BILLINGS — By making the cut, Ryggs Johnston said he accomplished his No. 1 objective at the 153rd Open Championship this past week in Northern Ireland.
But the Libby golfer, competing in his first major as the only man from Montana to play in a British Open, also said he gave up too many strokes to reach his second goal — a top-20 finish.
"I didn't really do anything that I thought stood out, but I didn't really do anything that stood out in the wrong way, either," Johnston told MTN Sports when reached by phone on Sunday. "It was just kind of, you know ... I hit a couple really bad shots here and there that cost me, but I guess every part of my game was pretty even."
Johnston closed The Open on Sunday with a 3-over-par 74 at Royal Portrush. He carded four birdies, nine pars, four bogeys and one triple bogey in the final round to finish with a four-day stroke total of 288 at 4-over par (74-66-74-74).
Johnston's second-round 66 on Friday — during which he scored seven birdies to shoot 5-under par — allowed him to make the cut in a tie for 17th place. On Sunday Johnston was even through 17 but took a triple bogey on the 480-yard par-4 No. 18 hole.
Otherwise, Johnston birdied hole Nos. 2, 7, 10 and 13, and took bogeys on 4, 5, 6 and 11. Paired on Sunday with Adrien Saddier, Johnston came off the course in a tie for 63rd place.
"It was pretty cool to make the cut at my first major. I don't think that happens too often. Usually it takes guys one or two to kind of get used to it," Johnston said. "It was really nice to have such a good round on Friday. I wish I would have played a little better the other three days.
"I felt like the course set up pretty good for me, and I just didn't quite hit as many good shots as I'd like to. So it's a little disappointing, because I felt like I could have had a really good week, you know, if I just played a little better. But it was still a really good experience, just getting to a major and being able to make the cut and play the weekend."
Scottie Scheffler, the world's No. 1-ranked player, entered the final round with a four-stroke lead in pursuit of the Claret Jug and his fourth major championship. Scheffler had a stranglehold on the lead through 14 holes on Sunday at 17-under.
For as well as Scheffler has played, Johnston nearly matched Scheffler's eight-birdie performance on Friday.
"It was just one of those days where the body felt like it was moving good," Johnston said of his Friday 66. "The swing just felt smooth and confident, and it seemed like I had a lot of good yardages to where I was hitting a lot of shots with a lot of confidence and the ball was going where I wanted it to.
"It felt kind of easy, I guess you could say, whereas the other three days were just a tiny bit off on the swing. I had the same swing thoughts and the same kind of feeling, but it wasn't quite going as good. Friday was just one of those days where it kind of lines up."
Johnston, 25, qualified for The Open by winning the ISPS Handa Australian Open in Melbourne in December. Johnston earned his DP World Tour card last November.
He was an All-American golfer at Arizona State following a high school career that saw him win four individual state championships at Libby.
Johnston said he will return to Montana on Monday and be back in Libby for a couple weeks before his next DP Tour event, which is the Nexo Championship Aug. 7-10 in Aberdeenshire, Scotland.
"I'm going to spend some time in Libby. Just relax," he said. "Do some fishing, practice a little bit. ... It'll be good to get a little break."
This story will be updated
