Chris Simmons shares his experience of caddying for Matt Jordan at Royal Troon
Going back to The Open, and Royal Troon, was a fantastic experience.
My first major as a caddy was the 2016 Open at Troon, and eight years on the event is so much bigger in terms of infrastructure and experience.
It was great to be back at the big show of the British summer and while I can admit now that I was a bit out of my depth in 2016, going back as an established caddy allowed me to enjoy it properly.
While there’s a lot going on, I must give a shout out to The Open Clubhouse for the players and caddies. For a temporary structure, it’s incredible. The concierge, locker room, barber, café, dining… being in there is one of the best parts of the year.
The crowds were so big this year too, which made it so cool to be among the action on the weekend. Having played in lots of the quieter events outside of Europe, it’s fantastic to have so much atmosphere. The roars are incredible when you’re among those grandstands, while the oohs are equally loud when a ball trickles into a pot bunker.
On the course, this year was very much a working week, even more so than last year’s Open. We’ve been looking forward to Troon for a long time and did our scouting trip well in advance. Using that as a starting point, we were totally dialled into the normal processes – unlike Hoylake where Matt was guiding me around a lot more given how well he knew the course. While my prep was the same for both events, he just didn’t need it as much at Hoylake.
Last year was my best finish in a major as a caddy, and it was a breeze compared to this year! We were knackered by Sunday night having had to concentrate non-stop in some brutal conditions.
Adding wind and rain to the difficulty of Royal Troon made it so hard, and we both had to be dialled in for every minute of every round. On Saturday, the weather was simply incredible – that back nine was as brutal as it looked! Several par fours were out of reach in two – we laid up at the 11th, hit four-iron into 12 rather than a flick wedge, and we couldn’t reach the 15th. Add in being soaked through to our bones and it was one of the toughest days I’ve ever had on a golf course.
Matt did so well last year and while he didn’t need to prove anything, I think it will do him a great deal of good to back up a top-10 in a major at his home club with one away from home.
He was buzzing to shoot four level-par rounds at The Open. Given the weather, it was an impressive result. It’s also great to be booked into Portrush for next year, which I’m sure will be as incredible as it was in 2019. We’ve got some great vibes to take into the final part of this season too, and we’re looking forward to building on a big week with another one.
