THE OPEN: ‘I was ready to quit golf’ – Leishman

BY BRENDAN JAMES AT ST ANDREWS

Three months ago Marc Leishman was sitting next to his wife’s hospital bed as she lay in a coma and close to death.

Audrey Leishman, who was diagnosed with acute respiratory distress syndrome and toxic shock syndrome, was placed into a medically-induced coma with doctors telling Marc she had a five percent chance of survival.

Golf was the last thing on his mind but he couldn’t help but think about the future he and his two boys, three-year-old Harvey and 18-month-old Oliver. He decided then and there if his wife died he would quit golf to look after his sons.

“It was a huge possibility that I wasn't going to be playing golf anymore,” Leishman said. “Travelling with a one-year-old and a three-year-old by yourself isn't really … well, it wasn't going to happen. I wouldn't do that to the boys. They're too young to know what's going on.

Marc Leishman has played his way back into the championship with a superb 64.
Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images.

“At the time it was just, righto, you're going to have to give it away and stay home with the boys and be a dad, and that was the most important thing, and I was all right with that.

“Obviously the outcome, Audrey is all right now and it's a lot better. It's great that she's healthy again. It was pretty rough there for a while, thinking about everything, the boys not growing up with their mom, me not playing golf anymore, not having a wife. It was just everything.

“Unfortunately it probably happens every day to people around the world. We were just really lucky that she's on the mend. A lot of people, we know a couple of people that their wives didn't make it, which is really sad, but it does happen.”

When Audrey was admitted to hospital, Leishman kept his vigil by her side. Even when she came out of the coma, she wasn’t well and Marc stayed by her side and golf took a back seat.

He didn’t touch a golf club for a month during that traumatic period, but later today he will be aiming to win The Open Championship at St. Andrews after a third round blemish-free 64 put him right among the contenders for The Claret Jug. He sits at nine under, just three shots back of Irish amateur Paul Dunne, 2010 Open Champion Louis Oosthuizen and fellow Aussie Jason Day.

He hopes he can continue the form that saw him clinically extract eight birdies from the Old Course to shoot the round of the day and move up nearly 50 spots on the leaderboard. Spurring him on is the thought of emulating Greg Norman and perhaps taking the Jug home to share with Audrey and the kids.

“Obviously it would be massive (to win),” said Leishman, who finished tied fifth in this championship last year at Hoylake. “That's the goal now.

“Today the goal was to shoot a good round and get myself so I had a chance tomorrow. “Probably wasn't quite expecting to do what I did, but really put myself in it. If I can do the right things and do things well, there's no reason why I can't have another good one tomorrow.

“It obviously means a lot to everyone, people from over here, from the UK, and Australians, we grew up watching Greg Norman win The Open Championship. It would be great to get a hold of that trophy and nice to take it back for Audrey and the boys.

“But there's obviously a lot that has to happen between now and tomorrow night to do that. But that would be awesome. I'm sure it would be a pretty big party.”

Playing alongside fellow Victorian Marcus Fraser, Leishman rolled in birdies at the 4^th, 5^th, 7^th and 8^th holes to complete the outward nine in 32. When he birdied the 10^th, 11^th and 13^th holes to reach seven under for the round, it seemed possible the 31-year-old could make a run at golfing history by doing what no player had done since 1850 – shoot 62 in any round of a major championship.

“It was probably when I birdied 13, that's when it started to enter my mind. Matty (Kelly, his caddie) actually said something to me walking down 16

“’Two more birdies, and that gets you that’, I knew what he was talking about.

“He just said, ‘just two more birdies’. It was probably a good thing because 16, 17, they're not easy holes, especially where the pin is.

Leishman plays his approach on the 14th hole as the rain starts pelting down. Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images.

“Thinking about making birdies instead of thinking about trying to hold on and make pars like you normally do on those holes was a pretty good mindset, I think.”

If there is a player going into the final round feeling a little less pressure than most it will be Leishman, who says going through what he has with his wife’s illness has given him a different outlook on the game and life.

“It's changed my whole perspective on life,” he said. “I feel like I've always had a pretty good outlook on life, but now it just takes a lot more to worry me.

“I don't get annoyed about little things that I can't really help, when you hit a bad shot there's no real point getting frustrated about it because you tried to hit a good shot, you didn't, move on. That frustration doesn't help.

“And I feel like even if I do have a bad day, I can still go home and hopefully give Audrey a hug and cuddle my boys. For a while there it didn't look like I was going to be able to do that.”

Leishman will head out in the third last group alongside two-time Open Champion Padraig Harrington.