- Car salesman Paul Drummond lets American slip into gear
- England’s Georgia Hall shares halfway lead with Mina Harigae
It doesn’t seem to have been much of a hardship for Paul Drummond to take a week off from his family’s car sales business in Carnoustie. Drummond, a 31-year-old plus-two handicap who caddies at the championship links in his spare time, finds himself on the bag for Lexi Thompson at the Women’s Open. The spontaneous alliance is working a treat thus far; Thompson added a 70 to Thursday’s 69 to ease into contention on the Angus coast. Drummond, in branded gear, looks every bit the tour caddie.
Thompson’s regular looper, Jack Fulghum, was unwell amid severe heat at the Olympics. It appears the partnership may have formally ended in any case. Thompson made contact with the Carnoustie caddie master last weekend, with Drummond duly recommended for the highest-profile role of his “other” job. Even the language barrier has delivered no problems. “He speaks very slowly to me,” said the Floridian Thompson of her Scottish assistant. “I’m fully trusting him on his numbers and whether to hit it left or right of the pin and he has been spot on.”