A double bogey on the final hole marred a turbulent opening round in Ireland – Lindell: “I hit the ball 108 metres with a 7-iron”
Oliver Lindell was just one hole away from a dream start to this season’s most competitive DP World Tour event, the Amgen Irish Open. The Finn was sitting in joint 6th place amongst an extremely strong field heading into the final hole, until the challenging links course proved its mettle for Lindell too. A double bogey on the final hole meant a round of 70 (par), leaving him tied for 35th place.
“It was well known that you mustn’t hit to the left on the final shot, and a bogey is the best you can hope for from there. I let the 5-iron run freely whilst I was feeling a bit too relaxed, and the shot came out a bit too straight, with the wind carrying the ball to the left. I should have ‘tensed up’ a bit more so that the ball would have curved to the right. With a perfect chip, the ball could have stayed on the green. These things are bound to happen here, no matter how hard you try to stay focused at all times,” said Lindell, describing the challenging final hole.
A par in stormy conditions is by no means a bad performance, but the double bogey came at the worst possible moment. Lindell has no intention of dwelling on it, however, and was generally satisfied with his opening day, which had dragged on for a very long time. The tee-off on the eighth hole was delayed for so long that Lindell’s tee group had time to enjoy an unusually long lunch break before teeing off.
“A really good day, considering the round took over six hours. There happened to be some food stalls next to the 8th fairway, so we popped in for a quick burger with the whole group. On both the fourth and eighth holes, there were three groups in the tee boxes at the same time. In strong winds, everything takes its toll – the balls were moving on the greens, for example. We were only just able to play. Towards the end of the front nine, we were certainly close to a suspension.”
The TV footage showed on several occasions that the players’ balls even started rolling as they putted. The strong wind therefore made it difficult not only to hit the ball but also to play on the greens. Lindell’s choice of clubs for his approach shots on the headwind-affected holes, where he scored birdies, was also telling.
“The conditions were dreadful out there. I hit my approach shots on the 14th and 17th holes with a 7-iron. They were 112 and 108 metres respectively. A par score, or better, was a good performance out there today. I kept my game well under control, but it certainly took its toll, as I wanted a good shot on the final hole and an easy chance at par, but the course punished me severely.”
Joaquin Niemann (-5) posted the best round of the day. Lindell is just three strokes behind the players tied for second place.
Lindell will start his second round on Friday at 10.30 Finnish time.