South Africa’s Brandon Stone had to cancel a tour of some of Scotland’s finest whisky distilleries because of the small matter of playing in the 147th Open Championship at Carnoustie this week.

Stone‚ 25‚ is riding a wave of positivity as he heads in to only his third Open Championship after winning the Scottish Open in spectacular style last week‚ which earned him entry to the Open.

“We were actually planning on going to Scotland for a whisky tour‚ to be honest‚” Stone said after winning the Scottish Open by two strokes at Gullane Golf Club last week.

“We were planning on returning our rental car‚ renting a little small job and driving all the way to Islay to do a few of the distilleries on that side‚ but instead I'll be playing Carnoustie.”

Stone will feel some familiarity on the windswept northeast Scottish coast because he is one of 12 South Africans in the field.

And none have more immediate form than Stone after carding a superb final round of 60 to win at Gullane five days ago.

Stone‚ after more than a year of struggles‚ apparently came from nowhere to win his third European Tour title last week and is hoping to carry that momentum into the season’s third major.

After a year of lows and hard work on his swing‚ Stone mulled his future on a ferry ride from the Irish Open back to Britain before the Scottish Open.

His caddie Teagan suggested a return to a blade putter‚ so Stone went to the Ping manufacturer’s truck at Gullane on bought one.

The rest as they say‚ is history.

“I bought a Ping Dale‚ the new one in the bag‚ and the moment I started rolling it on the putting green I knew it was back to where it needed to be in order to compete in events‚” Stone said.

Joining Stone are major-winning compatriots Ernie Els‚ Retief Goosen‚ Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel. George Coetzee is back after a good season‚ while Branden Grace could be the country’s best hope of winning.

Having grown up playing golf in George‚ Grace is no stranger to windy conditions and generally enjoys the links experience as his record 62 at Royal Birkdale last year suggests.

He also shot a 60 at Kingsbarns‚ just up the road from Carnoustie‚ on his way to winning the 2012 Alfred Dunhill Links Championships.

Oosthuizen of course‚ is a previous Open winner (St Andrews 2010) and also runner up when he lost a play-off to American Zach Johnson in 2015 at the same venue.

If his game clicks then he can be unstoppable.

Els is playing his 28th Open and his 103rd major‚ making him one of the most experienced players in the field.

The Open is one major where power is not at a premium. Patience‚ craftsmanship and the ability to put the ball in the right place‚ are key elements to success.

Other South Africans in the field are Erik van Rooyen‚ who qualified as runner-up at the Joburg Open‚ which also formed part of the Open Qualifying Series‚ Shaun Norris‚ Zander Lombard‚ Dylan Frittelli and amateur Jovan Rebula.

The latter is Ernie Els’ nephew while Norris also qualified through the Open Qualifying Series. Coetzee is back by virtue of winning the Sunshine Tour Order or Merit earlier this year and Goosen showed his commitment by coming through a 36-hole qualifying tournament for his first Open appearance since 2015.