From working on cars in Ireland to preparing to tee it up alongside the world’s best at The Open, David Howard has reached his first major while taking up to 30 tablets a day.The 27-year-old, from Currabinny in County Cork and a member of Fota Island Golf Club, has never even attended The Open as a spectator. His first experience of the championship will come from inside the ropes, competing alongside some of the world’s best players.Over the past 20 years, golfers from the island have won The Open five times. Pádraig Harrington in 2007 and 2008, Darren Clarke in 2011, Rory McIlroy in 2014 and Shane Lowry in 2019.Howard has had a different road to navigate than many of the players he will line up alongside at Royal Birkdale and was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis (CF) at the age of seven.The inherited genetic condition causes thick, sticky mucus to build up in the lungs and digestive system, increasing the risk of infections. CF can affect sporting performance through breathlessness and recurrent lung issues. Difficulties absorbing nutrients can make it harder to maintain muscle and energy levels.“To me, it’s normal now,” he says. “There’s a lot of medication and a lot of focus on keeping healthy and avoiding infections, but it has become part of my daily routine.”David Howard finished in the top five in the Dundonald qualifying event (Ross Parker/R&A via Getty Images)That routine includes vitamins and digestive enzymes that must be taken with food; even eating during a round requires planning, while longer trips mean organization is key.“You have to plan ahead and make sure you have all the medication,” he says. “If you’re going away for a couple of weeks or a month, you need to be prepared well in advance.”Howard’s story carries particular resonance in Ireland, which has the highest rate of the illness per capita in the world. Approximately 1,400 children and adults in the country live with CF, while an estimated one in 19 people of Irish descent carries one copy of the altered gene that causes the condition.The golfer credits professor Barry Plant and the cystic fibrosis team at Cork University Hospital with helping him remain healthy enough to compete at this level.As an ambassador for Cystic Fibrosis Ireland, Howard is conscious of what his appearance at The Open could mean to younger people living with the condition and to their families.CF affects everyone differently, but Howard hopes his journey can show children that the condition does not have to define the limits of their ambitions. He wants them to see themselves as more than the “sick kid.”“Hopefully they can take something from seeing me achieve goals,” he says. “I want them to push on and try to reach their own goals. When I was a kid, some of this didn’t seem possible.”In February, Howard put a golfing spin on Cystic Fibrosis Ireland’s 65 Roses Challenge, covering 65 kilometers on the course to raise money and awareness. The name dates back to 1965, when four-year-old Richard Weiss heard his mother discussing his diagnosis and pronounced cystic fibrosis as “65 Roses”, and the phrase has become widely used in fundraising and awareness campaigns for the condition.His path to Birkdale has been shaped by a career far removed from elite golf.Howard qualified as a mechanic and spent five years working for Audi in Cork, fitting practice and tournaments around the demands of a full-time job and reached a plus-two handicap.“I’m late enough into the golf game,” he says. “I only really started playing seriously about three years ago.”After the Covid period, during which he experienced a difficult spell with his health, Howard began to reconsider what he wanted from the sport and had already reached a high level while working full-time.“I decided I wanted to see what I could do if I gave golf more time,” he says. “I didn’t want to have regrets.”Howard left his job two years ago and has been a full-time golfer since. He has won the East of Ireland title, made his Ireland debut at the 2025 Home Internationals and helped the country win bronze at the European Mid-Amateur Team Championships in Spain.But the mechanic in him has not disappeared entirely. When a car belonging to his parents or brothers develops a problem, Howard remains the person they call.