Nick Faldo bids St. Andrews an emotional farewell at the British Open
Not really one for showing emotion, Sir Nick Faldo wore his heart on his sleeve at St. Andrews on Friday.
Faldo, who turns 58 on Saturday, shot 71 after an opening 83 and missed this year's cut. So after hitting his tee shot on the 18th, the three-time British Open champion put on the bright yellow sweater he wore upon winning his first Open Championship at Muirfield in 1987 and walked atop St. Andrews' famed Swilcan Bridge and posed with both arms in triumph.
Sir Nick says farewell to St Andrews in a winning jumper. #TheOpen pic.twitter.com/k44qMZd2ki
— The Open (@TheOpen) July 17, 2015
And he seemed a bit overcome with emotion as he took in the view.
Faldo, now a commentator for CBS, had said he would let it be known when he crossed the bridge whether or not this was his last Open. Afterward, he didn't commit.
But the yellow sweater and big smile said it all.
A few hundred feet away, Dustin Johnson and Jordan Spieth took a break from putting on the first tee to applaud, as did fans lining the final two holes at the Old Course.
Then he invited his son, Matthew, who was also his caddie, up for a father-son photo. Then he posed with playing partners Justin Rose and Rickie Fowler on the bridge, too.
"An honour to play with Sir Nick Faldo in his last Open!," Rose wrote in an Instagram post.
It was the plan all along to switch to the yellow sweater for the final hole. One of Faldo's friends carried it until No. 16, when he gave it to Faldo's son. After Faldo made birdie on No. 17, he made the switch with a big smile on his face.
''Still fits after 30 years,'' he said.
It was just the second time Faldo has picked up a shot on the Road Hole in 28 rounds at the British Open.
"I looked at the gods, the St. Andrews golfing gods at No. 17. I thought, 'Thank you very much for that,'" said Faldo. "That was one of the greatest moments of my career."
And like the drive toward the clubhouse on No. 18. He had a few seconds to himself, savoring the moment, before taking what surely will be his final tee shot at the home of golf.
"You can't beat that view. That is the greatest view in golf," Faldo said. "If I'm sensible, that is it."
Faldo has played 37 British Opens, winning at Muirfield in 1987, at St. Andrews in 1990, and at Muirfield again in 1992. He also won the Masters on three occasions (1989, '90 and '96).
He knows it's time to put away the clubs — a first-round 83 suggested that — even if there were glimpses of his old self Friday. He had three birdies, capped by the one on No. 17 when he rolled in a putt from the swale just off the green.
"I play two tournaments a year and I can't fall out of a TV tower and really be a golfer," Faldo said, after finishing overall on 10 over.
"This was a treat of a day," he said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
