Mateo Pulcini’s Enzo Fernández Celebration Adds Edge to Open First Round

What happened:

Watch the highlights:

Mateo Pulcini gave the Open’s first day one of its sharper crossover moments after holing a snaking 40-foot putt at the last. According to The Guardian, the Argentinian raised a hand, then cupped both hands to his ears in imitation of Enzo Fernández’s celebration after scoring Argentina’s equaliser against England in Wednesday’s World Cup semi-final.

The detail matters because Pulcini is the only Argentinian in this year’s Open field, and the celebration landed in a week when football emotion around Argentina and England had already been running high. In golf terms, the putt was the sporting substance: a long, late conversion on one of the biggest stages in the game. In crowd-control terms, the celebration was the obvious flashpoint.

Why it matters:

The Guardian framed the celebration as risky, but also reported that there was no major repeat of recent crowd trouble. That distinction is important. The moment had the ingredients for a hostile reaction: national symbolism, football rivalry, and a player actively inviting noise. What appears to have happened instead was closer to tournament theatre than disorder.

For Pulcini, that can cut both ways. A player who embraces the crowd can gain energy and identity, especially when he is carrying a rare national presence in the field. But the Open is also a tournament where emotional control is part of the test. A celebration that feels harmless after a made 40-footer can look very different if it distracts from the next shot, pulls attention from the card, or changes the atmosphere around a group.

Tournament impact:

The source does not provide Pulcini’s full round score, his position on the leaderboard, or the state of his cut prospects, so the competitive consequence should not be overstated. The confirmed on-course fact is narrower but still useful: he made one of the longest putts of the first day and produced a celebration that immediately connected his round to the wider Argentina-England sporting week.

That makes Pulcini a player to monitor beyond the leaderboard. If he remains in contention, galleries may respond to him differently than they would to a quieter outsider. If he fades, the celebration may stand as a memorable first-day clip rather than a tournament-shaping moment.

What to watch:

The next test is whether Pulcini can keep the attention useful. Major championship crowds can reward personality, but they also magnify mistakes. If the football-style edge stays playful, it adds color to the Open. If reactions sharpen, officials and marshals may have less patience for gestures that stir the room.

Confidence:

Confirmed by The Guardian: Pulcini is the only Argentinian in the Open field, holed a snaking 40-foot putt at the last, imitated Enzo Fernández’s celebration, and there was no major repeat of recent crowd trouble. Still needing follow-up: his full first-round score, leaderboard position, and whether the moment affects gallery behavior in later rounds.