Scott opens door for Els

Monday, July 23, 2012

It is one of the biggest clichés in professional golf that Major championships only truly start on a Sunday at the 10th tee and Ernie Els ensured it would survive another few years after this remarkable British Open triumph.

While overnight leader Adam Scott agonisingly imploded on the back nine at Royal Lytham & St Annes yesterday evening, frittering away his four-shot lead on the final four holes, Els stood on the practice putting green behind the 18th hole grandstand munching a sandwich and listening to his telephone messages having just charged into contention by making up the same number of shots on the inward holes.

A day that should have been a coronation for the 32-year-old Australian became a renaissance for the South African 10 years his senior as Els shot a 32 on the back nine to steer him towards his fourth Major victory, and first since he first lifted the Claret Jug at Muirfield in 2002.

His birdie at the last gave Els a final-round 68 that took him to seven under par, having trailed by six shots at the start of the day, and cranked up the pressure on Scott as he attempted to edge over the finishing line and win his first Major at the 46th time of asking.

It worked. Scott had been in the driving seat when he birdied the 14th to move to 10 under but four consecutive bogeys sent him into second place with a finish at six under, one behind Els, the only one of the top-10 after 54 holes to shoot under par yesterday.

At three under were American duo Brandt Snedeker and Tiger Woods in a tie for third, a finish that will send Woods up to No 2 in the world rankings today in place of Rory McIlroy, who drops to three after a final-round 73 left him way down the leaderboard at eight over par.

Graeme McDowell, who began the day four shots back of Scott in second place, also suffered a long, cruel golfing death and finished the day with a 75, at two under and in a share of fifth place with Luke Donald.

Els’s victory makes him the 16th different Major winner in the last 16 championships and his six-shot final round winning comeback was the largest in a Major since Pádraig Harrington at the 2007 British Open.

“Amazing. I’m still numb,” Els said. “It still hasn’t set in. It will probably take quite a few days because I haven’t been in this position for 10 years, obviously, so it’s just crazy, crazy, crazy getting here.

“My game is back to where I feel I can compete. If it wasn’t this year, I feel I can compete in it next year.

“But I really feel for my buddy Scottie, I really do. I’ve been there before. I’ve blown Majors before and golf tournaments before, and I just hope he doesn’t take it as hard as I did.”

The last time a Scott suffered such a desperate failure was at the South Pole when a Norwegian beat him to the bottom of the planet. No one died this time around but the Australian certainly froze with victory in sight as Els played some perfect golf to lay claim to the prize instead.

The South African was majestic at the 18th, letting rip with a perfect drive on this most testing of closing holes just as Tony Jacklin had done here in 1969. Els’s approach shot was also perfect and as he took the standing ovation from the grandstands on the walk up to the green, Scott was bogeying the 16th to fall back to eight under.

Els had them on their feet again by holing his birdie putt to get to seven under and the pressure was too much for poor Scott.

He bogeyed 17 and then sent his tee shot on 18 up against the face of a left-sided bunker, forcing him to chip back onto the fairway. There was still hope when the Aussie sent his third shot onto the green but he missed the eight-footer for par that would have forced a play-off and as he crouched in disbelief, his long putter between his knees, he knew he had handed Els the 141st British Open on a plate.
“It was a very sloppy finish by me,” Scott admitted. “And disappointing to finish that way. I played so well all week.

“I know I’ve let a really great chance slip through my fingers today. But somehow I’ll look back and take the positives from it. I don’t think I’ve ever played this well in a Major championship, so that’s a good thing for me moving forward.

“Today is one of those days, and that’s why they call it golf.”

Watching Scott implode alongside him in the final group did not make McDowell feel any better about his own, five-over 75, which left him in a tie for fifth, to add to his second at last month’s US Open.

Yet the Portrush man, whose round had begun to unravel with the first of six bogeys at the par-four second but was dealt a fatal blow with a six at the par-five 11th, was able to put his own disappointment into perspective.

“I’m not splattered on the floor right now in disappointment,” McDowell said.

“I’m just a little frustrated that I got off to flat starts both times now in the last rounds of majors. I guess my disappointment kind of seems relatively stupid in relation to the guy I’ve just seen lose the Open Championship. No, I’ll take the positives away and I’ll be back.” Home