2023 British Open: Wyndham Clark has an iPad to thank for his stellar bogey in Hoylake

Wyndham Clark had quite the opening round at the 151st Open Championship at Royal Liverpool Golf Club.

Clark’s 3-under 68 came after the newly-minted U.S. Open champion scored all pars on the front nine and four birdies on the back nine. Overall, the day was solid for Clark. The only blemish on his scorecard came at the par-4 14th – when a bogey stirred up some potentially devastating trouble.

Clark stepped up to the par 4 aiming for a solid drive down the fairway. His tee shot took an unusual route and ended up hitting a patron’s iPad, but Clark’s golf ball didn’t stay put after that. No, it bounced off the iPad, finishing in a seemingly impossible lie in the course’s notorious fescue.

Full-field scores from the 151st Open Championship

The task at hand seemed insurmountable for Clark. After his round, he said, “A little unfortunate off the tee, obviously hitting the guy is never good, but it really went into a bad spot. If I didn’t hit the guy, probably would have been in fine grass, and I would have been able to hit it up near the green.”  

The unfortunate break seemed costly from afar and got worse before it got better. Clark dug deep into the rough, finding his ball before whacking it with as much force as possible – we’re talking full on hockey goalie squat meets a home-run derby baseball swing.

The result? It moved approximately two feet.

Luck was on Clark’s side after that as he avoided the bunker on the following shot and proceeded to drain a 20-footer.

“Yeah, getting up-and-down and making about a 20-footer really is a round saver because you make double there, you probably still birdie the next one, maybe, maybe not,” Clark said.

Clark knew there was more golf left. Would he let this dramatic hole affect him? Clark reflected on his train of thought saying, “It seems like it takes away the momentum, [but] making that putt made me feel like I regained the momentum.” 

Clark birdied the next hole and notched one more before the end of his round.

Clark is sitting comfortably in the top 10 after Round 1. If he keeps up his (mostly) consistent play, he has the chance to become the first player since Jordan Spieth (2015) to win back-to-back majors.