Pressure, what pressure? The weight of expectation on him could probably buckle the Kessock Bridge but Russell Knox is taking all the hoopla surrounding his appearance in the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open at Castle Stuart in his stride. It seems there are far more important golfing matters in the family this week.
“My dad is playing in the Inverness Golf Club Open and he’s way more intense than I am so I know he’s putting a lot of pressure on himself,” said Knox with a smile. “Hopefully we’ll both win this week.”
Back in his home city for a national championship in his own backyard, Knox, the highest ranked Scot in the world at No 27, is the man of the moment. He may be the nation’s current standard bearer on the global stage but the 31-year-old still likes to do a bit of star spotting of his own. “Colin Montgomerie was the guy for me and I loved watching him play,” said Knox of his decorated countryman who is also in the field for the domestic showpiece. “I never did get his autograph but I would like to.” If the mercurial Monty shoots a 78 tomorrow, Knox will probably have more chance of getting a signed photo from Nessie.
He’s won a WGC event, he’s played in majors and he’s trying to barge his way into the European team for September’s Ryder Cup but this particular homecoming will stir the senses. Asked of any abiding memories he has of his native Inverness, Knox recalled the day he “scored a great left footer of a goal for a team I played for at the Caley Stadium during a youth cup final.”
Here at Castle Stuart, it’s golfing goals that Knox will have in his sights. “I’ve been thinking about this tournament for maybe four or five years to be honest,” said Knox, who played in the Scottish Open when it was at Royal Aberdeen and Gullane but never in Inverness. “I was obviously very excited ahead of my Masters debut this year and if you had to pick one to win it would probably be the Masters. This would be a very close second, though.”
Knox’s rise from the mini circuits of the US to the main PGA Tour has been an uplifting tale of triumph, talent, dedication and drive. “It’s crazy,” reflected Knox, who earned promotion to the main circuit in 2011 and has established himself as a real global competitor. “The whole journey has been crazy. I just hope I never wake up and it keeps going. This is what I’ve been dreaming about my whole life and I’m not sure if you’re ever ready for it. You just have to do your best and go for it.”
Knox pursued the American dream and he is now reaping the rewards. “I can say, 100 per cent, that I wouldn’t be here right now if I didn’t go to the US,” said the Jacksonville resident of the myriad benefits of developing his game on the other side of the Atlantic.
Knox’s fellow highlander, Jimmy Gunn, made a similar trek across the pond to pursue his own golfing ambitions almost a decade ago. Gunn, who finished in the top 30 of the US Open last year, currently competes on the second-tier Web.com Tour and is back in the auld haunts o' hame this week for his first Scottish Open appearance. The 35-year-old from Dornoch played amateur county golf for the North with Knox back in the day and has watched with interest as his old friend has propelled himself into a different stratosphere.
“I actually caddied for Russell in a Web.com Tour event a few years ago,” recalled Gunn. “After seeing him play that week, I’m not surprised at all that he is where he is now and he’s a great inspiration to me.”
Knox described himself and Gunn as “fringe players” during their amateur careers. “I was on the outside and so was Jimmy,” he added. “Because of that we were like ‘hey, we’ve got to try something different, get out of here and go to the US.”
The Arizona sunshine is a bit different to the parkier climes of Inverness but Gunn is relishing the opportunity to make a name for himself in his homeland. He needs to acclimatise in more ways than one, mind you. “It’s funny because the first hole I played here I hit a 6-iron from 185 yards, which is a club more than I usually use in the US, and it still came up about 30 yards short,” said Gunn of the nuances of the links game. “I was like ‘oh yeah, I forgot about that’. I definitely have to make that transition.”
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