Of all the recent traditions in the Royal & Ancient (R&A) game, what Brian Harman took part in on Monday afternoon might be the least enjoyable — returning the claret jug.
The formal handover of The Open Championship trophy required a little pomp. Harman was in the back seat of a sport utility vehicle. The destination was not much longer than the 40-foot (12m) birdie putt he made last year on the 14th hole on his way to winning The Open.
However, he had to wait for the film crew to be set, for the traffic on the road to clear.
Photo: AFP
“It’s all yours,” Harman told R&A CEO Martin Slumbers, who took back golf’s oldest trophy that apparently has seen its share of the finest wine and bourbon in the year since Harman won at Royal Liverpool.
Harman is a straight shooter — with a rifle, with his mouth and last year with his putter — but a staged moment as this did not bother him.
“In my opinion, it’s the coolest trophy in all of sports,” Harman said. “So I think it’s deserving of all of the pageantry that’s involved with it.”
Getting it back by the end of the week is the real challenge.
The homecoming of the claret jug was an unofficial way to launch the start of the final men’s major of the year.
The 152nd Open Championship begins tomorrow on the Scottish links along the Firth of Clyde on the Irish Sea.
No one has won back-to-back in The Open since Padraig Harrington in 2007 (Carnoustie) and 2008 (Royal Birkdale). Go back to 1960 and the list of repeat winners includes only Tiger Woods, Tom Watson, Lee Trevino and Arnold Palmer.
“A little sad to give it back, but I’ll remember everywhere it’s been forever,” Harman said. “I’m happy to give it back, happy to be here. Ready to get going.”
He took the jug to Georgia Bulldogs football and Atlanta Braves baseball games. He took it everywhere he could, a reminder of reaching the pinnacle of his sport.
“You never know how it’s going to go, but just the reception from everyone back home was overwhelming, just how excited everyone was,” he said. “I was obviously very excited, but to be able to share that excitement with people that I care about was probably the best.”
Taiwan’s C.T. Pan is to compete in The Open after earning a berth with a second-place finish at the John Deere Classic earlier this month.
Additional reporting by staff writer
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