Living up to your father’s name is one thing — competing against him to do it is another.
That was the challenge faced by amateur golfer Luke Poulter, the 21-year-old son of 2008 Open runner-up and five-time Ryder Cup winner Ian Poulter, as both looked to secure one of the five Open qualifying spots on offer at Royal Cinque Ports Golf Club. The 36-hole single-day event in Kent, south-east England, was one of four last-gasp qualifying events taking place around the United Kingdom on Tuesday.
Sadly for the Poulter dynasty, both fell short of booking a place at the main event, which begins in Portrush, Northern Ireland, on July 17. Like father, like son, they carded identical one-under-par scores — three shots behind Norway’s John Axelsen, who claimed the fifth and final qualifying spot.
But the pair drew positives amid the disappointment and Ian could not disguise his pride. “Luke’s turned into a really good golfer,” said the former world number five, adding that if he “keeps doing what he’s doing”, a major berth will be his before too long.
Luke, for his part, started strongly and was third on the leaderboard after the first 18. Although he teed off just 20 minutes before his dad, the two began on opposite sides of the narrow links course. The logistics of squeezing a 72-man field through two full rounds in a single day meant players started on split tees, so Luke began on the 1st, Ian on the 10th.
Despite the distance, Luke said he “knew where he (Ian) was on the course because there’d be a bunch of fans watching”. Taking place on a Tuesday morning and featuring a field of largely unheralded golfers, it was no surprise that the small throng of fans who turned out gravitated toward the more established names.
Ian Poulter drew a crowd at Royal Cinque Ports (David Cannon/Getty Images)
This was not a glitz and glamour occasion. The Royal Cinque Ports experience was pared-back to say the least, but entry was free, a positive move for a sport sometimes criticised as elitist and inaccessible.
The mammoth task facing the field was aided by forgiving conditions on the hottest day of the year so far in the UK, at least initially. The typically blustery course, located along the stony shore of Sandwich Bay, was calm during the first round, which began at 6:45am. Ian rued his failure to emulate his son by capitalising on that. “You can’t drop six shots on your opening nine holes with no real wind,” he said.
But, as it often does in this part of the world, the wind turned during the afternoon, with the players contending against 26mph gusts during their second rounds. Luke is a relative newcomer to links golf, having spent most of his fledgling career in the U.S., where links courses are a rarity. He struggled to adjust to the shifting conditions, as his day “went upside down”.
It was intriguing to compare father and son as they went about their business. Ian is renowned for his loud personality and even louder dress sense, although he was sporting more neutral attire here — a bright blue T-shirt paired with light grey shorts. Luke, by contrast, exudes a calmer demeanour and appearance.
But there were subtle reminders of their shared genetics as the day progressed. One shot on the 16th saw Luke throw his arms down in frustration, while a later wayward effort landed in the bunker, drawing a short expletive from the University of Florida student. Four bogeys in five holes saw him rapidly slip out of contention during his turbulent second round.
Luke Poulter faded in his second round (David Cannon/Getty Images)
He wasn’t the only youngster left frustrated by the shifting winds. Spain’s David Puig, the 23-year-old LIV golfer, equalled the 18-hole course record with an opening-round 64 — later matched by overall winner Dean Burmester — but faded to ninth as conditions hardened.
Luke’s second-half slide was the mirror image of a late recovery from Ian. It marked a second narrow disappointment for the young Poulter in as many months — he fell agonisingly short of a U.S. Open berth in June, losing to Austen Truslow in a playoff at a qualifying event in Florida.
Rather than dampen his spirits, those setbacks have only strengthened his belief that he’s edging closer. “Yeah, it will happen soon, I just need to keep knocking on the door,” he told reporters afterwards.
While Luke aims to kick-start his fledgling career, Ian, who turns 50 in January, is realistic that his golden days are behind him. He said he had “come up to have some fun” and that his son’s steady progress matters more to him these days.
He previously told UK radio station Talksport that he would have caddied for Luke had he qualified for the U.S. Open. That promise still stands.
“I will 100 per cent be there on the first tee if he qualifies for a major,” he said.
(Top photo: Ian Poulter, right, with his son, Luke; by George Tewkesbury/PA Images via Getty Images)
