Bob MacIntyre no longer an ALIEN in America as Colin Montgomerie insists PGA display can make him Major contender

Colin Montgomerie knows Bob MacIntyre isn’t alien to strong Major showings.

But he says the Oban star’s pulsating PGA effort offers sure signs of life in terms of finally feeling some comfort in the United States. And Montgomerie is convinced it's another massive step towards future big-time success across the Atlantic. MacIntyre produced another terrific showing on the big stage with a third Top 10 finish.

The 27-year-old’s tied eighth at Valhalla is a huge shot in the arm for validation and belief. MacIntyre has spoken candidly about struggling to settle into PGA Tour life. The Scot admits it’s lonely at times away from his homeland and it was a recent three-week trip back to Oban that kickstarted his recent improvement.

Montgomerie knows the challenges as he said: “It is difficult living away from home. I was lucky in a way. I was away at Boarding School and then, of course, I had four years in America living away from home as well. So it wasn’t so new to me to be away from home and it has been difficult for Bob to adjust to American life. It’s not easy. You are treated, I hate to say, a wee bit of a foreigner. They used to call us aliens, didn’t they! When you used to go passport control, bloody aliens, hang on a minute!

“When you are not American, you are not part of the scene the same as it is at home. Hence his great success at the Scottish Open last year, he must have felt like: Oh my god, I’ve got this huge support here at The Renaissance Club and that isn’t forthcoming here in America. Things weren’t going well, he went home, came back and he has been different since then. So we just wish him well and let’s hope this performance in this particular Major, as he wasn’t in the Masters, gives him a real boost, and he can go forward now and feel like he belongs because that is the key thing.

“You want to check-in, when you register, you get the car and all the stuff you have to do, you have to feel that you belong. If he’s six-foot-one, you want to walk in six-foot-two and feel that space. That’s so important to him and, at the early season, that wasn’t happening to him. From now on, let’s hope that it does.”

Montgomerie believes MacIntyre has the game to be a consistent Major contender and added: “Well there’s one thing Bob does do well. He putts well.

"He holes out extremely well. He had issues at the start of his American performances, he wasn’t doing well and missed a number of cuts, six out of six or something.

“He had a big, big chance of winning, he was leading the tournament pre-PGA, so that gave him a boost of confidence that he needed to get. He needed that confidence to feel that he belonged in America and then he obviously took it into the PGA. And he’s done well in the Majors, he has. He has done extremely well.

“His record in The Open is good and other Majors as well, so he’s done extremely well and I think this will give him a boost to go forward now in America and really contend to win. It would be super to see and, if he can win in America, it would be super for him. That last week was good for him, very good for him. To be in contention, well done him. Yes the [Tiger] Woods and [Phil] Mickelson era is away, but it has been taken over by the Schefflers, the McIlroys, the Schaufelles. My god, that new breed has come through and it is difficult to win.”

Montgomorie is returning to Scotland in July for The 2024 Senior Open. He won’t try to qualify for the The Open at Royal Troon as he said: “We are playing The Senior US Open the week before and I don’t get back in time to give myself that opportunity. To be honest, I did it when I was 53 years old and managed to qualify. I would love to play, of course, but some of the new tees at Troon, I just keep walking backwards and backwards. It’s getting longer and longer.

“I want to bow out of The Open as I did. I was very proud to make the cut at Troon at 53 having qualified, so I’ll leave it to the bigger hitters. I can’t really compete. I’m about 275 off the tee, well I’m sorry to say, that’s a four-iron for these guys. You can compete over nine holes. It’s not going to happen over 72.”

Montgomerie will concentrate on the Seniors showpiece at Carnoustie and added: “I am incredibly excited and proud. Carnoustie has shown time and again its quality as a Major Championship venue and I know my fellow players are all looking forward to heading back there this year. It’s been eight years since The Senior Open has graced the Championship Course and that just makes the appetite even greater. Getting the opportunity to play in front of Scottish crowds elevates it even further.”