Colin Montgomerie relishes hitting opening tee shot at The Open
By Ali Stafford at Royal Troon
Last Updated: 11/07/16 8:18pm
Colin Montgomerie is excited about the prospect of getting The Open under way and feels he can benefit from an early start at Royal Troon.
The 53 year old, who is an honorary member at the Ayrshire course, will be part of Open history on Thursday when he hits the opening tee shot at 6.35am, broadcast live for the first time as part of Sky Sports' round-the-clock coverage.
Montgomerie came through qualifying at Gailes Links to secure his place in the Open field for the first time since 2010, giving the Scot one last chance to play his home course.
The three-time senior major champion tees off alongside last year's runner-up Marc Leishman and former world No 1 Luke Donald for the first two days, with Montgomerie looking to take advantage from the early conditions.
"It is an honour, there is no question," Montgomerie told Sky Sports. "Any time you have the opportunity to play at your own course is fantastic.
"This is my last time playing here, as when The Open next comes here I will be 65 and out of the game.
"Will there be people watching at 6.35am? I hope so. I have two good people to play with in Marc Leishman and Luke Donald, so there will be people watching them as well as me.
"It's a very good time to play, as the wind usually picks up around 11 or 12 o'clock and we'll be off the course by then. If you want a good score, everyone says get off early and there's no earlier than 6.35 in the morning!
"I look forward to walking around here for hopefully four more rounds, but even if it's only two rounds then it will still be a bonus."
Watch the Open throughout the week live on Sky Sports. Daily preview shows are live from Royal Troon on Monday to Wednesday, ahead of full coverage getting underway from 6.30am on Thursday.
