2009 Open wrapup

Huge Congratulations to Stewart Cink. If ever any one earned a Major Cink earned this. First and foremost because of his game. But also because he did it in one of the toughest situations imaginable. Everyone, and I mean EVERYONE( okay I admit, that includes us here at The Household ), wanted Tom Watson to win. Stewart had to go out there knowing the crowd was cheering for the other guy, and then steel himself to beat someone in whose footsteps he had hoped to follow. And beat him he did. Watson fell apart in the playoff. But even if he hadn’t he would have been hard pressed to win. Cink played great, finishing with 2 birdies. He finished to polite applause and sad faces. Then he had to stand there during the presentation of the trophies while the biggest cheer went up for the guy who finished second. And being the thorough gentleman that he is Stewart handled it all with grace and aplomb. So once again let us say Congratulations. His earned his spot on The Claret Jug.

We also have to give kudos to Mr. Watson. He did fall apart there at the end. But it’s not like that has been a habit of his. It is precisely because he has done the opposite of fall apart over the years that we all thought he would win. He’d done it 5 times before at the Open, including the famous Duel in The Sun here at the very same Turnberry, that The Golfer mentioned in the previous Open post. The man will be 60 in Sept. and he had a hip replaced a little over a year ago. And there he was, one putt away from winning The Open. Win or lose he is an incredible inspiration to all us golfers of-a-certain-age. It was a beautiful thing to watch, no matter the outcome.

And so another Open is in the books. Here is a nice article from Bob Harig at ESPN. And here is a good round up from Golf.com. And next year, when Tiger not only makes the cut, but is, ho hum, in the lead as usual for the final round, we golfers of-a-certain-age will remember this year, and maybe turn the channel to watch Tom Watson compete in a Senior event instead.

Comments

[Golf Always]

I agree!