ST. ANDREWS – The Old Course at St. Andrews might as well been Colin Montgomerie’s own private bandbox yesterday. No player in the world should have beaten him on this day.
From every nook and cranny around the venerable grounds, there were passionate hoots and hollers and extended standing ovations for the Scottish-born Montgomerie, whom the fans waver between loving to adore and loving to mock because of his often-tempestuous personality.
“C’mon, Monty,” bellowed fans from the jam-packed grandstands, from the balconies and rooftops and from the streets surrounding the wonderfully historic place that envelopes the golf course.
“I could feel them willing me, willing some of those putts to go in,” Montgomerie said. “There were about 15 grandstands out there and it was a standing ovation on every one of them. It was quite an unbelievable situation I find myself in here. I’d like to do well for them [today]. It would be fantastic if we could get through this together. I have a chance to win the Open.”
Given that rabid support, though, Montgomerie should have made more of a move yesterday on Tiger Woods, the leader and daunting Darth Vader character in this fairy tale.
Woods entered the day with a four-shot lead on Montgomerie, with whom he was paired, and ended the day with a three-shot lead on him, thanks only to a 25-foot bomb Montgomerie drained on No. 18 to close out a magnificent day of golf.
Montgomerie on Friday night was frank in saying he hoped Woods would “stutter” on the weekend to open the door to he and the other close contenders.
Well, Woods stuttered yesterday (shooting a 1-under 71) and he isn’t likely to back up to the back today. Montgomerie might have blown his chance while paired with Woods.
“Who knows what can happen?” Montgomerie said. “There’s a seven-mile walk out there and there are a lot of bounces that can take place. I probably need to score 66 to beat Tiger. So I’ve given myself a chance. If I can score 66 around here, I have a chance.”
The problem is, Montgomerie, who hasn’t exactly built a reputation as the most steely of competitors in the face of pressure, has managed only one final round in the 60s in 14 Opens in which he made the cut. That was a final-round 69 in 1994 at Turnberry.
Sure, it doesn’t look good for Montgomerie to keep the Claret Jug in Scotland for the next year. Still, though, he tantalizes us because he’s such a character.
Witnessing a Montgomerie press conference as the Open champion might prove to be more entertaining than the four days of great golf that preceded it.
It’s highly probable Montgomerie wants this too badly, and that could adversely affect the pursuit of this dream he so desperately wants to live out. Asked yesterday what it would mean if he’s able to capture his first major, Montgomerie treated the question with the enthusiasm of a 12-year-old boy with a bowl of Brussels sprouts sitting before him at the dinner table.
“I can’t really talk about that right now,” Montgomerie said. “You’ll have to speak to me tomorrow evening if all goes according to plan.”
Then, Monty couldn’t help himself, baring his soul – something he’s always been as good at as hitting crisp 5-iron approach shots to greens.
“I’ve been close a number of times in the ’90s,” he said. “And 2001 was a great opportunity for me and I didn’t take it forward.”
Montgomerie is so psychologically fragile that he actually admitted that, despite having the lead entering the weekend in 2001 at Royal Lytham, a short missed putt on the last hole of the second round was a sign to him that he wasn’t going to win, which of course he didn’t.
“Let’s hope I can get off to a decent start, to be a couple under after five holes or something and put some pressure on Tiger,” Montgomerie said.
That’ll surely ignite the home crowd in a similar way to yesterday’s outpouring.
“I expected it,” Woods said of the unabashed Montgomerie support everywhere their group turned yesterday. “It should be that way. He’s never won a major championship. This is the home of golf and this is his best chance in a long time.”
Great Scot
Colin Montgomerie, here driving from the second tee yesterday, may be the best golfer to never win a major championship. Here are his career titles on the European Tour and his winnings in those tournaments, which translates to $7,687,154 in American dollars:
Year Wins Earnings*
1989 1 45,825
1991 1 100,000
1993 2 108,580
1994 3 416,660
1995 3 333,330
1996 3 513,831
1997 2 381,966
1998 3 661,660
1999 5 1,154,980
2000 2 615,130
2001 2 566,660
2002 2 585,648
2003 1 150,000
2004 1 123,041
*1989-98 in British pounds
1999-2004 in Euros
