Danny Willett had feared a morning like the Armageddon but ended up walking on water all afternoon. The deluge which briefly submerged the Old Course may have already subsided but the son of a vicar produced another divine round to place him at the leaderboard’s summit, able to peer down at a cast of stellar names below.
Willett’s three-under 69 was a dogged, determined display that rarely wavered. The conditions may have been relatively favourable during the early afternoon – with the rain relenting and the wind yet to howl – but the Yorkshireman kept his composure when the lead stretched to three and the madding crowds swelled around him.
That spotlight is only set to increase now and the true examination paper – to borrow the oft-used Paul McGinley line – begins on Saturday amid much English hope. If Willett passes the third test here then a whirlwind weekend could be in store.
He will not be getting carried away, however. The first message Willett received after completing his round was from his mother, Elizabeth. “I just had a text message off my mum saying well done, you’ve made the cut,” said the 27-year-old. “I haven’t read all of them yet. I’m sure there will be a few, I can feel my phone buzzing a little bit right now.”
No Yorkshireman has ever won the Open and there remains plenty of work to do before Willett can even contemplate such an eventuality. For a man whose best record at a major is a tied 15th – under the East Lothian sun at Muirfield two years ago – a top-10 finish here would mark significant progress.
Willett had a successful amateur career having moved from Sheffield to the United States at 17, playing for Jacksonville State University and ranked as the world’s top amateur in 2008. He developed his game there and broke on to the scene before a back injury ruled him out for more than a year. But Willett’s stock is rising, having secured his second European Tour title at South Africa’s Nedbank Challenge in December 2014.
“I think probably the back nine is what’s done it with some really good, solid shots. We’ve not really put ourselves in too much trouble and under too much stress. To be two under for that back nine is some pretty good golf,” said Willett of his round on Friday.
“It’s a childhood dream [to be top of the Open leaderboard] and looking up there it’s still a little bit surreal, but it’s something I’m going to have to get used to otherwise there’s no point in being up there. We’re going to try and rest up, go out for a good weekend and hopefully we can be up there in two days’ time.
“We will go for a nice bit of food with my wife and the children and just try and relax. I think we’re going to probably have a pretty late tee time tomorrow with the weather that’s forecast. It’s going to be a pretty long two-and-a-half days, so we’re just going to try and keep relaxed and enjoy the fact that we’re at the Open and we’re contending.”
The man ranked No2 on the European Tour money list carded three birdies on a front nine that ebbed and flowed. Willett, playing alongside Gary Woodland and Thongchai Jaidee, outdrove his partners on the 2nd and sunk an opening birdie to provide early momentum. He had further opportunities at holes three and four but putts slid by.
There was, however, a slice of fortune to come at the par-four 6th. After another birdie on the 5th, Willett then went right with a drive and took a provisional ball. His first, however, was playable – sitting up relatively well in the semi-rough just one foot in from a treacherous gorse bush. He took full advantage, pitching to 25 feet and saving par.
Willett was to take the outright lead on the 9th. An arrow-straight tee shot split the fairway but his wedge into the green left him a 20ft putt for birdie. He was visibly vexed but his frustration turned to elation as the putt rattled into the cup and the watching grandstand roared.
Down the stretch there were bogeys on the 15th and the Road Hole, the ominous 17th at which Willett three-putted, arguably his biggest mistake of the day. But a reprieve came on the last, following a fierce drive and solid wedge before a 15ft putt for birdie.
“I said yesterday, it could be Armageddon today, and it was this morning,” he added. “Luckily we didn’t have to play in the rain. But you don’t know around this place, it could blow through. You wake up in the morning, it could be fine. It could be pumping.
“I’m sure Yorkshire won’t put too much pressure on me. It’s good fun. Like I said, you look at the leaderboard and you’re a bit nervous and whatever, you’re bound to be, but it’s actually fantastic.”
