Colin Montgomerie set for three senior Majors

COLIN Montgomerie, the last home player to win the event – albeit it was under a different guise – is not playing in this year’s Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open.

The newly-turned 50-year-old, who won the tournament in 1999 when it was known as the Standard Life Loch Lomond Invitational, will instead tee up in the US Senior Open in a fortnight’s time.

That means Montgomerie’s first three events as a golden oldie will all be majors, starting today in Pittsburgh, where he competes in the US Senior Players Championship at Fox Chapel.

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The eight-times European No 1 will then fly home to try to qualify for the Open Championship at Muirfield, but he will be back on the other side of the Atlantic the week after next for the US Senior Open in Nebraska.

A fortnight after that, he will be one of the main attractions in the Senior Open Championship at Royal Birkdale, adding up to a whirlwind start to the new stage of his career.

“I need a season ticket on the airlines as I’m going back and forth a lot over the next couple of months but that’s the way it is and I’m looking forward to it,” said Montgomerie, who will make his over-50s debut in this week’s event alongside Bernhard Langer, one of his old Ryder Cup playing partners, and South African David Frost.

Former Open champion Sandy Lyle is also in a field chasing a first prize of around £262,000 – just less than that on offer in this week’s Irish Open on the European Tour.