Sam Horsfield

Joint-winner with amateur Matthew Dodd-Berry of the 36-hole Final Qualifying competition at West Lancashire on July 2, when four Royal Troon places were on offer.

Was originally the 10th reserve for the 2021 Championship, but received a late call-up when former winner Zach Johnson withdrew following a positive Covid test.

It was the former University of Florida student’s first Open, but not his first major. He qualified for two US Opens as an amateur and has played two more US Opens and two PGA Championships since joining the paid ranks in 2017. He also played The 150th Open at St Andrews, missing the cut.

His family moved to the United States when he was five and in 2015 he was selected for the Walker Cup at Royal Lytham & St Annes, but withdrew just before the event.

A year later, he helped Europe to victory in the annual Arnold Palmer Cup match against America’s top college players and beat this year’s Masters runner-up Will Zalatoris in singles.

A three-time winner on the DP World Tour, the 2022 Soudal Open took him to a career-high 64th in the world. Then switched to LIV Golf, but underwent hip surgery and was forced into a lengthy lay-off.