There is nothing golf fans love more than a comeback story. It helps, too, when the main character of that comeback story is Andrew "Beef" Johnston, who had a brief stint as arguably the most lovable player in the sport.
Johnston, who had fallen outside of the top 2,000 in the Official World Golf Ranking this past June, shot a course-record nine-under 63 in Round 2 of the D+D Real Czech Masters at PGA National Oaks Prague. The Englishman, now ranked 1,285th thanks to a pair of top-40 finishes in July on the DP world Tour, last posted a top-10 result at the 2021 Mallorca Golf Open nearly three full years ago.
The 35-year-old's familiar, infectious smile was on full display in his post-round interview:
Last month, the Open Championship was held at Royal Troon, which was also the site of the 2016 Open. That week was Johnston's coming-out party, Johnston finishing in solo eighth. Eight years later, he called it "the best week of his golfing career."
What happened in the eight years since for Johnston was a bit of a mixed bag. A combination of poor form and injuries led him to wonder if his playing career was over. He also opened up about his struggles with mental health in 2019, writing a blog post for the DP World Tour's website. In it, Johnston cited a poll he saw that asked Americans "who are you looking forward to seeing more?" Johnston ranked higher than Tiger Woods in the poll.
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"To get your head around that is very tough," Johnston wrote at the time. "Then came the pressure I put on myself to perform. I finished [T-27] at the 2017 Open and I was fuming."
Since the 2017 Open Johnston has appeared in just three major championships, withdrawing from one (2017 PGA), finishing solo 62nd in another (2018 U.S. Open) and missing the cut in his most recent (2019 Open). He made just eight starts on the DP World Tour in 2020 thanks to COVID, then put together a solid 2021 campaign before missing all of 2022 with a thumb injury that required multiple surgeries. In 2023, he played just four times worldwide.
This Czech Masters marks Johnston's seventh start of 2024, and barring a disastrous weekend it's on track to be by far his best. Johnston has missed four cuts to go with a T-33 at the Italian Open and a T-32 at the BMW International Open.
As it stands, Johnston is one shot off the lead of France's David Ravetto, who wound up matching Johnston's new course record to reach 13 under on Friday. They will tee off in the final group together for Saturday's third round.