Tyrrell Hatton made an impressive start to the Betfred British Masters but his infamous temper reared its ugly head on the final hole of the opening round.
Hatton is playing at The Belfry this week as he looks to secure the points needed to make Luke Donald’s 2025 Ryder Cup team.
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The 32-year-old started his round well at the iconic Brabazon Course, shooting four under par before tackling the tricky 18th hole.
After hitting a fairway bunker and then making his approach into another sand trap, Hatton had to settle for a closing bogey.
And his frustrations got the better of him as he launched his ball into the famous lake that surrounds the final hole at Brabazon.
Hatton said: “I’m not going to change at 32. If I haven’t changed in 10 years then I don’t think I can change. I’m just reacting to things at the moment.
“There are times when I wish I hadn’t said certain words and some things come out that you wish you could take back, but at the end of the day it’s just a reaction. I guess I can’t apologize for being myself.
“I played some really good golf today, I missed almost every shot I saw and to be honest I don’t think I could have scored much worse.”
Asked about the frustration of missing his par putt on the last, Hatton added: “You’d rather hit a 20-foot or 30-foot putt and two-putt. You hit a great bunker shot and then miss it from three and a half feet, it’s infuriating.”
Hatton responded well to his disappointing finish to Thursday’s opening round by starting Friday with a bang.
The Englishman, a six-time European Tour winner, birdied four of the opening eight holes to move to the top of the leaderboard.
European Ryder Cup captain Donald is also playing at the Belfry this week and will be encouraged by Hatton’s performance.
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Now on the LIV Golf circuit, Hatton wants to play the necessary number of DP World Tour events and earn the all-important points to be part of the team that will go to Bethpage Black to face Team USA in September.
Discussing his plans, Hatton told talkSPORT ahead of the British Masters: “I’ve always wanted to come back and play as many events as I can. And obviously this week has fallen into a bit of a lull in the schedule with LIV.
“The tour knows what events I’m trying to play and we’ve been very honest with them from the beginning. Even the week before I signed with LIV, they kind of know where I stand and how I feel about the tour.
“I wanted to play when I could and this is the first time I’ve been able to since the Desert Classic.
“It’s great to see some faces I haven’t seen in a while and just catch up with some guys. It’s good to be back playing here.”