Local hero Jack McDonald repeats The Open trick as four other golfers receive prized berths

Jack McDonald did it again on his home patch. Two years after delighting the locals by coming through Final Qualifying at Dundonald Links to play in The Open at Royal Troon, the Ayrshireman will be teeing up in the Claret Jug event once more.

He progressed in a play-off in 2024, birdieing the first extra hole to secure the last of four spots up for grabs. This time, with five berths on offer, it was job done with flying colours. Posting rounds of 70-69 for a five-under-par total, McDonald claimed top spot.

The Whitecraigs-attached professional finished one shot ahead of Englishman Matthew Baldwin and Irish amateur David Howard, with the two other spots going to Dutch amateur Nevill Ruiter and American Marcus Plunkett.

Jack McDonald will be playing his second The Open in three years after winning a Final Qualifier in his native Ayrshire at Dundonald Links | Aitor Alcalde/Getty Images

“I did play well, to be fair,” admitted McDonald, who, as things stand, will be flying the Saltire in the 154th edition along with only Bob MacIntyre, with three spots on offer in next week’s Genesis Scottish Open and also one available in a new Last Chance Qualifier at the Southport venue on the Monday of The Open. “And I just got it going and a spell helped me. I birdied 13 and eagled 14, so that was handy.”

The eagle in particular and he certainly enjoyed recapping it. “Yeah, I just had a good drive,” said the player who cut his golfing teeth on the other side of the fence on the 12th hole here at Kilmarnock (Barassie) and is an honorary member there.

“That’s what I just said to James (his caddie), I just need to hit the shots on the way in, see what’s expected of the golf course. I just committed to everything that came off and hit some awesome shots. That 3-wood in there was amazing. I actually thought it would come out too hot and went too long, but it stopped, so happy days.”

The 33-year-old agonisingly missed the cut by a shot at Royal Troon. Can he put that experience to good use in Southport in a fortnight’s time? “I don’t know because Troon was difficult the way it was playing,” he said. “I’ll expect the way they do it because they make it difficult. I’m looking forward to it, but I’ve just got to enjoy it.”

Exciting as it may be, The Open will be put on the back-burner for a bit. “Well, I’m going on holiday,” he replied to being asked how the next couple of weeks will look. “I always go on holiday about this time. I’m going to Rome this time, I think it was Paris the last time.

“And then the flight got cancelled and I had to get the train up the road, I was like, what am I doing! But it’ll be good. I’m going there on Thursday, so for a few days and then I’ll need to try and prepare. Looking forward to it.”

It will be a dream come true at Royal Birkdale for Baldwin, who posted rounds of 69-71 for a four-under-par total, after the Southport man secured an Open appearance at his home club. "It will mean everything to me to play an Open Championship at Birkdale,” admitted a smiling Baldwin, who will join Tommy Fleetwood in being a hometown boy in a fortnight’s time. “For me, that's the ultimate. I am a Southport lad through and through.

"I played an Open at Lytham, an Open at Hoylake. So Birkdale would complete the set. I have been a member at Birkdale since I was 17 years old. Playing in an Open at Birkdale would be a dream, something I've wanted to do since I was a young lad. Realistically, I'm 40 years old. I know that this realistically is my last chance to play an Open at Birkdale.

"It will also be quite scary as well given the extra focus that'll be on me as a local lad. But it's great. I think the last Open I played was Portrush in 2019. It's great to be back. I live right by the Hesketh, basically just two miles from Birkdale as the crow flies. People were asking me if I was going to rent out my house. I certainly won't be doing that now!”

Baldwin, who landed a maiden DP World Tour win in the SDC Championship in South Africa in 2023, was delighted with his day’s work, especially after his plan to play a practice round last week had been scuppered by Mother Nature. "I had never played the course before,” he revealed. “This was my first crack at it. "I played the Italian Open last week then travelled up here with my wife, who took some time off work.

"It rained all the way here on the journey up to Scotland. I got to the first tee and the hooter went, closing the course for the day. So I walked it and you couldn’t get to the green at the par-3 sixth as it was flooded due to the burn bursting its bank.”

On a day when John Vogelpohl, an American who lives in Scotland, led by three shots after an opening 66 but then missed out by a shot following an afternoon 77, Blairgowrie amateur Connor Graham agonisingly came up just short as well. After scores of 70-72, he waited in hope that he’d be able to maybe come through a play-off for the second year in a row before that door was closed by Ruiter and Plunkett in one of the final matches.

Qualifiers at the three other venues included former DP World Tour Rookie of the Year Peter Uihlein, past Scottish Challenge champion Sam Bairstow, perennial progresser Matthew Southgate and young American Caleb Surratt, one of Jon Rahm’s Legion XIII team-mates on LIV Golf.

Former Masters champion Sergio Garcia missed out at West Lancashire, where he bemoaned his lunchtime grub. “I had a little bit of food there in the players’ lounge and it did not sit well with me,” he told reporters after his second round.

“I only ate the lasagne. I thought maybe have a little pasta and stuff, but for some reason it didn’t sit well with me and I just felt nauseous the whole front nine. In the afternoon, I felt like I was going to vomit pretty much on every hole.”