When the Open Championship begins at Royal Troon in two weeks, only 75 Spaniards will be able to boast of having played a Major in golf. Of all of them, only a handful will have done so before turning 20. Jaime Montojo will be one of them. From Madrid, from La Moraleja and happily enrolled at the University of Texas A&M since last year, the same one that Adri Arnaus or Nacho Elvira went through, among others, he achieved his qualification this Tuesday in the preliminary round held at Royal Cinque Ports.
“It’s been a very long day, I still can’t believe it, it’s amazing, I’m on cloud nine…”, he assured Ten Golf a couple of hours after finishing playing. We caught him in a restaurant, celebrating the success in a quiet but very emotional way, with his mother, Mar, the person who has accompanied him carrying the bag and with whom he has shared the best day of his life. “Without a doubt, by far. It’s the best because of what it means, it’s a dream to be able to play a British Open at 19,” he says. He says it like that, British Open, in the old-fashioned way, in the classic way.
As you can imagine, the experience is unbeatable: qualifying for a British at 19 and with his mother. “It’s the first time she’s been my caddie. However, she has told me that at Royal Troon she prefers not to carry the bag and just be a spectator,” he comments with a laugh. Whoever is in Jaime’s bag during the Open will be seen, but it is a true reflection of how much fun they have had and how rewarding it has been.
For Montojo, playing the Open preliminary was already a gift, a great experience from which he was sure to take many positive things, tons of learning, but don’t think he went to Royal Cinque Ports on holiday or to take pictures. “I had the clear idea that I could qualify. If I had a good day, why wouldn’t I get in. I knew it was possible, although right now I’m obviously on cloud nine,” he confesses.
Jaime ranks 100th in the world amateur ranking and three months ago he achieved his first victory in the United States. He won the Aggie Invitational, his university’s tournament. It seems he likes to do things big. “I started the spring a bit weak, but I’ve been improving. I managed to close the uni tournament and it was something beastly. The Nationals didn’t go very well for me, but I’m very happy there, with everything, the university, the team, the coaches…”.
As for the preliminary, the two keys were patience and the driver. “From the tee I’ve been very solid all day. It’s been a while since I felt so good with the drive. I started with two bogeys on the 4 and 5, but I took it easy because I knew it was a very long day. Also, on this course the holes from 1 to 9 go in one direction and from 10 to 18 go in the opposite direction (it happens on numerous links) and from 1 to 9 were the hardest because the wind was against all the time. I’ve been very patient and I’ve made some very good putts, which is key to getting through a preliminary,” he explains.
In this sense, we must remember the putt on hole 8, the penultimate of the day, the definitive one, the one that finally qualified him for the Open. “I had about nine meters, it fell a bit from the left, but in reality it was quite straight. I was quite convinced that I could make it. In the last holes I was quite nervous, I was looking at the live scoring all the time, but at the same time I was able to stay in the present. I’m very proud especially of the reaction after the bogey on hole 5, my hole 14 of the last round. I brought out all the claw there and I finished with two birdies that were key to getting in,” he points out.
Someone who knows this Major as the British Open is a person who has seen all the videos that exist of Seve Ballesteros in the British, obviously, although if he had to choose a specific memory, he remembers those July afternoons watching the tournament with his family in the afternoon cheering for Sergio García. This July, the one who will appear on TV will be Jaime. He, at least, will give his all to earn a few minutes of coverage.
