Christy O'Connor hugs his caddie, Brian Smallwood, on the 18th green of the Hobbit's Glen Golf Club in Colombia, Maryland, following his one-stroke win over Bruce Fleischer in the State Farm Senior Classic earlier this month.
Christy O'Connor Jnr is wearing an extra layer of clothing this week to combat the wild winds which have greeted the players in the £560,000 British Seniors Open Championship at Royal Portrush. The tournament tees off this morning with "Junior" one of the main attractions.
O'Connor's fabulous win in the State Farm Classic in Maryland has shot O'Connor to the top of the list when it comes to picking a winner, but he admits to finding it a little difficult adjusting to the severe change in weather conditions.
"It was 112 degrees on the last day in Maryland, plus humidity," recalled O'Connor. "It was very, very tough to keep going. You've got the likes of Hubert Green, who is used to that kind of heat, sticking his head in a bucket of ice at every tee. It's a big change here, but this is a wonderful golf course." Tuesday's pro-am tournament, which he and his partners won, was the first time that O'Connor played a full 18 holes over the jumbo Dunluce links and he liked what he found. He recognises, however, that it is a course which can be mighty difficult to manage. "I played only nine holes here about two years ago. I came up with a friend from Ballyclare, but the rain came down and we had to stop. It is a magnificent golf course with a tremendous lay-out. The way the bunkering and greens were designed, they are still one hundred years ahead of their time. "It has been set up quite tough - a bit harsh. The rough is as thick as I've ever played, but the fairways are quite a nice width.
"There are a lot of varied shots on the course. The wind is going to predict every tee shot, so the game plan will have to be set each day. On the first hole it could be an iron or a driver, depending on the wind. The fourth, for example, could be a two-iron, three-wood or driver. "It is a championship golf course here which you have got to play really well and the rough is abominable," he said after his first full trip over Dunluce. O'Connor will stay this side of the Atlantic to play the Senior Masters next week and he then returns to the United States for five weeks. "My first priority is getting into the top 31 there. Although I'm exempt until next July because of my win, I still have to get into the top 31 at the end of the season to be exempt for the complete year," he explained. Eddie Polland lost the British Seniors title last year after a playoff with Brian Huggett, but feels that he is now in good shape to make a bold bid for the title. Polland won his first Seniors event when he recently took the Lawrence Batley in Huddersfield, and during the five tournaments he has played this season, he hasn't been out of the top halfdozen.
Another Irishman to break his duck was David Jones when he won in Jersey and he is hoping to give the home fans something to cheer about - but this is a very strong field at Royal Portrush. Tommy Horton, still to win this title despite leading the Order of Merit for the past three years, Gary Player, Tony Jacklin, Bernard Gallacher, Paul Leonard, Joe McDermott, Liam Higgins, Denis O'Sullivan, who "came of age" in the event last year, and twice winner Brian Barnes are all in the draw. From the US, the biggest threat would seem to be Alan Tapie who is number one in America just now, but he may find the conditions a little too cold to handle. Dunluce has ended the hopes of many in the past and it is sure to do the same thing again this week.
