The recent British Open certainly had an exciting finish.
American Cameron Young, who birdied four out of his first five holes in the final round, got into the clubhouse early posting a score of 9-under-par for the tournament. Then he waited and waited for more than two hours to see whether anyone caught him. They did.
New Zealander Ryan Fox kept plugging along birdieing Hole No. 13 and Hole No. 14. He bogeyed hole No. 15 followed by a birdie at Hole No. 16. After parring Hole No. 17, Fox went into the final 72nd hole of the tournament in a tie for the lead.
By this time, Young was back on the practice range warming up knowing a playoff was a real possibility.
Fox knocked his approach shot to within 12–feet setting up his birdie putt to win on the final hole of the tournament.
I am sure the wait was agonizing for Young. He posted a low score early and then waited to see whether anyone would catch him. They did. I feel for the guy.
Fox had a storybook ending most golfers only dream about. He came from behind with three birdies in five holes and then drained a 12-foot birdie putt on the final hole to win the oldest tournament in golf.
The British Open, which is often referred to as The Open Championship or just The Open in Brittain, was first played in 1860 at Pestwick Golf Club in Scotland.
Something that really stood out about Fox and his playing partner in the final round, American Sam Burns, was their pace of play.
These guys did not let any grass grow under their feet. These guys played FAST.
In tournaments, slow golfers can be put on “the clock” by rules officials, meaning they only have a set number of seconds to play their next shot once they get up to their balls.
There was no chance of this happening to Fox and Burns. Burns finished third in the tournament.
This was probably the fastest I have ever seen two golfers play in the final pairing of a tournament, who weren’t rushing to finish before dark.
Perhaps this should be seen as a lesson to golfers everywhere, and particularly some other pros out there. Don’t think too much. Just get up there and hit the ball.
Consider this.
How many times do you miss your putt after you have agonizingly studied it? Plenty. How many times do you miss your putt when you just reach out one handed with your putter to tap it in? Not much.
This year’s British Open was held at England’s Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Southport, Merseyside. Another course, which is in the rotation where British Opens are held is The Old Course at St. Andrews in Scotland.
Back when she was in college, News Journal Publisher Jennifer Perkins interned for us one summer. Then she went to Scotland to study abroad for a semester.
She brought me a souvenir back. It was a golf ball with a logo from The Old Course, which is the world’s oldest golf course.
I still have it displayed in my office.
Trevor Sherman gave me an old Zen garden, which is a bunch of sand you can rake to relax. I put the golf ball in the middle of it with the logo on display. I figured it was appropriate because if I ever played St. Andrews, my ball would probably find a bunker a disproportionate amount of time…LOL.
Now to talk about one other golf item before I conclude this column.
Golf House Kentucky is partnering with the Legends of the LPGA (Ladies Professional Golf Association) for an event Aug. 5-9 at Woodford Legends Invitational, which will take place at The Woodford Club in Versailles.
LPGA Hall of Famer Annika Sorenstam is headlining the field and teaming up with her sister, Charlotta Sorenstam.
Annika Sorenstam was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2003. She ranks third on the LPGA Tour’s all-time official wins list and is first on the career money list with over $22 million in official earnings. She retired at the conclusion of the 2008 season.
For those interested, there will be a junior golf special event on Aug. 5 followed by a live concert. There will be a Women’s Day of Golf on Aug. 6. The Woodford Legends Invitational Pro-Am will take place on Aug. 7.
The LPGA Legends Tournament rounds will be played Aug. 8-9. Tickets for the tournament rounds are $10 each day, according to the woodfordclubfounation.org.
This might be an interesting golf event to check it out, if anyone is interested.
If you have some local golf news you want to share, such as upcoming scrambles or recent accomplishments of local high school golfers, then e-mail me at mwhite@corbinnewsjournal.com. I may include the information in a future column.
