Scottish golfer Bob MacIntyre tied for third place at the Scottish Open at The Renaissance Club after recovering from a mid-round slump in Sunday's final round. The 29-year-old from Oban started the storm-delayed finale in a share of the lead following the completion of the third round on Sunday morning. He opened with a birdie before four bogeys slowed his progress.
MacIntyre rallied to share third place alongside Englishman Matt Fitzpatrick, while South Korean course specialist Tom Kim won the tournament by holding off Australia's Min Woo Lee on the back nine. Despite his frustrating final round, MacIntyre insisted his overall performance has put him in good shape for a tilt at the Claret Jug at next week's Open Championship at Royal Birkdale.
Asked whether he would take confidence going into Birkdale, the Scot said: "Yeah, I can. I will. No reason why not. There’s no reason why I can’t compete and, hopefully, come Sunday, I can have a chance on the back nine and that’s all we play for."
FedEx Cup Standings
Reflecting on his rollercoaster round in North Berwick, MacIntyre said: "I’ll be blatantly honest, I was going ballistic after 10 holes today, so to actually get it back under par was a good effort. I felt like I hit good shots out there, but I didn’t really hole putts this week. It felt like my usual putting just wasn’t there."
The £320,000 banked by MacIntyre in North Berwick pushed him closer to the top 30 in the season-ending FedEx Cup standings that determine playing privileges next season. "It’s a great week to go forward with," MacIntyre added. "I’ve got to look at the positives. Everything’s seeming to come together, but yeah, just a few shots shy."