Marcus Armitage and Dave Coupland, the strange couple who traded Airbnb for a place among the golf elite

In less than two years, Marcus Armitage and Dave Coupland have gone from sharing an Airbnb room at £ 25 per person in a modest French tournament to hundreds of thousands in the bank and the US Open where the winner Sunday will raise £ 1.6 million.

The odd couple from England are walking on Torrey Pines with their long-held dreams finally coming true after so many years of struggle.

Armitage and Coupland are contrasting characters. The first is the life and the soul, the personality that never ceases to be lovable, with a joke and a laugh for every occasion; self-confidence is at the rendezvous. Coupland, meanwhile, is shy and introspective and while he clearly has a dry sense of humor, he’s the type to only show it on occasion. Coupland has to rely on that pump to be confident.

In terms of persistence, however, they are remarkably similar and this common trait of never giving up on the hunt is why they bonded in their travels. Armitage is 33 years old, after 14 years of professional career and six visits to the Q School. Coupland is 35 years old, after 10 years of pro and seven visits to the Q School. Late developers, maybe, but what a pair of inspiring images they’re developing.

“Yes, we’ve both come a long way since this Brittany Open in 2019,” says Coupland Sport Telegraph. “This place we stayed in was in the middle of nowhere and I remember we were starving and going to a garage where they only had chocolate bars. So that was our tea. However, we knew where we were going. “

Armitage has the most notable breakthroughs and benefits. Since the start of 2020, the Yorkshireman they call “The Bullett” has racked up more than £ 500,000 and two weeks ago won his first European Tour title, the European Open. In moving scenes, Armitage told a personal story of tragedy, grief and salvation. He lost his mother at 13, dropped out of school immediately, and found peace with a club in his hands – a love affair he never gave up. Coupland also started at age 13.

“The story of Marcus is amazing and uplifting and could be a movie,” says Coupland. “Getting through what he’s got and being up there playing against the best in the world has to be a motivation for everyone. He’s great to be there, always smiling and he comes out with brilliant one-liners and stories that I could never tell a reporter. A fair laugh. I have known him since the amateur days and we have the same manager. I would be lying if I said I didn’t try to tap into his optimism. We both love the game and know we’re pretty good at it. I’m just more reserved, that’s all.