Dan Brown is running so hot at Royal Birkdale he presents a fire risk. Quite literally.
The Englishman, who finished 10th at The Open in 2024, launched a brilliant challenge for the Claret Jug on Thursday with a 66 on the parched links in Southport.
As with his last tilt, he caught the eye for reasons beyond his sporting quality because he also puffed his way through almost half a pack of cigarettes. Asked how many, he said ‘sorry mum’ before adding: ‘Seven or eight.’
Supporters at golf’s oldest major have been warned against anything that might pose a fire hazard at this scorched course, so it remains to be seen if any stewards offer a subtle tap on Brown’s shoulder.
‘I’ve not been told otherwise (on whether players will be prevented from lighting up),’ said Brown. ‘But I’ve been making sure that they are put out.
‘Hopefully I can do it for the rest of the week. There might be a big drop-off (in his level of play) by Sunday if I’m not allowed to. Stress levels go up, then the more I end up having.
England’s Dan Brown puffed his way through almost half a pack of cigarettes at The Open
Brown launched his challenge for the Claret Jug with a 66 on the parched links in Southport
The world No 136 enjoys a cigarette during day one of the 2025 Irish Open at The K Club
‘My dad actually used to smoke. I always told him when I was a kid to stop smoking. Then he did stop and then I ended up starting.’
Brown, the son of a Yorkshire pig farmer, first came to mainstream attention in a blaze of Davinci Code puns at Troon in 2024, when he led The Open before finishing 10th. He has carried lessons from that performance to Birkdale, where he trails Jackson Suber of the US by one.
‘I feel like I can compete in a major and in an Open Championship,’ said the world No 136.
‘I feel like I’m a better player now to what I was back then, two years ago. So we will see. Obviously it’s only Thursday, but hopefully I’m in a sort of similar area on the leaderboard come Sunday.
‘That was a very nice day. Tee to green, it’s similar to how I’ve been playing recently. But today a few putts dropped, which was nice to see because I’ve not seen that for a while.’
