It's Open season for the Saltman family

And, while it won't be on par with Murray-mania, Elliot, 27, and Lloyd, 23, are bracing themselves for a wave of publicity as they prepare to become the first brothers to tee it up in The Open for nearly 20 years.

Like the Murrays, it will be a real family affair. Zack, the duo's younger brother, will be at the picturesque Ayrshire venue to caddie for Elliot and they'll all be joined at one of the biggest events on the sporting calendar by proud parents, Jack and Dawn.

Neither of them are golfers – Dawn decided the game wasn't for her, ironically, after finding Turnberry too tough – yet the sport has taken over the life of the family.

Since the three brothers all became professionals within the past two years, Jack has assumed the role as manager, while Dawn mucks in, too, by booking flights, accommodation and organising other travel arrangements.

After Elliot and Lloyd both secured their places at Turnberry, where they'll rub shoulders with stars such as Tiger Woods, Padraig Harrington and Colin Montgomerie, renting a house near Turnberry was hastily arranged – big enough, of course, to accommodate all the members of Team Saltman.

"I don't think I've ever experienced a better feeling than when we knew the two boys had made it into The Open," says Dawn, daughter of Tommy Younger, the former Hibs goalkeeper.

"It all happened within a split second and it was unbelievable – better probably than anything I will experience in the event itself, though you just never know."

While Woods, the top player in the world, was still a toddler when he first picked up a golf club, Elliot and Lloyd were, by comparison, much later starters in the game.

They didn't play at all during their early years as pupils at Cuiken Primary School in Penicuik.

After moving on to secondary school – Elliot went to George Watson's and Lloyd to Penicuik High – it was rugby, not golf, that occupied most of their spare time.

"Elliot was a No.8 while Lloyd, who was very nippy, played either on the wing or at full back," recalls Jack, himself a former top showjumper "Lloyd was into cross-country as well at school while they also liked to ride their trial bikes on my father's farm just outside Penicuik."

It was on the farm that Elliot launched a journey that will see him and Lloyd attract huge attention over the next few days from the world's media as they covers golf's oldest major tournament. One day, during a visit from his cousins, they started to hit golf balls in a field and, before too long, he was asking his dad if he could arrange to play at one of the clubs in the area.

His first game was at West Linton and his first membership was at Liberton, by which time Lloyd had also caught the golf bug. It was only natural, then, that Zack was also playing before too long.

Spells at Lothianburn and Prestonfield followed before Kilspindie and then Craigielaw became their golfing base.

Recently, they all became members at Archerfield Links, using the two courses and excellent practice facilities at the East Lothian course to keep sharp for tournaments.

At the start of their careers, mum and dad spent much of their time ferrying the boys to and from golf courses, just as Judy Murray did to give tennis star Andy every chance possible to flourish.

"I would never say we made any sacrifices for the boys because Dawn and I have always enjoyed going to tournaments to watch them compete," insists Jack.

"At the same time, we have also gone to places that we wouldn't have visited if it hadn't been through golf.

"When they were amateurs, we went all over Scotland with them and saw a fair bit of England, too. We also went to Chicago to see Lloyd play in the Walker Cup and we've been to lots of places elsewhere in the world since he turned professional."

Closer to home, Dawn still remembers vividly the day Lloyd won a skills test organised by the Lothians Golf Association. Paul Gibson, the current junior convener for that organisation, was also there that day and had a feeling that he'd come across a special talent.

"I remember seeing Lloyd as a 13-year-old and he was extremely mature and unbelievably focussed at that age," recalls Gibson.

"He was immature purely from a golf point of view but it was a classic case of an old head on young shoulders.

"I also remember driving up north to an event and Lloyd was in the car with us. He spoke like a guy who was 25 – he was so switched on. He told us how his parents had encouraged him to get a paper round and also do jobs around the family home so that he could contribute to getting the latest golf equipment."

These days, Lloyd, who looked like a star in the making when he finished 15th in the 2005 Open at St Andrews when still an amateur, doesn't have to buy his equipment. He was snapped up by manufacturers Titleist when he turned professional, while all three brothers are sponsored by Aegon, the Edinburgh-based life insurance, pension and investment company.

"Part of Aegon's philosophy is to support the development of talent and, as Edinburgh is our UK headquarters, we see the Saltman brothers as developing talent in the local community," says Aegon spokesperson Lesley Macpherson.

"It is fantastic they are doing so well and we are delighted that both Elliot and Lloyd will be playing in The Open, particularly when it is being held in Scotland."

From the moment they arrive at Turnberry today, the Saltmans are going to be in the glare of the TV cameras. Such has been the interest in their achievement that the R&A, the body that runs the event, had them first on the list for interviews in the massive Media Centre for the event.

"There will definitely be a novelty interest in them," admits Renton Laidlaw, who started his career on the Edinburgh Evening News and is now a highly-respected golf broadcaster. "You have to bear in mind that it is The Open and there a lot of big names worldwide at Turnberry this week but Lloyd and Elliot will get their share of publicity, I'm sure."

Once this week is over, both brothers will resume their bids to make it permanently on to the big stage. "They want to play together on the European Tour one day," says Jack. "And, while it's a big step up to begin with, we are confident they will get there."

On the course to glory from a young age

ELLIOT and Lloyd Saltman first made their mark in 2001, the year they won the men's and junior titles respectively at Kilspindie. That was also the year that Elliot played in the Barnton Hotel team which won the Dispatch Trophy at the Braids, where he joined forces with brothers Steve and Brian Hunter and Mark Kerr.

Lloyd's first notable success came in 2003, when he won the Scottish Boys' Stroke Play Championship at Prestwick. Two years after that, he qualified for The Open as an amateur and produced a stunning performance at St Andrews to finish in a tie for 15th.

In 2005, Lloyd also won two top amateur events – the Brabazon Trophy and St Andrews Links Trophy – and made the Great Britain & Ireland team for the Walker Cup, the amateur game's Ryder Cup. He played in that match again in 2007, the year he won the Irish Amateur Championship, Lytham Trophy and Scottish Champion of Champions.

Elliot notched his first win as a professional in the 2007 Ethos Group Classic, an event on the PGA EuroPro Tour, at Stonebridge, earning a cheque for 10,000. Earlier this year, the brothers joined Archerfield Links club.

Competing against nearly 300 players for only 12 places, Elliot shot rounds of 67 and 72 at Glasgow Gailes to secure his spot at Turnberry, while Lloyd made it with scores of 66 and 70 at Kilmarnock (Barassie).