The first hole here at Royal Portrush is called Hughie’s. For The Open, it could be re-named Heebie-jeebies.
“That was probably up there with the most nervous I’ve ever been,” said Scotland’s teenage debutant, Connor Graham, of an eye-opening experience that can shred those nerves with the pulverising efficiency of a threshing machine.
With out of bounds down the left, out of bounds down the right and thousands of eyes peering on, it’s not the place for the faint-hearted.
Graham stood firm, though, and smacked his 3-wood safely away. He could breathe out. “I was just glad to be able to be in play after the tee shot,” he said with a grin.
The 18-year-old would go on to post a two-over 73 which was a decent effort on a demanding day.
By the time, Robert MacIntyre marched off the 18th with the clock tick-tocking towards 9pm, rounds had crept up to the six-hour mark.
“I thought six hours in a practice round the other day was a long time,” said the world No 14. “I didn't think it would be be six hours in a tournament.
“We couldn't have gone any faster. I was speaking there to the guys (recorders), and they're saying pretty much everybody's five hours 55. I guess golf courses are too long.”
That’s an on-going debate for another day. Not when the newspaper deadlines were looming.
Despite appearing in the upper echelons of the leaderboard during the outward half of his round - he was three-under after eight - MacIntyre eventually had to settle for a level-par 71.
There may have been some frustrations, as well as the odd profanity that had the television commentators pleading for forgiveness from Ofcom, but MacIntyre was pretty happy with his prolonged shift at the Portrush office. He should put in a claim for overtime to the R&A.
“I got off to the perfect start,” reflected MacIntyre in his pre-supper summing up. “I was three-under early doors and playing beautifully. Then there were just a couple of awkward tee shots and a couple of awkward approach shots for me.
“So, it was a disappointing finish but to get out with level-par is solid enough.”
A vast two-putt on the 18th to save his par was a tidy way to finish a round that could’ve got away from him.
“The way I was scrambling late on, over the last four holes, I would have taken level-par,” added MacIntyre, who finished in a share of sixth at Royal Portrush on his Open debut back in 2019.
“I didn't hole any putts. But I didn't hit any wild shots either. The two-putt on the last was a good one. Overall, it was just a bit middle of the road today.
“But I thought I managed to keep a lid on it fairly well. There were a couple of swears out there. But it's difficult. There are so many cross-winds on this golf course.”
Some tactical tinkering with a couple of his clubs, meanwhile, didn’t have the desired effect.
“For the first time in absolute donkeys, I've changed my rescue club for a 3-iron, and I actually felt like I needed my rescue a few times off the tee today,” he added.
“But that's the way it goes. Hopefully I can go out in round two and post a good number.”
MacIntyre’s young compatriot, Graham, gave himself plenty to build on ahead of an early rise for his 6:45am second round tee-time.
After those aforementioned nerves, the former Junior Open champion settled into the biggest occasion of his career and made a fine account of himself in the company of the 2018 Open champion, Francesco Molinari.
Graham came within a whisker of a memorable moment on the 17th when his flick with a wedge from 70 yards for his second shot almost dropped into the cup.
“I had made a few silly mistakes on that back-nine and but that shot hit the hole and left me with a nice tap-in birdie,” added the former Walker Cup player of that late flourish.
“It was really difficult, that front nine. It was blowing pretty hard, then the rain came down for the first seven, eight holes. You definitely had to play good golf or else it could get away from you pretty quickly.”
As 10pm loomed, it became something of a charge of the fading light brigade for the remaining Scots. Cameron Adam, the Royal Burgess amateur, also posted a two-over card while Perth’s Danny Young, another Open debutant, had to settle for a four-over 75.
Young had been making decent progress at one-over heading to the 17th but he made a double-bogey on the penultimate hole then stumbled to a bogey on the last.
Nobody said playing in an Open was easy.
