Staffordshire's Robert Rock could be on a roll to The Open
Staffordshire golfer Robert Rock is targeting a second major appearance in as many months after making it through to final qualifying for the Open Championship.
Rock, who retired from playing full-time at the end of 2022, is among 100 players who made it through to next Tuesday’s deciding round after shooting a three-under par 67 to finish tied for third in the regional qualifier at Derbyshire’s Kedleston Park course.
It leaves the 47-year-old well placed to continue a renaissance which has already exceeded expectations, after he qualified for last month’s US Open.
Rock, a two-time winner on the European tour during his career, had not played a competitive round for nearly two years when he made it through final qualifying for that event.
He was then tied for 16th place on the leaderboard after shooting a level par 70 for his first round at Pinehurst.
Though he could not sustain his challenge in the second round and eventually missed the cut, he remains in strong form.
“I played really well and was really sharp but it took a lot out of me. I haven’t tried that hard in years,” said Rock about his experience in the US. “We don’t have anything (in Europe) that comes close to that in terms of difficulty.
“But it was such a great experience. I normally can’t wait to get away from a tournament but we stayed until the Monday.”
Nearly 2,000 golfers competed on 15 courses in Monday’s regional qualifying round for The Open. Final qualifying takes place on four courses across England and Scotland with a minimum of 16 places in the tournament up for grabs.
This year’s Open Championship takes place at Royal Troon from July 18 to 21.
