Bob MacIntyre remains unrepentant after code of conduct warning in The Open

It followed MacIntyre being spoken to for a one-fingered gesture during the first round of The Masters earlier this year, but the 29-year-old ended his 2026 major campaign in an unrepentant mood on Merseyside.

“Yeah,” he replied to being asked if he had been handed a warning during a frustrating final circuit, closing with a 71 - it left him on two under and heading for a top-30 finish - as playing partner Cameron Young signed off with a 64. “But I expect to get a few of them in my career. Yeah, I run hot. So be it.”

There had been signs earlier in the round that MacIntyre had become hot under the collar at the Southport venue, having talked at the Genesis Scottish Open about he is “like a kettle, always boiling away, ready to erupt”. He reaffirmed that he feels it is part of his make up.

“Yeah, I'm going to do it for the rest of my career,” he said. “I try to toe the line, but, when you feel you're playing a golf course that you can hit it pretty much anywhere and there's no real punishment and then you do hit one slightly off line and you get the biggest punishment you can possibly get, it's just a sore one. I'm going to react aggressively at times. Part of my DNA.”

With a similar policy in place for last month’s US Open at Shinnecock Hills, Chile’s Joaquin Niemann was handed a two-shot penalty for throwing a club in the first round. Earlier in the year, though, Sergio Garcia was just given an official warning for breaking his driver in anger at The Masters.

“To be honest, I couldn’t care less,” replied MacIntyre to being asked if he felt players were unsure what does or does not constitute an offence under the current guidelines. “If I get a two-shot penalty, it's my fault. A warning, it's my fault. I don't really worry about it.”

After being handily-placed following an opening 67 then backing that up with a gutsy 69, MacIntyre spent most of the weekend fighting his frustration. “I felt like I didn't have enough chances out there this week,” he said. “Feels miles away right now, but I feel like it was just going to take one good day like Cam has done today and you're writing about it. But it just wasn't my week.”

Though weekend rounds of 73-74 for an eight-over aggregate left fellow Scot Jack McDonald in 77th spot out of 156 players to start out on Thursday, the 33-year-old smiled from start to finish in his second appearance in the event in three years.

“It’s been amazing,” he said of his week, earning a career-best pay-day of $38,825. “Today was just a case of going out and having fun. It’s been everything I expected it to be and more. I’ll be back in to work on Tuesday just in the shop (at Whitecraigs Golf Club in Glasgow, where he’s a trainee PGA professional). It’ll be a bit different to this.”

The highlight of McDonald’s week on the Lancashire coast was holing out for an eagle-2 at the tenth in the second circuit. “I think I’ve seen it about 15 times - it was really cool,” he admitted, laughing. “It’s been such a good week and having one of my best mates on the bag (James Caldwell, the PGA pro at Barassie) has made it extra special.

“I’ll be back at Final Qualifying (having come through it twice at Dundonald Links) next year. It would be unbelievable to play in an Open at St Andrews. That’s the goal for next year. I think qualifying is moving to Gailes. That’s another minute’s drive! I know Gailes well, so happy days.”