Review: Phantom of the Open was a delight

By Joan Janzen

The Kindersley Screen Arts and TIFF presented “The Phantom of the Open” at the Sunset Theatre on Saturday afternoon, November 26th.

The film, based on a true story, told the story of the life of amateur golfer Maurice Flitcroft. Maurice was actually a non-golfer, but he was also a loving husband, proud father of three sons, a crane operator by trade, and an unrelenting optimist.

That optimism led him to believe he was capable of anything his heart desired. After watching a golf tournament on television, Maurice became obsessed with the idea of competing in the 1976 British Open Golf Championship. His primary disadvantage was he didn’t officially have a handicap because he had never actually played a round of golf.

Nevertheless, his entry was mistakenly accepted, and he played his first round of golf, gaining fame as the worst golfer ever. But since the word ‘rejection’ was not in his vocabulary, Maurice refused to acknowledge being denied entry to the championship the following year. Instead, he dawned a disguise and entered, using the alias of a French golfer. Unfortunately, his ploy was discovered, and he was banned from the tournament while the whole world watched on television.

During the next few years of his life, Maurice became discouraged. That discouragement was interrupted when he received an invitation to a golf tournament that was celebrating its 10th anniversary. The tournament was named after Maurice Flitcroft, and so Maurice was back on the greens and in the spotlight once again.

At the tournament, a golfer shared how Maurice’s determination was the inspiration behind the young golfer’s success. It was just the encouragement Maurice needed.

His excitement mounted upon discovering there are professional golfers who are accepted into the British Open Championship but, for some reason or other, aren’t able to attend. Consequently, at the following year’s championship, Maurice was disguised as a Scottish golfer and went on to enter three subsequent tournaments under fictitious names.

It was a heartwarming story that had the audience laughing and in tears while cheering on a man who refused to give up. It was a story about the strength of family bonds that cannot be severed. Most of all, it was a story about an ordinary man who refused to live an ordinary life.