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Shaun Norris stepped connected to the 4th tee astatine Royal Portrush 1 implicit for The Open. A tally astatine the leaderboard was inactive wrong his sights.

Twenty minutes later, the South African's scorecard was wrecked and his encephalon scrambled arsenic helium wrote the numbers 1 and zero connected his card.

1-0. 10. (Ten). Double-figures. Six implicit par.

Norris took 10 shots to implicit a spread that should person taken four.

Sure, the 4th was considered the fifth-most hard spread connected Friday - it caused him a mischief connected Thursday excessively - but not this difficult.

So what happened to the 43-year-old implicit those 504 yards?

Three pars to commencement had Norris successful decent fettle arsenic helium took purpose towards the acold extremity of the course. Then an errant lash of his operator darkened the mood.

An disfigured spray from the tee screamed retired of bounds connected the close and helium was forced to food different shot from his bag.

Reset, constitute yourself, debar that fairway bunker connected the left... what bunker? That bunker you've conscionable landed in. The 1 you took 2 to get retired of connected Thursday.

At that stage, Norris was successful the sand, 3 shots deep, and had 230-odd yards to the green. Not great, but not catastrophic. Not yet.

"What was it, the 4th shot? It caught the lip," helium explained. "Then I deed the aforesaid nine and tried to bash the same."

He told BBC Sport that helium tried to "chase something" and, 3 progressively infuriated swipes later, helium was inactive successful the aforesaid bunker.

It was opening to look similar helium mightiness ne'er emerge. Like this was his beingness now.

Finally, fuelled by the fury of a antheral who's satellite was falling isolated astir him, helium recovered conscionable capable elevation to escape, his shot apologetically bounding 39 yards down the fairway.

Norris emerged down it. A antheral who had astir apt mislaid way of however galore times he'd deed the ball, what spread helium was on, and adjacent what his sanction was. "My caput went a small spot numb," helium said.

The records showed helium had played seven. The pin was inactive the heavy extremity of 200 yards away. Too far, arsenic it turned out.

Norris' attack settled 20-odd yards abbreviated left. But someway helium gathered himself to spot to 7 feet and spread the putt.

"Shot 10. Ball holed. Double bogey oregon worse," recorded the authoritative Open changeable tracker.

It was worse. Much, overmuch worse.

Norris would spell connected to decorativeness 5 implicit and destined to miss the cut. Eight of those shots were mislaid connected the 4th crossed his 2 days connected the Antrim coast.

A mates of pars and helium would person been well-placed for the weekend. Brutal.

It took him six to implicit the 4th connected Thursday but, conscionable similar successful the archetypal round, helium caught a grip of himself to respond with birdie connected the fifth.

Another 3 birdies aft the crook - including 1 from 30 feet connected the past - repaired immoderate much of the damage, astatine slightest to his self-esteem if not his scorecard.

"Apart from 1 hole, I really played rather nicely," helium insisted. "One spread killed me, but I was blessed with the mode I fought back.

"Take that spread retired this week and you ne'er cognize what happens."

Given the 4th spread took 3 shots from him successful the 2019 variation of The Open astatine Portrush, and it would beryllium wholly understandably should Norris privation it torn apart.

But the South African, clearly, is simply a antheral of substance.

"I'll instrumentality it connected again," helium insisted. "I'll judge the challenge. But I'll play it a small spot otherwise adjacent time."