How a dreaded shank left Dougie MacIntyre in 'state of panic' alongside son Bob in Dunhill Links
Glencruitten greenkeeper was 'enjoying’ himself until being unnerved by the worst shot in golf
Dougie MacIntyre had just made a nice birdie at the third hole at Carnoustie on a glorious afternoon on the Angus coast and was feeling pleased how he was acquitting himself alongside son Bob in the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship when he was suddenly unnerved in front of family, friends and lots of others.
“I hit a shank with one of my favourite clubs and it gave me the horrors,” he revealed, managing to raise a smile about it at the end of the round but clearly wishing it hadn’t happened. “I was in panic mode for the last six holes,” he added of how the worst shot in golf had affected him.
Dougie, the head greenkeeper at Glencruitten Golf Club in Oban, had proved an able caddie as Bob landed a breakthrough PGA Tour win in the RBC Canadian Open earlier in the year and, on the back of that brilliant storyline, plenty of people seemed interested to see how he was with a club in his hand as opposed to carrying a bag.
Watched by wife Carol, daughters Nicola and Gillian, grandchildren and the family dog as well, Dougie - a left-hander with a nice swing - didn’t show any outward signs of nerves over the first few holes.
“I really enjoyed the start and was quite comfortable,” he said. “I wasn’t overly nervous, to be honest, but, when you hit a shank out there and the crowd is right beside you, it can really scare you.”
Which was a pity for him after he’d put in some work on his game to get ready for this week. “I haven’t played a lot of golf for years, but I started playing in the simulator Bob has in our house and I had been pretty confident,” he admitted.
With Bob doing the bulk of the work as he shot a five-under-par 67, Team MacIntyre signed for a 65, which left them sitting in the middle of the pack as three pairings set the pace with 57s.
“It was good,” said Bob of the duo’s day. “For me personally, it was a decent round of golf. My dad struggled a wee bit with the nerves, but it was kind of expected today. Overall, though, it was a good day on the links.”
Starting on the back nine alongside Ryder Cup team-mate Shane Lowry, the Genesis Scottish Open champion birdied the tenth, 12th and 14th before dropping his only shot of the day at the tough par-3 16th. He then birded the second, fourth and sixth on his inward journey.
“It was perfect weather,” he added. “Before we went out, I had to put on the sunscreen and that is always a good sign out here (laughing). Got slow - it took about half an hour to tee off after getting to the sixth - and chilly at the end, when the wind switched a little bit. But it was a lot of good work by me and Mike [Burrow, his caddie].”
Even by Team MacIntyre standards, a small army of family members seemed to be out watching on this occasion. “I live having the support out there, but I think my dad struggled a bit with that today,” admitted Bob.
“Sometimes it is a bit crazy at home in the house but, on the golf course, I am doing my own thing and it is nice to hear the shouts, as happened when my dad chipped in with the odd shot here and there on our card today.”
Asked what the plan for the night was back at the family’s rented house for the week across in Fife, a smiling MacIntyre said: “I think we are needing to get Doug a couple of beers to calm him down!”
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