In theory, champions prepare for majors through perfect routines, long practice, and stable days. But with this Pro, preparation was much more unnerving. A newborn at home, five weeks of rushed practice, a hotel fire during her first week back on tour and her husband and caddie injured. Yet she arrived at the Women’s British Open without complaint, carrying only a modest goal: make the cut. Who is the player who lived all of this? It's Catriona Matthew.

Matthew arrived at the Women’s British Open at Royal Lytham & St Annes less than three months after giving birth to her second daughter, Sophie, on May 16, 2009. She had already returned to practice five weeks after delivery, a short turnaround made possible, she said, by a quicker recovery than her first birth. Her parents looked after Sophie and older daughter Katie during tournament week, allowing Matthew and her husband, Graeme, to travel alone.

What should have been a routine comeback took a dramatic turn at the Evian Masters in France, the week before the British Open 2009. Late at night, Matthew heard what she thought was heavy rain before opening the hotel door to see flames. The couple escaped through the burning doorway, shouting warnings to other guests as smoke filled the corridor.

Graeme burned his feet while reaching safety and was unable to caddie for the first two rounds. Fellow LPGA player Cristie Kerr helped Matthew with clothes after most of her belongings were lost in the fire. “Thankfully, we had left the kids at home,” she said later.

The episode framed a return built on calm rather than celebration. Matthew entered Royal Lytham without fanfare, known in the United States for steady play. Her goal was modest: to make the cut and measure her form against a full field again. Instead, she delivered the round that defined her career.

After an opening 74, Catriona posted a five-under-par 67 on July 31 to share the lead with Italy’s Giulia Sergas at three under. Her back-nine score of 30 was the lowest recorded in competitive history at Royal Lytham and included an eagle, a hole-in-one with an 8-iron from 154 yards, and a birdie sequence from the 11th to the 13th holes.

It placed her in position to become the first Scottish woman to win a major championship since the event gained major status in 2001.

Catriona began the final round three shots ahead and was never overtaken. A one-over-par 73 secured a three-shot victory, surviving early bogeys and pressure from major winners Karrie Webb and Paula Creamer. Three consecutive birdies from the 13th to the 15th restored her advantage and allowed her to walk the 18th knowing the outcome. “I never thought I could come back, play as well as I have done and win. It feels amazing,” she said afterwards.

Only two other mothers, Nancy Lopez and Juli Inkster, had won majors since 1960. Matthew’s victory added her name to that short list and ended Scotland’s long wait for a women’s major champion. She left Royal Lytham with her first major title, eleven weeks after giving birth and days after escaping a fire with her husband.

Written by

Aditi Singh