Iceland home delivery driver sets sights on dream Open appearance

If there is indeed a golfing god, Jack Doherty will be teeing up alongside the world’s top players in the 152nd Open at Royal Troon next month and there’s a variety of reasons for saying that.

For starters, he’s an Ayrshireman who was pipped in a final qualifier by Colin Montgomerie for a spot in the last staging of the Claret Jug event at this particular venue.

There’s also the fact that Doherty met his wife, Jocelyn, at Royal Troon when he was playing there in the 2003 Amateur Championship and what a thrill it would be for the couple’s son, 10-year-old golf fanatic Harley, to see his dad tee up there and this time in a major.

Jack Doherty is the touring professional at Rowallan Castle in Ayrshire but also works as a home delivery driver for Iceland.

On top of all that, it would be the dream reward for Doherty, a former Australian Amateur champion who held a DP World Tour card in 2014, continuing to believe in himself as a professional golfer but, at the same time, face up to the reality of bills needing to be paid.

“Since Covid, I started working for Iceland as a home delivery driver,” Doherty, who is the touring professional at Rowallan Castle, told The Scotsman. “I lost my Challenge Tour category just before Covid, so I do that and play on the Tartan Pro Tour. It’s just a few shifts per week, but I’ve kept that on as I really enjoy doing it.”

In that bid to be teeing up at Royal Troon, Doherty cleared the first hurdle in style as he carded a four-under-par 68 to finish three shots clear of the field in his regional qualifier earlier this week at Goswick Links near Berwick-upon-Tweed.

“I left the house around 3.30am and, after having to sit about all day, I was absolutely shattered by the time I drove home,” he said of that eye-catching effort on the Northumberland coast after being unable to get an assignment much closer to home at Kilmarnock (Barassie). “I was six under through 11 and played lovely. The course was playing tough with the way the rough was and there was a wee bit of wind as well.

“There’s no live scoring, so you don’t know where you are sitting on the way round or what’s going to happen really until right at the death. It was a good wee day.”

Next up is a 36-hole test in Tuesday’s final qualifying at Dundonald Links, close to where Doherty agonisingly missed out at the same stage eight years ago as three spots up for grabs went to Swede Oskar Arvidsson, Spaniard Scott Fernandez and, last but not least, eight-time European No 1 Montgomerie.

“It’s funny because my father in law texted me on Sunday to remind me that I’d been pipped by Monty at Glasgow Gailes. I remember coming down the last and Monty was on the practice area ready for a play-off,” recalled Doherty. “I’ll be aiming to give myself another good chance next week as it would be great to play in The Open at Troon.

“That’s where I met my wife, Jocelyn, as well when I was playing in the 2003 Amateur Championship. So it would be special to be heading back there and my son Harley is also getting into his golf now as well. It would probably mean more to him than anything so hopefully I can do it for him.

“He’s ten and I’ve got him membership at both Rowallan Castle and Barassie. He’s golf daft, which is good, and that definitely pushes me on. I’m only 15 minutes from Royal Troon, so it would be extra special to be teeing up there in The Open.”