When you start to make a name for yourself in the world of professional golf, the increased demands, requests, duties and requirements are, well, par for the course. Interviews here, media thingymebobs there, corporate whatdoyoucallthems everywhere? Before you know it, you’re being approached on all sides by the kind of pincer movement that used to lead to the encirclement of infantry on the Eastern front.
“It’s still a bit strange,” admitted Robert MacIntyre of the growing hoo-ha and hullabaloo that continues to surround the canny Oban left-hander in his rookie campaign on the European Tour. “The other day I did my first shot clinic on Sky Sports which was a bit different. You have to hit shots on demand in front of the camera and you’re thinking ‘whoa, hold up there’. It was all good though.”
MacIntyre, who was embroiled in action at this weekend’s Irish Open at Lahinch, continues to thrive under the spotlight. The irony, of course is that one of his best shots of the season – a raking approach which set up a charging eagle on the penultimate hole of May’s British Masters and led to the first of two successive runners-up finishes on the main circuit – was actually missed by the TV cameras. Not to worry. Hopefully, there’s plenty more eye-catching moments to come.
This week, MacIntyre’s shimmering summer schedule sees him make his debut in the Aberdeen Standard Investments Scottish Open at The Renaissance. The following week, the 22-year-old has a maiden major appearance to look forward to in the Open itself at Royal Portrush.
READ MORE: MacIntyre is a work in progress, but what progress he is making
For the home-based touring pros, the Scottish showpiece always stirs the senses and rouses the spirits. As a starry-eyed boy growing up, MacIntyre and his family would often make the scenic trek down the A82 from Oban to Loch Lomond in the years when the Scottish Open was regularly staged on those bonnie banks.
“I used to be one of those wee boys at the side of the 18th asking for balls and autographs,” reflected MacIntyre of those youthful days of wonder. “As a lefty, I was always trying to get Phil Mickelson’s ball. I never did. Maybe I’ll see him at the Open? It’s funny how quickly things have changed, though, and I’ve had to do a few autographs myself. If you’d told me back then that by the age of 22, I’d be on the tour, with a couple of runners-up finishes and looking forward to the Scottish Open and the Open, I’d have just laughed at you.
“It’s a great schedule coming up. To be in this position, with my tour card already wrapped up, I can just enjoy everything about it. Other than the majors, the Scottish Open is the ultimate event for me. I’ll go there and I’ll feel free. There’s nothing to lose and all to gain. Every Scottish player is dying to win that one.”
MacIntyre’s progress in the professional game has been well-documented and rightly championed. A young Scottish rookie stepping on to the main tour, finding his feet quickly and actually thriving is as rare an occurrence as Halley’s Comet hurtling down the 17th at Glencruitten, after all.
It wasn’t that long ago that MacIntyre was a student at McNeese State University in Louisiana. He completed a year-and-a-half of a four year scholarship but, with a single-mindedness that continues to stand him in good stead, he decided academia was getting in the way of his ultimate ambitions.
“Don’t get me wrong, it would’ve been nice to get a degree but the school work was taking over my golf,” said MacIntyre, who notched up a win and two second places on the ultra-competitive US college circuit. “I have no regrets about going there. The US helped my golf. I went from outside the top 600 on the world amateur rankings to inside the top 50. It made me a better all round golfer. I learned how to play target golf as well as playing the type of golf we get back here. It’s a different environment. You have to learn how to go low out there and that was a big help.
"I played events with Jon Rahm and guys like that and the standard was very high. You have to shoot some great scores to compete. At the end of the day, though, I desperately wanted to become a professional golfer. To keep my golf going forward I needed to do something. So I came home. In golf you have to be single-minded and be comfortable with your own decisions. It’s worked out okay.”
READ MORE: Scots duo qualify for the Open
Having earned over £650,000 in prize money already this season, the trips to the ATM are a bit different to what they used to be for MacIntyre. “It’s nice looking at the bank account,” he said with a chuckle. “Barely six months ago, I was probably struggling to buy people birthday presents. Now I’m like ‘christ, I can go and get one of those things if I want’. I won a diamond necklace (worth £20,000) at the British Masters but claimed the store credit instead. I bought myself and all my family new watches. It’s nice to be able to do a thing like that.”
From a wee lad jostling with the other young dreamers at the Scottish Open, MacIntyre is now living the dream. “I just about pinch myself every day,” he said.
It’s not a bad old life.
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