TROON, Scotland — Max Homa watched the 30-foot birdie putt drop in the cup and let out a huge roar, his biggest celebration since his strong Ryder Cup debut last year at Marco Simone.
The occasion? Two more days at the Open Championship. And while he was still 13 shots behind, it was a big moment to at least have something go his way for the first time since April.
“Just been really not playing very well, and golf has not been very fun,” Homa said.
He was among those in contention on the back nine at the Masters in April, and the Californian looked to be on the verge to taking another big step in his career. He has had only one top 10 since then, In the majors, he was middle-of-the-pack at the PGA Championship and he missed the cut at the U.S. Open.
“I’ve been doing a poor job mentally,” Homa said. “I just felt like today for one of the first times maybe ever I just never really flinched, never blinked. I played 16 really good holes and just made two really bad swings.”
Those bad swings cost him in a big way — a double bogey on the par-3 fifth hole, a tee shot out of play on the tough 12th that led to triple bogey. It looked certain to be a weekend off until two birdies on the last three holes, none bigger than the 18th.
“Maybe I’m just proud of myself,” he said. “This is my favorite tournament in the world. So to have the chance to potentially play two more days, I don’t know, I had an out-of-body experience. I didn’t really expect to yell like I won a golf tournament.
“It just felt really good. I felt like I fought all day.”
GOING HOME EARLY
It’s usually newsworthy when a highly-ranked player misses the cut in a major. There was plenty to choose from Friday at Royal Troon.
Four of the top 10 players in the world missed the cut — Rory McIlroy, Bryson DeChambeau, Ludvig Aberg and Wyndham Clark.
And it didn’t stop there. Also going home early were Tommy Fleetwood and Tom Kim, Sahith Theegala and Tony Finau, and newly appointed Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley.
Fleetwood was asked to reflect on his round, and he could have been speaking for all of them.
“It’s a missed cut, isn’t it?” he said. “And it’s a weekend where I don’t get to play golf and have a chance.”
ANATOMY OF AN 8 ON NO. 8
It’s a good thing Joaquin Niemann isn’t wasting time wondering what could have been. He had six birdies in some of the toughest conditions. He made only one bogey. It added to an even-par 71. And those five unaccounted shots came from one hole.
Niemann found himself in all three bunkers that surround the tiny “Postage Stamp” green at the 123-yard eighth hole.
Off the tee, he found the bunker on the right. He blasted out to the pin on the other side of the green, hit it too hard and it went in the coffin bunker. It took him two tries to get out, and the second shot went into a front bunker.
Niemann finally got it on the green, and then three-putted from 20 feet for his 8.
“On the second bunker, I had a great lie and I thought I was going to be able to pull off the shot. I ended up being in my own divot,” he said. “So from there, I just tried to get it in play and ended up in another bunker.”
As for the three-putt?
“I was a little bit out of focus,” he said.
But oh, what a recovery. He made four birdies in a six-hole stretch to start the back nine, and now he’s right back in the championship.
“I was playing great before that. I started really good, and I started hitting all my golf shots,” Niemann said. “One hole is not going to change that.”
OLYMPICS ON TAP
Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood are turning their attention to the Paris Olympics after missing the cut at Troon. The men’s competition starts Aug. 1 at Le Golf National, where both players competed for Europe’s winning Ryder Cup team in 2018.
McIlroy and Fleetwood were at the Tokyo Games at the last Olympics. McIlroy was part of a seven-man playoff for the bronze that C.T. Pan won.
McIlroy said now that the majors have come and gone for him, he will “sort of refocus and try to reset for the Olympics, which will be another cool experience, and try to play well there.”
Fleetwood won the 2017 French Open title at the Golf National course.
“Hopefully, I can get my game in better shape and go in and win a medal,” he said.
DIVOTS
For all the attention on players who missed the cut, Rickie Fowler should not be overlooked. He birdied three of his last five holes for a 69 to make the cut on the number. … Hideki Matsuyama is among 13 players who made the cut in all four majors. Xander Schauffele, the PGA champion, is tied for seventh. He has finished in the top 10 at all four majors this year. … John Daly (swollen knee) and Ernie Els withdrew before the second round started. … Four amateurs made the cut, led by Calum Scott of Scotland at 4-over 146. He plays at Texas Tech.
