"I am here to qualify for the Open" - Michael Block sets his sights on The Open Championship as he tackles the Dundonald Links test

Michael Block, a club pro, became an overnight star after his inspirational outing in the 2023 PGA Championship. He finished T15 on the final leaderboard and earned the accolade of Low Club Professional in the tournament.

Since the major tournament, Block has been struggling to perform well. In the subsequent tournament, the 2023 Charles Schwab Challenge, he missed the cut and had a score over 15. Then, in the 2023 RBC Canadian Open, he missed the cut again.

However, despite a few disappointing performances recently, Block is quite confident of securing a spot in the fourth and final major of the 2023 season, The Open Championship.

Block recently shared that he is not playing the qualifying event just for fun, but to qualify for the upcoming major tournament.

He said:

"I am here to qualify for the Open. That's 100% why I am here. I am not here to have fun. I am away from my club, away from my family and that is to qualify."

Michael Block will play 36 holes at the Dundonald Links for The Open Championship final qualifying. That will be followed by a qualifying event in Hoylake on Thursday.

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"People want to have pictures taken with me" - Michael Block opens up on his sudden growth in popularity

Michael Block with Low Club professional trophy at the 2023 PGA Championship (via Getty Images)

The 47-year-old Californian Club Pro was not a household name before the 2023 PGA Championship. But in a tournament that saw LIV Golfer Brooks Koepka win the cup to create history, it was Michael Block who won hearts with his performance at the Oak Hill Country Club.

On that subject, Block said that things have changed since the major tournament, and that people now want to click pictures with him.

"The biggest change is walking down the street and going places where people want to have pictures taken with me," he said. "That’s a strange thing to happen out of nowhere in your life, aged 47."

He went on to appreciate the love and affection he has received. He also praised Scotland as a golf-loving country.

"All of a sudden, wherever I am I am having that sort of experience and I never thought that would happen to me," Block added. "It has been fun; Scotland is a golf loving country and everyone here seems to know me."

Michael Block also shared why he chose the Dundonald Links qualifying events. He explained that after analyzing all four courses of the event, he felt that the Scottish field would best suit him.

"I love it here. It's a perfect venue," he said. "I studied all four qualifying courses really closely to make a decision over where I wanted to play. I am glad I chose here; the practice facility is amazing and the course is such a great test of golf. I cannot wait to get out there. I want it to be windy. I want it to be Scotland."

If Michael Block manages to perform well at the qualifying event, he might well progress to the Open Championship 2023. The tournament is set to commence on July 16.