ST ANDREWS, SCOTLAND – Hello from the Old Course!
Life outside the United States is pretty sick, but I’ll reserve my first-time international trip observations for another piece of content. I don’t think we could enter the weekend with a better set of circumstances between Nelly, Lilia and Charley atop the leaderboard, the low am race, and the Old Course producing some highly entertaining golf (both good and bad!)
Here’s a few things I can’t stop thinking about.
Pace of play on Thursday really bummed me out
After our stage show early Thursday afternoon, the moment had arrived: I could finally spectate some golf! Wind galore, I wanted nothing more than to see some ejections on 11, so I briskly made my way out there. I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly I could get there. Any major slowdowns en route were self-induced. (I’m ashamed to admit how many times I stopped and stared at the pot bunkers. They’re so massive in person.) Along the way, I noticed some empty tee boxes, some waiting, but thought it would blow over quickly.
When I arrived at 11 green, I encountered the nightmare scenario of a multi-group backup on the tee, which is arguably more traumatizing than the ejections I was hoping for.
I ultimately removed myself from the situation and hopped over to the latter part of the back nine to watch the delightful Yui Kawamoto, a JLPGA player who I’d been excited to see get into the Women’s Open by proxy of her success in Japan. She had a 10-footer for par on 17 that electrified the crowd, offering an extended, graceful wave – I was living for every second of it!
So yes, my mini adventure had a happy ending. But I couldn’t help but wonder through the back of my mind whether the field would even be able to finish the first round on Thursday. Randy informed me that the group he was tasked with for radio clocked in a round of 6 hours and 20 minutes. How awful!
Should we start stroking these perps? Or am I naïve in expecting that rounds of championship golf at the Old Course can be completed promptly, and that it’s truly unavoidable? I think the conditions certainly played a role, but that’s really just links golf. There were split tees to accommodate this! I expect these kinds of scenarios at a 312-player field at the U.S. Amateur. Not a 144-player field at the Women’s Open.
A major championship is serious business. Let’s treat it as such. (At least for the weekend golf, the field has been reduced to 60 individuals.)
What’s going on with the low am race?
I think ANWA revealed a lot of things about Lottie Woad: Her directness, her biggest fan being her vocal grandmother, and how incredible of a wind player she is.
Given her roots, perhaps that’s what I should have expected (though all Englishwomen aren’t made the same, as Charley Hull didn’t grow up playing links golf!), but additional confirmation always helps. The afternoon winds picked up midway through her first nine, and when she stuck her wedge to five feet on nine green, I started having flashbacks of the same player I saw shock the world in April.
At ANWA, she probably had one of the more difficult rounds of 69 I had ever seen until she birdied the final two holes, holding off anyone who wanted to capitalize on the early round woes that had befallen her. That same defensiveness is emerging in flashes this week at the Old Course. Woad had a relatively quiet summer aside from her missed cut at the U.S. Women’s Open, Evian and a Sweet 16 run at the Women’s Amateur.
At T10 going into the weekend, how did the best amateur in the world prepare for not just the low amateur, but to contend at the Women’s Open?
“For this week, I did a lot of practice on knock-down shots, knocking the driver down, because you're going to need it around here,” she said. “I just made sure I played enough links golf over the summer, like playing the British Am, and we had home internationals up in Scotland, so just making sure I had enough experience over the summer for this. We played Sunningdale a fair bit because the Curtis Cup is going to be there.”
(Quick reminder that this is the same Lottie Woad who won the Girls’ Amateur at Carnoustie, 7&6, in 2022.)
Five spots ahead on the leaderboard, Louise Rydqvist took a different approach by playing in a few more events. Rydqvist played in two professional events before getting knocked out in the semifinals of the Women's Amateur, missing out on a chance at playing the AIG Women’s Open for the second time after losing in the final in 2022. A month later, she’d finally punched her ticket by winning the European Women’s Amateur.
The rising senior at South Carolina wasn’t the most obvious challenger after day one, but Rydqvist made her presence felt by carding a bogey-free 67, with five birdies, including one on 11, which played the most difficult on Friday – and is now tied for fifth.
“It's going to be one of the most special days in my golf life thus far for sure, and I don't think I've soaked it all in yet,” Rydqvist said.
I get excited for the litmus test that is watching amateur golfers in major championships, but it almost always becomes a contest of who can have the least disastrous spiral. This crop has proved the opposite – 4 out of 5 have made the weekend (Woad, Rydqvist, Lopez Ramirez, Anacona), and two are within the top 10.
Sound the alarm! We’ve got a legit race for the Smyth Salver…and more.
The Misunderstanding of Charley Hull
By now, I think we’ve all caught Charley Hull fever. If you haven’t been swept up by her boisterous personality, the way she wears her nerves on her sleeves in her pre-shot routine, or her fearless drives, you’re officially in the minority.
I was a little late to the Charley party myself, having been assigned to write about her last year during the U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble when she was immersed in a string of close calls. Inside the interview tent, the disappointment was apparent, but Charley remained easygoing as ever, reflecting on her “shy kids don’t get sweets” moment with pride. I appreciated her willingness to answer every question thrown her way about one of the greatest disappointments of her career – especially when she had to do it again at Walton Heath.
“I really feel like next year will be my time for me just because I'm going to really focus on working on that over this winter. I feel like I want to start tomorrow with my coach,” she said following her solo second to Lilia Vu at the 2023 Women’s Open.
A year later, Charley is once again the chaser – another profound plot line in her story. In the era of cheap engagement, quick hits and virality, I worry that the story of Charley Hull, who has long quested for her maiden major, will get lost in the search for the next tongue-in-cheek quote or cigarette shot social media can find. Women’s golf tends to suffer from these overly simplistic characterizations in an effort to bring eyeballs to the game. I’m not saying it’s wrong to highlight a quirky trait or laugh at a human moment – in fact, they’re pretty important. And not every outlet does it, either. But there should be a more collective effort to avoid fueling shitty word association games.
Charley looks dialed this week. She’s playing smarter golf without sacrificing her bold style of play, and conquering links golf, a style of golf she once struggled with. If she’s to break through this week, I hope that’s what headlines the conversation about her.
Nelly Korda’s certainty
There’s been a lot of dissection this year about why Nelly Korda had the incredible start to the year that she did. Health? Scheduling? Overcoming her putting? When she disappeared for a bit, there was a genuine reason to believe her brilliance might have just been a moment in time.
Leading the Women’s Open by three on Friday proves that wasn’t the case. When asked if she had her major swagger back, she looked as unbothered as ever.
“I'm just trying to stay very present and not think about anything other than one shot at a time, and whatever golf and links golf throws at me, I'm going to take it head-on,” Korda said.
Prior to this week, I wondered about continuing an annual tradition of skipping the Scottish Open given her experience with links golf – and how she had chosen to prepare for an event that she historically struggled in. She opted to spend time with her family in Prague and continued to embrace the new role in her life as an aunt. Time off has clearly benefitted her – she looked unflappable on Friday, with a three-shot lead ahead of defending champion Lilia Vu and Charley Hull.
She conquered the golf in front of her on Thursday and Friday, but the ultimate test awaits over the next two days.