Former Truck Driver Secured Final British Open Slot After Last-Chance Qualifier

NEED TO KNOW

• Joe Dean, who drove a delivery truck for a grocery store in recent years to make ends meet, secured the final spot in the British Open on Monday, July 13
• Dean started delivering for a grocery store in 2020 and told reporters on Monday that he “had a great time doing it”
• The British golfer is set to marry his caddie, Emily Lyle, on Tuesday, July 21

English golfer Joe Dean, who in recent years drove a delivery truck to make ends meet, punched his ticket to the British Open.

Dean, 32, snagged the final spot in this year’s Open after a dominant performance in the first-ever “Last Chance Qualifier” at Royal Birkdale on Monday, July 13, according to Golf.com and ESPN.

Dean was one of two players who broke par on Monday in the qualifier, which saw 12 golfers given a final chance to compete in the upcoming tournament. “Any opportunity to get in The Open again, I’ll gladly turn up and play,” Dean said on Monday, per ESPN.

“One-day events, I seem to play better. I don’t quite know why, the mentality of trying to keep the same throughout any round and every round,” he added.

In 2020, Dean — who will marry his caddie Emily Lyle on July 21 — took a job as a delivery driver with a local grocery market, according to Golf.com, and he told reporters on Monday that he enjoyed the job until leaving it in 2024. “I never regret doing it. I had a great time doing it,” he said.

Dean added, “Met some really good friends and grounded me really well. My coach keeps saying to me, ‘Don’t let the game define you.’”

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Lyle, an amateur golfer, and Dean are set to marry on Tuesday, July 21. He told Golf.com, “It is a very hard dynamic,” on Monday. “Even when things are going well out there, it’s still not a nice walk in the park. It’s very stressful. It’s demanding. … I will say that the good thing is I’m self-sustainable. So I have the yardage book. I just literally need Em to carry the bag in, probably just to talk rubbish to.”

When asked why he and his fiancée picked a Tuesday wedding, the British golfer joked that it “was cheaper.”

Dean also told reporters he’s “really thankful for” the opportunity to “be able to play golf for a living” as he prepares for the Open.

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