Bob MacIntyre calls for The Open to be held 'more in Scotland'
Defending Dunhill Links champion hails Carnoustie and Muirfield as ‘proper championship tests’
Bob MacIntyre has called for The Open to be played more in Scotland after only getting to tee up twice in the Claret Jug event on home soil in his ten-year professional career.
The Oban man finished joint-sixth on his debut at Royal Portrush in 2019 before chalking up another top-ten effort at the County Antrim venue in 2025.
In between those efforts, he tied for eighth at Royal St George’s in 2021 then finished joint-31st in The 150th edition at St Andrews in 2022.
In the 2023 event, held at Royal Liverpool, MacIntyre ended up joint-34th before having to settle for T50 at Royal Troon the following year.
His most recent outing was then back south of the Border again at Royal Birkdale, where he finished in a tie for 28th behind Kiwi Ryan Fox.
Next year’s 155th Open is at St Andrews before the event returns to Royal Lytham in 2028 for the first time since 2012.
Muirfield, where the event was last held in 2013, is waiting to find out when it will return to the rota while the world’s oldest championship hasn’t been held at Turnberry since 2009.
In a pre-Alfred Dunhill Links Championship press conference at St Andrews on Wednesday, defending champion MacIntyre was asked specifically about The Open being back at Carnoustie but offered a wider view in response.
“That would be brilliant,” he said of the prospect of the Angus venue, where he plays his opening round on Thursday, staging The Open again, having last done so when Francesco Molinari created history as the first Italian to get his hands on the Claret Jug. Proper test of golf.
“I feel like there's not enough Open Championships in Scotland anymore. It's only coming here (St Andrews). Carnoustie, Muirfield, I'd love to see them all in it, proper championship tests.”
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