Tom Abbott - July 19, 2012

• By Morning Drive Team
• Jul 19, 2012 9:48 AM ET

The weather conditions have been surprisingly calm in the first round and the calmness of the morning has extended into the afternoon. As a result, the course is vulnerable to low scores and all of the players in the field are looking forward to a delightful round on the links. The weather forecast has been wrong a couple of times this week and he is interested to see what the weather will actually be for the rest of the week.

He interviewed 1969 Open Champion Tony Jacklin this week and he saw that Jacklin was just happy to be back at Lytham and he was excited to be a commentator on the BBC this week. Jacklin accomplished a great deal in his career including winning The Open Championship in England in 1969 as well as the U.S. Open in 1970. The World Golf Hall of Fame Member is highly respected in England and Jacklin is definitely feeling that respect this week.

He spoke to Adam Scott recently and Scott admitted that when he was on the 17th hole, he had to excuse himself and that was when he saw a scoreboard and realized that he was 7 under for the day and that he needed just one birdie to shoot 62. Up until that point, Scott thought he was only 6 under and he admitted that he was thinking about shooting 62 on the last two holes. He ended up with a 64 but he was definitely pleased with his performance.

When looking at all of the players from England in the field, Abbott joked that the patrons’ loyalties lie with Tom Watson because Watson is so beloved and respected at The Open Championship. The 5-time Open Champion is admired by players and patrons alike and he has one of the biggest followings at Royal Lytham.