Adam Scott believes his late meltdown at last year’s Open Championship has made him a stronger player ahead of this week’s event at Muirfield.
After a number of near-misses, the Australian went agonisingly close to claiming his first major at Royal Lytham, only to bogey his final four holes and allow Ernie Els to take the title by a shot.
However, he has since broken his duck, beating Angel Cabrera in a tense play-off at the Masters in April and will begin the tournament on Thursday as one of the favourites to be holding the Claret Jug on Sunday evening.
The victory at Augusta has visibly lifted Scott, who for years had failed to deliver the type of results his prodigious talent deserved which had led to his doubters questioning his ability to cope with pressure, with it being widely suggested he wasn’t mentally strong enough to win one of the game’s biggest prizes.
The 33-year-old admits last year’s failure in Lancashire had a big impact on him but says the experience helped him toughen up and is looking forward to trying to go one better this time around.
“This really has been the tournament I have been looking forward to most this year, there’s no doubt, for obvious reasons,” Scot said. “After what happened at Lytham I was eager to get back and try to get in another position to win a Claret Jug.
“It was a completely different feeling at Augusta but I felt like I played tough, especially in the play-off, because no one is going to give you a major.”
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