A US Open to Remember
It was a week -- and more. The weather made sure the final round would spill over to a Monday.
It is a US Open to remember because one might forget it otherwise. One might remember the greens being flooded and swept. Or that the rounds spilled over into each other.
There was the Mickelson factor, riding on a wave of emotion due to his wife's approaching battle with cancer. And there was Tiger Woods who was almost a non-factor. Neither was able to conjure enough magic to transform this Open into another chapter in their legends in the making. One may remember Ricky Barnes and how he disintegrated in the last round. Put all of this together and this could still be one of the most forgettable US Opens.
But that would be unfair to Lucas Glover, the first man since 2005 to win the Open after not making the cut in previous tries. His story may not be as dramatic, but he did write a story that is heartwarming as it is personal. It is the story of someone who was seen to be full of promise when he turned pro but never got to show it. Someone who had so much frustration with himself and his game that he finally decided to take a total break from golf towards the end of 2008 to do some soul-searching. This is the part that almost any golfer can relate to.
According to Lucas himself, it was his change of attitude that allowed him to keep hanging in there, that made him keep his cool as he putted for birdie on the 16th and par on the 17th that practically sealed the tournament for him. When he used a 6 iron to tee off on the 18th that was a real show of wise restraint that many golfers can learn from. In the end, it was being kinder to himself -- and believing in his late coach's words that he is good enough -- that made him overcome.
It is a US Open that is worth remembering if only for the story, simple it may be, of Lucas Glover, that could also be our own.
It is a US Open to remember because one might forget it otherwise. One might remember the greens being flooded and swept. Or that the rounds spilled over into each other.
There was the Mickelson factor, riding on a wave of emotion due to his wife's approaching battle with cancer. And there was Tiger Woods who was almost a non-factor. Neither was able to conjure enough magic to transform this Open into another chapter in their legends in the making. One may remember Ricky Barnes and how he disintegrated in the last round. Put all of this together and this could still be one of the most forgettable US Opens.
But that would be unfair to Lucas Glover, the first man since 2005 to win the Open after not making the cut in previous tries. His story may not be as dramatic, but he did write a story that is heartwarming as it is personal. It is the story of someone who was seen to be full of promise when he turned pro but never got to show it. Someone who had so much frustration with himself and his game that he finally decided to take a total break from golf towards the end of 2008 to do some soul-searching. This is the part that almost any golfer can relate to.
According to Lucas himself, it was his change of attitude that allowed him to keep hanging in there, that made him keep his cool as he putted for birdie on the 16th and par on the 17th that practically sealed the tournament for him. When he used a 6 iron to tee off on the 18th that was a real show of wise restraint that many golfers can learn from. In the end, it was being kinder to himself -- and believing in his late coach's words that he is good enough -- that made him overcome.
It is a US Open that is worth remembering if only for the story, simple it may be, of Lucas Glover, that could also be our own.
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