the season will boost his confidence as he moves from the Renaissance to Royal Troon.
“The wind was stronger than expected today, so I had a hard time playing,” Ren said. “I made some mistakes that I wouldn't normally make. There were some birdie opportunities, but I couldn't take advantage of them. Towards the end of the round, the wind was a little strong, so I tried to adjust and it worked out.”
He had three birdies in 15 holes, while making multiple bogeys, before hitting an 11-footer on the final hole for his final birdie of the day. The smooth-swinging Im is no doubt confident about his hopes at Royal Troon, as this is his fifth top-10 finish in his last eight starts.
“Towards the end of the third round, things didn't go as I planned and I missed a couple of shots. The swing wasn't great, but I made some adjustments on the range and it got better and I felt more comfortable out there,” he said.
With the British Open being the final major of the year, Ren is looking to make up for his poor performances in the majors where he failed to make the cut at the Masters, PGA Championship and U.S. Open. “It’s great preparation. Getting into the top five is a great achievement. We’ll be at another links golf course next week and I’m looking forward to it, especially since it’s the last major of the year. I want to carry this momentum to Royal Troon.
Ren Meixian also said: “I didn't play well in the past three Grand Slam tournaments, but I feel that my condition is gradually recovering. I want to show a different side of myself in the last Grand Slam tournament.”
Shubankar Sharma (69-68-70-65), who will compete in the Paris Olympics, was tied for 39th place with six others at 8-under 272. The 27-year-old was expected to do better but he had a triple bogey 7 on the 18th and final hole, having made birdie just the day before.
Aaron Rai (T4, 14 under), Richard Mansell and Alex Noren (both T10, 13 under) qualified for the British Open at Royal Troon as the top three players who would otherwise have missed out on the final major of the year.
Aditi Ashok's Top 20
Aditi Ashok birdied three of her last four holes to post her best score in a major, a 2-under 69, to tie for 17th place, at the Amundi Evian Championship, the fourth women's major of the year.
Aditi’s previous best finish in a major was a tie for 22nd at the Women’s Open in 2018. Aditi shot 71-70-67-69 in four rounds, while Japan’s Ayaka Furue won by one stroke at the Evian Resort Golf Club in France.
