Good morning! What an amazing looking day at Royal Birkdale. With a few different players atop the leaderboard, this promises to be an interesting afternoon. Hang in for continuous updates.
[UPDATE 10:25] -- My favorite story of the tournament is without a doubt Chris Wood, the 20-year-old amateur who finds himself three back of the lead. Imagine that. You make the cut and then all of a sudden your in the thick of it all, primed to make a run in the biggest tournament of them all. Of providing passes to his family members, Wood had this to say:
“My mother and aunt are here as well but my sister Abi is travelling in Europe. She sent me a text yesterday asking ‘Are you in that Open thing yet?”’
[UPDATE 10:43] -- Mike Tirico just had a great stat. And no, its not because someone had to do a lot of research. Padraig Harrington has six straight pars. Six. That is what these final rounds are all about -- consistent play, hole after hole and not making mistakes. More often than not, bogey is going to be a good score. Meanwhile, Chris Wood just missed a birdie putt that would have brought him within two of the lead. Alas, it is also about taking advantage of your opportunities.
[UPDATE 11:00] -- Greg Norman is two back of the lead, and true to my thought that he is the world's third most recognizable golfer, he is certainly getting the Tiger treatment from the galleries at Royal Birkdale today.
[UPDATE 11:13] -- Let's play Who's Score is That? -- 73, 69, 83, 71 -- now if you said David Duval you'd be correct! Duval, who won the Open Championship in 2001, would be right in the mix if it wasn't for the third-day disaster.
[UPDATE 11:28] -- Just realized that Ian Poulter has perhaps the coolest pants I have ever seen. He is two shots back of the lead. Coincidence? I think not.
[UPDATE 11:45] -- Greg Norman has taken the lead at 6-over. Fire up the Shark-related headlines just in case he wins.
[UPDATE 12:10] -- Can you imagine that the winner of this tournament may win it at 10-over? Both Harrington and Poulter are already at 7-over.
[UPDATE 12:21] -- Harrington sank such a nice putt to give himself the outright lead. That is one way to break the streak of pars.
[UPDATE 12:40] -- What a gutsy performance from Poulter. For all of the flak he's taken over the comments he made comparing himself to Tiger, and the wrist injury, he has certainly made an impact today, shooting 1-under 69 of the final round of this tournament and putting himself in prime position to win. Must feel great.
[UPDATE 12:51] -- Harrington's birdie gave him a two-shot lead. He almost eagled on No. 15, and really put everyone behind him. How does the defending champion follow up his birdie? Pounds a drive down the right side of the 16th fairway.
[UPDATE 1:13] -- I played with some old guys who simply said "golf shot" when a player hit a terrific shot. Not quite sure what they might make of Harrington's shot on 17, but you'll see it in the highlights tonight. Eagle coming up.
[UPDATE 1:36] -- Padraig Harrington couldn't close it pretty, but he wins his second consecutive Claret Jug, and ESPN on ABC has a great shot of him and his family. Greg Norman will card a 77.
Comments (1)
I would never believe anyone even a year ago if they would have told me I would have been riveted by a golf tourney. Yet, there I was in Bogey's in the Scottsdale resort The Boulders entranced of the Greg Norman lead. In the end, he didn't quite pull it off, but that day at breakfast, I thought he might and I was captivated. Of course, even a year ago, I'd not played any time of golf except miniature. Now, I am an old pro with 4 rounds under my belt. I'm getting stuck on something I always dubbed boring. I apologize. I was wrong. It's fun! Oh, and the beer cart that sometimes finds one on a golf path is sweet too :-)