It’s not a common scene, even in St Andrews. You’re 14 and get home from school, and mum says there’s been a phone call, something about playing with Paul Lawrie…
But sure enough Alasdair McDougall found himself on the first tee of the Old Course on Thursday morning with the 1999 Open champion and the Netherlands’ Joost Luiten playing in the £3.2 million Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.
The New Club member from Drumoig won the St Andrews Junior Golf Association Order of Merit this year, which also carries with it a place on the reserve list for the Dunhill should any of the amateurs pull out but Alasdair was blissfully unaware of this.
”I knew nothing about it until I got in from school and there was a phone call about playing in the Dunhill,” he said after finishing his opening round yesterday evening. ”I was pretty nervous on the first tee this morning but once the first shot was away I settled down pretty quickly.”
Alasdair has played the Old Course many times as a resident player with a two-over 74 his best, and he was fairly disappointed with his seven-over score. Nevertheless, he made regular contributions to he and Luiten’s team score of five-under, which leaves them six off the lead in the team event.
Alasdair continued: “Tee to green I was really good and my driving particularly, but I three-putted four times. Paul and Joost were really good with me, helping me on the greens.
”I’ve never played Kingsbarns and Carnoustie before so the next couple of days are going to be interesting, but I’m having a great time.”
Lawrie, who shot a one-under 71, was impressed with Alasdair’s performance.
The former Open champion said: ”He did really well. It can’t be easy when you’re only 14 and playing in such a big event as this he must have been pretty nervous on the first tee. His etiquette on the course was fantastic.”
Lawrie is an honorary president of SALJGA, has his own foundation in the North East, and puts much of his time into supporting junior golf.
”If Alasdair was in north east we’d have him in the foundation in a shot,” he added.