Shropshire Star

US Open heartbreak for golfer Oliver Farr

Former Ludlow golf ace Oliver Farr endured heartbreak after he was the odd one out in a five man play-off and missed out on a place at the US Open.

Published

The 27-year-old birdied five of the final 11 holes – including the last – to finish in a five way tie for eighth place in final qualifying at Surrey's Walton Heath course.

But with only 11 spots available, that meant a play-off for the final four places and Farr ended up being the unlucky man.

New Zealand's Marcus Fraser made it through to next month's tournament together with South African trio Garth Mulroy, Thomas Aiken and Tjaart Van der Walt.

Any hope of qualification looked unlikely at the halfway stage as Farr dropped shots in three of the closing five holes to finish level par for his opening round on the club's old course.

The afternoon, on the new course, began far better with a birdie at the first, only for Farr to fall back to level after bogeying the third.

But that was the final shot he dropped as birdies at the eighth, 11th, 14th, 16th and last put him right back in contention before the play-off heartache.

Fraser went through on the first extra hole after managing a birdie before Farr was the odd man out on the next. His only hope of making the tournament, at Chambers Bay in Washington, will now be via the reserve list.

Qualification would have capped a successful Bank Holiday for Farr, who claimed his highest finish yet this year in a European Tour event, when he came 27th in the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth.

Farr wasn't the only man to leave Surrey wondering what might have been.

Padraig Harrington, a three-time major winner, bogeyed the final hole when a birdie would have seen him qualify outright and a par enough for the play-off.

He was playing through the pain barrier after being forced out of the BMW Championship with a shoulder injury.

Sorry, we are not accepting comments on this article.