UK daily on Richard Teder, the 'accidental' Estonian golfer now in the British Open
Young golf star Richard Teder will this week be the first Estonian to play in the prestigious Open Championship, in Royal Portrush, Northern Ireland, British daily The Guardian reported.
Teder, 20, told the paper he not only mastered English via YouTube videos but also picked up golf "completely randomly" at the tender age of six: An auntie had won a sporting event – not even in golf but in tennis – with golfing vouchers the prize, and the young Teder tagged along and was soon hooked.
By age 13, he was a scratch golfer and has plenty of experience playing in the U.K., including in competitive rounds at courses such as Royal St George's in Kent in England, and Ballyliffin Golf Club in County Donegal in the Republic of Ireland.
Best of luck to Richard Teder at @TheOpen, the first golfer from #Estonia to play in the oldest major (and who took up the sport by accident)!https://t.co/APF1Nk9Moh
— Estonian Embassy UK (@estembassyuk) July 15, 2025
The scale of the Open will be new to him, but the conditions will not be, he said, noting while he doesn't like the rain much, "the wind is no problem," and he will be "fine."
The Estonian qualified for the Open by holing out from 90 yards in a sudden‑death playoff, done in suitably phlegmatic Estonian style, and capped off with a meal at a local kebab house ("Everything else was closed") post-match at the West Lancashire course earlier this month.
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