Lee Westwood Qualifies for Open, Poulter & McDowell Left Out Lee Westwood qualifies for Open, Poulter & McDowell left out as Westwood overcame jet lag to secure his spot in The Open after two years away, winning his qualifier in Scotland. His LIV teammates Ian Poulter and Graeme McDowell, along with Poulter’s son Luke, couldn’t secure a place in this month’s final major. Westwood, 52, who has played in The Open 27 times, topped the leaderboard at Dundonald Links with seven under over 36 holes, flying in straight from Dallas after competing in a LIV Golf event. Westwood admitted the jet lag was tough, saying, “I’ve been up since half-past one this morning.” His move to LIV Golf limited his major qualifying options, making this effort important. He noted his strong finish at Royal Portrush in 2019, saying, “The Open Championship is the greatest tournament on the golfing calendar. I’m not getting any younger, I’m 52 now.”
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Poulter and Son Fall Short Ian Poulter kept some pride by finishing level with his 21-year-old son Luke at one under, despite trailing him most of the day. Luke started with a 67 but struggled with a 76 at Royal Cinque Ports, while Ian posted 72 and 71. McDowell also narrowly missed qualifying. Luke reflected, “I played good on the first 18, the last 18 not great.”
Other Top Performers in Qualifiers At Royal Cinque Ports, LIV’s Dean Burmester led with a stunning 64 in his second round, finishing 10 under, three clear of Nathan Kimsey and Curtis Knipes. Amateur Sebastian Cave and Denmark’s John Axelsen also earned qualification spots. At Dundonald, amateur Connor Graham won a playoff to qualify alongside Daniel Young, Angel Hidalgo from Spain, Jesper Sandborg from Sweden, and Westwood.
West Lancashire and Burnham & Berrow Highlights At West Lancashire, LIV golfer Lucas Herbert finished on top with eight under, beating China’s Sampson Zheng by one stroke. George Bloor of England took third, while Estonian amateur Richard Teder and Finland’s Oliver Lindell qualified after a four-man playoff, with Teder making history for Estonia. Ireland’s Ronan Mullarney and England’s Sam Bairstow missed out. England’s Jacob McGoldrick had a dramatic finish, hitting a hole-in-one on the 15th but missing the playoff after two late bogeys. At Burnham & Berrow, Justin Walters led at nine under, with Harry Hall, Jakob Skov Olesen, Frazer Jones, and OJ Farrell also qualifying for The Open.
