BBC Images From Castle Stuart

Thanks to reader Brian for this BBC image gallery of the Thursday scene at Castle Stuart and the Scottish Open. I arrive tomorrow and can't wait to see the course.

Here's Martin Dempster's Scotsman game story on Francesco Molinari's stunning opening round 62.

Westwood Injures Himself In On-Course Slip

From an unbylined wire report, and just twelve days before the Open for the top title contender.

He was walking to the first tee in the third round of the Alstom French Open at Paris' Le Golf National.

"I was talking to Richard Sterne's caddie and not looking where I was going," Westwood told Sky Sports. "I slipped on wooden sleepers down the side of the cart path. My left foot went forward about two feet and my right foot stayed where it was.

"It left like I strained something at the top of my right leg and tweaked my right knee as well. I didn't really have much confidence in it and as the round went on I just kept stretching my groin out. It seems to have eased off but I am still a little bit wary of it. I felt if I stopped it might make it worse by seizing up, so I thought it was better to keep it moving.

The Critics Have Spoken: Royal Portrush Deserves An Open Championship ASAP

James Donaldson broke through to win his first European Tour event but was overshadowed by the stunning success of Royal Portrush and the supportive galleries.

James Corrigan in the Telegraph:

The Royal & Ancient observers can’t have failed to have been impressed by the numbers, commitment and course. Let us pray this wonderful venue soon appears on the Open roster. It deserves it; Portrush deserves it.

BBC's Mark Simpson was a bit more skeptical, though he noted the biggest questions had been answered:

But transport links coped remarkably well with the golf fan invasion, despite frequent cloud bursts.

So has Royal Portrush done enough to clinch the British Open? Too early to say.

More questions need to be answered about the course's ability to cope with the biggest tournament in European golf.

Alistair Tait was more definitive in his assessment:

This felt like an Open Championship. The event ran without a hitch, and was a fantastic test run for a future Open.

The first available slot for the game’s oldest tournament is 2017. The R&A should seriously consider Royal Portrush again. The course deserves it, the fans will support it and it would be a fantastic Open venue.

Brandon Tucker also declared it a victory for those hoping to see the Open Championship return to Northern Ireland for the first time since 1951, but he leaves the last word to winner Donaldson.

"I don't think we've ever played a better golf course on the European Tour," said Donaldson. "It's that good. The course is incredible. The crowds are unbelievable."

The European Tour website has a nice Getty image gallery from the week, including a few nice scene shots capturing the huge crowds like the one embedded above.

Update on 2012-07-02 04:19 by Geoff

**Dermot Gilleese with all sorts of interesting behind the scenes info on what plays into Portrush hosting an event and getting an Open.

While the tournament was still taking competitive shape, that objective had already been richly realised. It was achieved through the extraordinary enthusiasm of spectators who clearly adopted Kenny McDowell's philosophical attitude towards often cruel conditions. Having come to honour their golfing heroes in an event they had waited years to stage, they weren't about to let wind and rain deflect them from relishing every moment.

And their enthusiasm spilled over the fairway ropes. "I've been very pleasantly surprised at the warmth of the crowd, given that I'm in Graeme's back yard," said Pádraig Harrington. "By turning out in such numbers, they have ensured that the Irish Open will be classified in future by the players and public as very definitely an 'A' event."

All of which came at a considerable cost to the host club. "We've been closed totally for three weeks," said secretary/manager Wilma Erskine. "And we didn't take any new visitor bookings since last January. Then there are lost sales in the pro shop and a drop in the bar and catering, all of which would come to around £200,000.

"But I believe it's money well spent. In fact, it's fantastic value when you consider the television exposure, especially in America, which is why we wanted the tournament in the first place. In the meantime, the guaranteed success of the event through advance ticket sales has already brought increased business for the next six months, which are fully booked.

"And we should continue to benefit from the Irish Open factor over the next few years when we would expect our world ranking to go up as a much sought-after venue."

Against the background of Irish Open costs, one imagined possible concern at the sort of outlay involved in bringing the Open Championship back to Portrush. "In that event, the Royal and Ancient would carry the financial can for everything," she replied.

Update on 2012-07-02 15:10 by Geoff

**In Golf World Monday, John Huggan suspects the low scoring may give the R&A reason to pause.

So Far, So Good With The Portrush Audition

Alistair Tait, reporting from the Irish Open at Royal Portrush where the Open Championship has not been played since 1951, says the players are giving the course rave reviews despite facing an unusually soft links due to heavy rains.

“It would be great for an Open Championship,” two time Open champion Padraig Harrington said. “It’s awesome. It is a joy to play this golf course. It’s got a lot of testing golf shots on it but it also gives you something when you hit a good shot.”

Anyone who questioned whether or not the Northern Irish would support big time golf only had to turn up at Portrush to find the answer. It is a resounding yes. But that’s always been the case. They turned up in thousands when the 2007 Walker Cup was played at Royal County Down. And that was before the economic downturn.

“For the crowds to turn out in the middle of a recession, pay big money like they are paying makes me proud to be Irish,” Paul McGinley said. “We go to a lot of countries around the world, a lot wealthier than Ireland and not going through the economic downturn that we are in, and yet we have record sell outs here.”

Tait also says the R&A has been present, scouting out the logistics. Let's hope the low scoring is not a deterrent.

'05 Video Flashback: Rory On His Portrush 61

Thanks to Paul Mahoney for Tweeting this YouTube clip of Rory McIlory, off to a nice start at Royal Portrush in the 2012 Irish Open, talking about his course record 61 there.

Getting In The Mood: Royal Portrush Edition

The Irish Open returns to one of the world's great courses in Royal Portrush this week, with a solid field that includes 10 major winners, including Rory McIlroy, Padraig Harrington, Graeme McDowell and Keegan Bradley. This is also an opportunity for Portrush to show the R&A if it's capable of hosting another Open Championship, which last visited Northern Ireland in 1951.

Golf Channel will be airing coverage in the U.S. at 6 a.m. PT Thursday and Friday, and starting at 5:30 a.m. PT on the weekend. Whether you've been there or not, or just remember it from recent Senior Opens, it's a fantastic links worth watching.

Here's a European Tour preview story on the field and expected massive galleries.

Philip Reid explains the history of the event and its much anticipated return to the north.

In the years from 1927 to 1953, an informal rota of using courses North and South operated and, then, after a 10-year hiatus, the tournament returned (under the Carrolls International banner) and was played exclusively in the South (mainly at Woodbrook) before the Irish Open was properly revived in 1975.

Since then, 11 courses, all in the South, have played host to the championship  . . . and, so, its return to Northern shores, for the first time since Belvoir Park in 1953, is both apposite and timely.

Brian Keogh on the 100,000 plus expected for the week.

Deborah McAleese explains how Northern Ireland is preparing for the Queen's visit along with the Irish Open, and notes that Bill Murray is among those scheduled to play the pro-am.

The club has posted a couple of image galleries, with this excellent course overview and hole-by-hole option found in the lefthand column.

Ran Morrissett's GolfClubAtlas.com review has some super insights and images of the Dunluce course.

The club's member site also features this super newsreel video of Max Faulkner winning the Open Championship there in 1951.

Finally, there's an excellent Renton Laidlaw narrated "Hidden Links Golf Tours" video that is just under four minutes and tremendous fun, including a tour inside the Doctor's Locker, a look at one of golf's great halfway houses (but not halfway on the course), and plenty of fun course insights.

News Of The Weird Dept: Euro Tour Caddie Caught Discarding 15th Club In Bush

An unbylined Sky Sports report on an unnamed caddie for Jose Manuel Lara attempting to conceal an extra club and getting noticed by playing partners. Lara shot 69 but was DQ'd.  The Euro Tour's John Paramor explains:

"He was seen entering the bush with the bag of clubs by his playing partners (Ireland's Damien McGrane and Swede Peter Hedblom), who thought it was a little bit suspicious.

"They went and asked the chap 'What are you doing?' and he sort of fumbled out an answer saying 'I've got this wrong - I've done something bad. I wish it hadn't happened, etc etc'.

"It was clear the club was out of the bag and in the bush at the time. He admitted it straight away and regretted his action.

"A ruling was sought over what was the penalty for carrying an extra club and he was given two shots for the first hole and two for the second."

There is video of John Paramor talking about the incident here.

The Much Vaunted World Record For A Golf Ball Landing In Speeding Car While Cameras Look On, Has Been Broken

Or is it paid for and then established?

Anyway, if you have five minutes of your life to give away for a clever Mercedes Benz ad, check out Formula 1's David Coulthard and pro-golfer Jake Shepherd trying to hit and land a golf ball in a AMG Roadster travelling at 178 mph. Thanks to reader Greg for this.