TROON, Scotland — Billy Horschel turned his career around, but not his fortunes at the majors.
The 37-year-old American led the British Open by one stroke going into Sunday’s final round at Royal Troon but it was countryman Xander Schauffele who claimed the prize.
His wait for a major championship continues.
“I’m disappointed. I should be disappointed. I had the chance to win a major tournament,” Horschel said. “I was in a very good position. I just didn’t play, I made too many mistakes today when I didn’t need to.”
Horschel shot a 3-under 68 and finished tied for second with Justin Rose at 7 under overall, two strokes behind the champion.
The day before, Horschel had been wearing his cap backwards to prevent rain from dripping off the visor as he prepared to shoot. On Sunday, however, the sky was clear.
Rose and Thriston Lawrence tied Horschel early Sunday before Schauffele pulled away on the back nine.
Horschel bogeyed the 10th hole (his third) which left him at par for the round.
“I started off really well, birdied the first hole. I hit a shot wide on hole 3 to make bogey, but came back with birdies on the 4th and 6th,” he said. “I just missed sinking a bunker shot on hole 5. I’ve had about six or seven of those this week, bunker shots and chips that just burned the rim.”
He said he “lost momentum on 8 and 10 with those two bogeys when Xander was making a runaway charge.” Schauffele “has taken his game to another level. He deserves to hold that claret jug right now.”
Fighting to the end is “in my DNA” and Horschel remains optimistic.
“I did a lot of cool things that I can take into the next few years of racing, and hopefully one of these will be my chance to walk through the door and do one of them.”
Great consolation
Dan Brown didn’t finish the way he wanted, but his bogey on the 18th hole for a 74 didn’t stop him from falling out of the top 10. And he unwittingly did Matthew Jordan and Adam Scott a favor.
Brown had to go through a 36-hole qualifying round to play his first major. By finishing in the top 10 at Royal Troon, he secured a place in next year’s Open at Royal Portrush. So did Jordan and Scott, who tied for 10th when Brown bogeyed.
This is the second consecutive year that Jordan has finished tied for 10th at the Open. Scott, meanwhile, qualified for this British Open by earning one of three spots at the Australian Open last December as part of the Open Qualifying Series.
The biggest consolation went to Thriston Lawrence, who finished fourth, which allows him to participate for the first time in next year’s Masters.
Portrush next
Of course, Shane Lowry can think of next year’s Royal Portrush, but he can’t help but think back to this weekend.
The Irishman, who won at Portrush five years ago, held a two-shot lead at the halfway point.
“Honestly, all week, the way I was playing, I thought I would go back to Portrush with the claret jug as well. That could be great. I was very confident in my game this week,” he said.
Lowry’s lead evaporated on Saturday and his final-round 68 was not enough.
Lowry’s next goal is the Paris Olympics: “I would love to win a medal for Ireland. Obviously I would like it to be gold, but I would probably take any of the three. So yeah, I’m really excited about it.”
Butcher shop
Robert MacIntyre has no deep thoughts on his performance at the British Open. He called it “an absolute massacre.”
MacIntyre had prioritised winning the Scottish Open, his home tournament, a week ago and was clear that there would be some celebrations, even if it meant being less prepared for the challenges of Royal Troon.
The 27-year-old Scot shot 3-over 74 on Sunday to finish his fifth British Open at 9-over par.
“This week, to be honest, has been forgotten, and last week is the one we will remember because there is no point in thinking about this one when it was a real massacre from start to finish,” he said. “The preparation has not been the best, obviously, after last week.”
His double bogey on the par-5 16th on Sunday summed up his week: “Brutally honest, terrible… We won’t be coming back here anytime soon.”
MacIntyre, who plays left-handed, improvised with a right-handed shot to try to get out of a tight spot on the 18th hole fairway on Saturday.
He claimed his first PGA Tour title at the Canadian Open in June before winning the Scottish Open.
“Physically I’m fine, but mentally I’m done,” MacIntyre said. “Sunday night probably took the edge off me. It was worth it. You have to celebrate the special victories. That was outrageous.”
First class fan
Calum Scott, who has one more year left at Texas Tech, won the silver medal as the lowest-scoring amateur.
“It’s one of the greatest honors you can win as an amateur,” Scott said.
Tiger Woods (1996), Rory McIlroy (2007) and Matt Fitzpatrick (2013) also won the award for best amateur.
Scott, 20, finished with a score of 8 over par. Walking across the 18th hole, he put his left hand over his eyes and waved to the stands.
“I got a little excited, but I still had two putts to hole,” he said.
He says Ludvig Aberg is one of his role models. They were teammates at Tech for two years.
After battling wind and rain in Troon, Scott might be happy to return to his hometown in the Scottish Highlands, Nairn. Visit Scotland calls it one of the “sunniest and driest places” in the country. Just like Lubbock, Texas.
AP Golf Writer Doug Ferguson contributed.
AP Golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
