Colin Montgomerie says he is “ambitious as ever” at the age of 60 ahead of making his tenth appearance at The Senior Open Presented by Rolex as he lauded the challenge of host venue Royal Porthcawl.
Despite having never lifted the Senior Open trophy, the Scotsman – a 31-time winner on the DP World Tour – has a good record at the event, including when it has been staged at the historic South Wales links venue.
Montgomerie finished runner-up to Bernhard Langer in 2014, a year before finishing third at Sunningdale, while he tied for 23rd in 2017 on its most recent visit.
A three-time Senior Major Champion, having won the Senior PGA Championship twice and the U.S. Senior Open, he is chasing his first win in the over 50 ranks for almost four years but insists his hunger is undiminished.
The Monty Swing in all its glory 😍#SeniorOpen
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) July 26, 2023
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Montgomerie finished ninth on home soil in last year’s Senior Open at Gleneagles, while he has finished 15th and 23rd so far at the Majors on the 2023 Legends Tour schedule.
He will hope his experience and course knowledge can help him prosper but concedes he is forever learning as a star-studded field take centre stage at Europe’s only Senior Major Championship.
“If I don’t learn after every round, it has been an absolute waste,” he explained. “You must take something from every round of golf and I still do.”
As the winning-Ryder Cup captain when the biennial match play contest was staged at Celtic Manor in 2010, Montgomerie has a special affinity to Wales but is particularly fulsome of the exacting nature of Royal Porthcawl.
“Every time I cross the Prince of Wales Bridge coming back into Wales you see Celtic Manor resort on the M4 it brings back great memories of the time I spent in Wales in 2009 and 2010 at the Ryder Cup,” he reflected.
“So, every time I come back I relish it and especially coming to this golf course. It is a damn good golf course.
“A real test of character, it has a lot of elevation to it but overall a good test and we are all looking forward to the challenge of it.”
