At 9:30pm on a Friday night at The Open, things can often be fairly low key.
The stands are emptying, the wheelie bins are being emptied too, and the late finishers in round two tend to be greeted by the kind of modest yet appreciative applause you’d get when a professor takes to the lectern to deliver a lecture on the movement of sand dunes.
Friday night was no ordinary Friday, of course. As the Bryson DeChambeau penalty incident unravelled, and the American continued his heated exchanges with officials in an R&A office, Jack McDonald emerged from a neighbouring recording hut and must have wondered what the heck was happening as he walked towards a vast throng of the world’s media assembled nearby.
The Scotsman had made the cut on the one-over limit after a battling round which included a pitch in for an eagle from 115-yards on his 10th hole. Surely this wasn’t global news, was it?
“I was thinking, ‘if somebody wants to talk to me, fine’,” he said with a chuckle as he reflected on this bewildering sight. “I had no idea what was going on.”
The media masses, of course, were waiting on an update about DeChambeau. Well, apart from the Scottish scribblers who still wanted a quick word with McDonald amid this rules-related farrago.
Less than 12 hours after finishing his second round in the gloaming, McDonald was back on Royal Birkdale’s first tee in the opening two-ball of round three.
“I couldn’t really sleep and it felt like I may have got an hour or something,” added the Ayrshireman with a yawn after posting a three-over 73 for a four-over aggregate.
A couple more rounds in The Open wasn’t a bad way to spend a weekend.
“Hitting the first tee-shot of round three was pretty cool,” added the former Walker Cup player.
With the final round to come, McDonald will continue to savour the experience. He’ll also be handsomely rewarded too.
The 33-year-old is guaranteed to shove a cheque for at least £29,300 into this back pocket.
Whatever he takes home, it will be the biggest prize of his professional career. McDonald’s previous best was around £19,000 for a runners-up placing in the Finnish Challenge on the second-tier HotelPlanner Tour in 2023.
Since then, McDonald, who narrowly missed the cut on his Open debut at Troon in 2024, has stepped back from touring golf to focus on his PGA training under head pro David Orr at the Whitecraigs club on Glasgow’s southside.
The Open has stirred the golfing senses like nothing else, but the Scot, who still keeps his competitive hand in on the domestic Tartan Tour, is more than content with his new day job.
“No, no, I've made that decision,” he said when asked if will ever give full-time playing another crack.
“I don't want to go down that route. I'm happy and content the way everything is just now.”
As he did in 2024, McDonald earned his Open spot this week through a 36-hole qualifier at Dundonald Links. Roll on next year’s qualifying shoot-out?
“Playing in The Open is the pinnacle of the sport for me,” he said. “It’s been amazing to be in the field again.
“This will always be a goal. I'll always want to keep my game in good shape so I can try to get back into an Open.
“David (Orr) been very good with me. That was part of the reason of going to Whitecraigs. He's an ex-player as well, so he still encourages me to keep playing, which is brilliant for me.
“My focus was final qualifying and getting through that. I’ll continue to do that.”
When McDonald finishes his closing round today, takes one last gulp of the invigorating Open air and then heads up the road again, it will be back to reality.
“I’m working in the pro shop on Tuesday,” he said with a smile. A golfing life goes on.
