John Feinstein wrote a classic book titled, A Good Walk Spoiled about the challenges PGA tour players face in their profession; the constant travel, the frustrations of playing poorly and the near misses in tournaments, regular events and majors. Well, Martin Kaymer’s four rounds at Pinehurst No.2 in the 114th U.S. Open were anything but a good walk spoiled. He played spectacularly and gave no one else a chance in winning his second major title– third if you count the Players back in May, which is right there in importance as the majors to many of the players though not considered a major championship–and has made his statement that he is the best golfer in the world right now without a doubt.
Kaymer shot 65-65-72-69, and punctuated the victory with a 12 foot par putt on 18 to capture the coveted United States Open trophy. He had 35 one putts out of 72 holes. He struck the ball like he was hitting eight irons on the driving range. It looked like an easy nine under par four rounds, which of course it wasn’t with the constant pressure of the Open. He was precise in everything he did. And the 29-year old cool customerout of Dusseldorf, West Germany etched his name in history.
Another excellent storyline was the second place finish by Erik Compton, who shot one-under, eight shots less than Kaymer’s -9, but earned a spot in next year’s Masters by finishing in the top four in the tournament. Compton finished second, his five foot clutch par putt on 18 ensuring that. Compton, the 34-year old native Floridian, who played at Georgia, has had two heart transplants in his young life already, but has a passion for the game and his life that is incredibly special. You could tell how much being in the hunt meant to him. And while he never seriously challenge Kaymer as no one did, he gave incredible effort and showed the heart of the champion. Who knows, maybe we’ll see Compton winning tournaments before long. It would be quite a moving story. Classic guy.
The other storyline was the final curtain call for NBC broadcasting the Open. It’s sad to see such a tremendous event moved from where it belongs on NBC with Johnny Miller, Gary Koch, Dan Hicks and the rest of the excellent crew which has called this epic tournament for the last 20 years. Will miss those guys, particularly Miller and Koch. They were classic voices of the Open. The Open moves to FOX Sports next year, and I’m sure FOX will do a good job, but it’ll be a little of an adjustment without the Johnny and NBC bringing viewers the Open on Father’s Day weekend. But the U.S. Open is transcendent; it will always be special no matter what network provides coverage. But Johnny Miller and NBC were the voices of the Open and they will be missed. But NBC will stay have some big tournaments to call: The Ryder Cup, the Players, the FeD Ex Cup tournaments and the Arnie among premiere events. So we’ll still have those guys in our dens on Sunday afternoons during golf season. The Ryder Cup Sept, 26-28 at Gleneagles, Scotland, should be, as it always is, a colossally exciting event in October. Next up on the majors list is the 143rd Open Championship at Royal Liverpool Golf Club in Hoylake, England. Tiger Woods won there in 2006 shooting -18, phenomenal. Can he get back for it? Right now his odds of winning are 50-1; Kaymer is the favorite at 10:1. There is no guarantee that Woods will be healthy enough to play, His back is a problem. But according to NBC, he is doing a ton of chipping and putting right now, so if he returns, we know his short game will be sharp. He may not be able to hit it 240 yards, but he’ll be able to get up and down for par and bogey which won’t be good enough. And there are so many other players who are capable of winning this thing. Kaymer looks dominant. Adam Scott looks like he could be dominant at majors. Jordan Spieth is still in the hunt all the time. There are so many good foreign players. There are plenty of good Americans. The Asian players are making statements. Of course the Australians like Scott and Day and the South African players will all be factors. There is more depth on the tour than ever. Can’t count out Phil either. He still has a tremendous passion for the game. So the Open is wide open. So many players can win it. As the the PGA and European tours keep developing in the coming weeks will have a better picture of who to pick at Hoylake in mid July. This week it’s the Travelers Championship in Connecticut with a pretty good field.
Spurs dominate Heat for fifth title in 15 years
The Spurs were sensational. This title is Tim Duncan’s fifth since 1999, as well as Coach Greg Popovich. Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili have four now. People can say all they want to about the Heat’s Big Three, but this is the real Big Three; Duncan, Parker and Ginobili. I just hope the three future Hall of Famers will come back to give it one more shot. They are all three still playing at a very high level. Actually I hope they come back for two more years, to see if Duncan can tie Michael Jordan’s mark of six titles and surpass it with two more and finish his career out with three in a row. Just love these guys. Duncan is an all world class act. You just keep wanting more from him. I never want him to retire. Kawhi Leonard, the Finals MVP, is 24-years old and is a superstar in the league right now. His future is unlimited. Wow, he was fantastic. Danny Green is young, as are Patty Mills and Tiago Splitter. Mills took the team on his back last night in the third quarter draining some beautiful threes that broke the Heat’s back. Then Parker finished them off with Duncan scoring some key baskets to close out the Heat. Duncan is 38, Ginobili is 36 and Parker is 31. I want them back. They are what make this league special. They are guys who make sports special. They are transcendent professionals, who do their job and never complain. And they are the ultimate winners. Would be fun to see the come back. Who knows what’s going to happen with the Heat. With LeBron possibly going somewhere else, this team is more a soap opera than As the World Turns. Anyway, just going to enjoy the Spurs and not worry about the Heat. The Spurs are the true dynasty.
