Watson & Woods
It's a shame the biggest story coming out of the early British Open coverage is Tiger Woods missing the cut, because the original TW would have all the headlines if it wasn't for the other T-Dubs dud.
A rare weekend off for Woods is big news, since it's just the 5th time in Woods' PGA Tour career he's missed the cut, but Watson leading at the half way point is something as nearly remarkable.
A guy who shoots a few strokes over his age, like the 59-year-old Hall of Famer did in his opening round of 65, is either playing very good or is very old. In PGA parameters, it's a bit of both.
We're not talking about Buzz Magill undercutting his age by three shots with a round of 81 from the gold tees at the local muni, we're talking about an old war horse going for one last gallop in a Major Championship!
If an aging veteran is going to pull off the impossible against a stable of 20 and 30-something bombers, it's going to be across the pond. We saw it last year with 53 year old Greg Norman who led after three rounds, only to melt down and shoot a 77 at Royal Birkdale.
The young studs aren't used to relegating the driver to the back of the bag while focusing on the bump and run. Links golf dictates you place priority on the short game and the mental game, especially when dealing with mother nature.
Something Watson still has to do Saturday before he can realistically think about winning a 6th Claret Jug.
And why not think this T-Dubs can do the unthinkable this weekend? The British Open, after all, is the place where unlikely champions are crowned. The list includes: Paul Lawrie (thanks Jean Van De Velde!), Ben Curtis (2 other career wins) and John Daly (9th and final alternate of his PGA rookie year).
Tiger's Turnberry topple will hurt ABC's weekend ratings, but his absense is actually a blessing. We won't have to sit through the agonizing recaps of how well/poor Woods' played, when even a great performance will only give false hope he can actually win the tournament.
How many times have we seen Woods' struggle in the first two rounds, blister the course Saturday or early Sunday, only for it to be too little, too late? When Tiger wins a major he does it with the lead, he boat races the field and pummels the players into submission.
During his 14 major wins Woods has never trailed entering Sunday's play. Never
Woods is the greatest of all-time and it's a quirky statistical anomaly, but it's the truth. With Tiger out of camera range, the network can focus on the only TW playing this weekend. (Unless Anthony Wall, starts going by Tony!?!?!)
Hopefully, for nostalgia's sake, Watson will keep it rolling in the third round. I'd hate to see the old guy relegated to secondary story status, again.
A rare weekend off for Woods is big news, since it's just the 5th time in Woods' PGA Tour career he's missed the cut, but Watson leading at the half way point is something as nearly remarkable.
A guy who shoots a few strokes over his age, like the 59-year-old Hall of Famer did in his opening round of 65, is either playing very good or is very old. In PGA parameters, it's a bit of both.
We're not talking about Buzz Magill undercutting his age by three shots with a round of 81 from the gold tees at the local muni, we're talking about an old war horse going for one last gallop in a Major Championship!
If an aging veteran is going to pull off the impossible against a stable of 20 and 30-something bombers, it's going to be across the pond. We saw it last year with 53 year old Greg Norman who led after three rounds, only to melt down and shoot a 77 at Royal Birkdale.
The young studs aren't used to relegating the driver to the back of the bag while focusing on the bump and run. Links golf dictates you place priority on the short game and the mental game, especially when dealing with mother nature.
Something Watson still has to do Saturday before he can realistically think about winning a 6th Claret Jug.
And why not think this T-Dubs can do the unthinkable this weekend? The British Open, after all, is the place where unlikely champions are crowned. The list includes: Paul Lawrie (thanks Jean Van De Velde!), Ben Curtis (2 other career wins) and John Daly (9th and final alternate of his PGA rookie year).
Tiger's Turnberry topple will hurt ABC's weekend ratings, but his absense is actually a blessing. We won't have to sit through the agonizing recaps of how well/poor Woods' played, when even a great performance will only give false hope he can actually win the tournament.
How many times have we seen Woods' struggle in the first two rounds, blister the course Saturday or early Sunday, only for it to be too little, too late? When Tiger wins a major he does it with the lead, he boat races the field and pummels the players into submission.
During his 14 major wins Woods has never trailed entering Sunday's play. Never
Woods is the greatest of all-time and it's a quirky statistical anomaly, but it's the truth. With Tiger out of camera range, the network can focus on the only TW playing this weekend. (Unless Anthony Wall, starts going by Tony!?!?!)
Hopefully, for nostalgia's sake, Watson will keep it rolling in the third round. I'd hate to see the old guy relegated to secondary story status, again.
2 comments:
too bad for watson...but man you just have to make a 4 on the closing hole...you got to get it done. as for tiger...he will be back and might be a while before he misses another cut.....
As bad as I feel for Watson, Cink couldn't be more deserving. 36-years-old and it's his 1st major!
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