Henrik Stenson on burglary: 'Anger from the word go'

5:06 PM ET

  • Bob HarigESPN Senior Writer Close
    • Senior golf writer for ESPN.com
    • Covered golf for more than 20 years
    • Earned Evans Scholarship to attend Indiana University

SOUTHPORT, England — Henrik Stenson scrambled to put together clothing for the second round of The Open on Friday after his rental home in the seaside town was burglarized while he was competing in the first round of the tournament on Thursday.

Merseyside police confirmed that the theft took place during daylight hours, with the belief that the culprits knew Stenson's identity and had targeted the residence while he was away.

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"Of course it was not the afternoon, evening that we wanted yesterday, to get the news," Stenson said after a second-round 73 on Friday left him 8 shots behind leader Jordan Spieth. "I was still out here getting physio treatment. And, yeah, it was kind of surreal, and to find out that my suitcase and all my clothes were gone, that was a bit weird. And I still had some dirty laundry in another bag, so I managed to wash some of that up. Boss provided some other stuff. And yeah, we can keep on going, obviously. But it's not happy news, is it?"

In addition to his golf clothing, cash and jewelry were also taken.

"Actually they missed my carry-on, so I still have my stuff," he said. "If they're listening, they didn't get the full jackpot …"

Thieves burglarized the rental home of defending Open champion Henrik Stenson during first-round play on Thursday, stealing golf clothing, cash and jewelry. Richard Sellers/PA Images via Getty Images

Stenson had been photographed and filmed leaving the home on Monday as he took the traditional step of returning the Open trophy, the Claret Jug, to tournament officials. Police have asked for assistance to find the thieves.

Stenson opened the tournament with a 69 on Thursday before returning to his rental home and finding the items missing.

"I think it was anger from the word go," he said.

"I wasn't looking forward to having four hours of semi-chaotic and police running around the house, and having to go out. Had been out there a long day. Would rather just go back and wind down and take it easy. That was all I was looking forward to, and that didn't happen. I had to get some new gear and so on. But all in all, we're in good shape. And nothing happened to any person, which is the main thing."

Stenson, who is from Sweden, is a five-time winner on the PGA Tour and has 11 European Tour victories.

In 2009, he disclosed that he had been a victim in the Stanford Financial scandal that sent financier Allen Stanford to prison. Stenson lost several million dollars because of the fraudulent investment scheme.

"I was also happy that my family wasn't there, and maybe a little disappointed I wasn't," he said. "But what can you do? I think over time, I've been quite lucky with those kind of situations. So I guess sooner or later, there's always a chance it might happen. And unfortunately it did. And it was this week."

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