Hidden Paul Casey plays brilliant chip shot from storm shelter during Open practice round – The Sun

HIDDEN Paul Casey played a brilliant chip shot from inside a storm shelter during his final Open practice round at Royal Portrush.

England's former world No3 was shrouded in darkness when all of a sudden his ball popped out of the cubbyhole to the left of the fifth green.

Casey pitched out on a rain-soaked and windswept day on the Northern Irish links, which is hosting The Open for the first time in almost 70 years.

The shelter will be in play for the week, so if a golfer hits their shot in there on the 374-yard par 4 they will have to hit it out.

Organisers have also installed a man-made 65-yard tunnel connecting the 10th to the 11th so players don't get caught in a fan logjam.

Casey sported a big grin as he emerged from the hole, his well-played pitch running down to near the pin.

His short game heroics were reminiscent of the late Seve Ballesteros, who won the first of this three Opens 40 years ago.

And the similarities between Casey, who is seeking his first Major, and the legendary Spaniard who passed away in 2011 after battling cancer do not stop there.

Casey, a keen collector of watches, bought a Rolex that once belonged to Ballesteros.

Seve had given the watch to a friend who then decided to auction it off raise money for a brain cancer charity.

Casey told pgatour.com: "I bought it at a horribly high price because it was the right thing to do.

"It’s one of my favorite watches. It's not a rarity factor. It's a Rolex, but it's not one of the rarest models they've ever made.

"It's just the fact it's Severiano Ballesteros' watch, that he wore, took off his wrist and gave to my friend. So, I've got all the papers and everything."

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