"Maybe it’s time to stop having so much fun and start winning majors again."
/Robert Lusetich is fascinated by a recurring theme from the American golfers who almost won the Open and asks, "Which of them is going to have the constitution in the cauldron of the back nine on Sunday afternoon to win a major?"
Phil can win them when he’s in the mood.
Otherwise, he’s happy to just have “fun,” a word he used about a dozen times Sunday to describe his final round.
“Oh, man,” he said, his eyes widening like they do. “That was some of the most fun I’ve had competitively.”
What is this, a theme park, Phil?
And about Rickie Fowler:
Fowler was two shots behind Clarke. He needed to be bold. Instead, his first putt, from off the green, came up about 12 feet short. He missed the next one, too.
But he wasn’t taking it too hard.
“All in all, it was a fun week,” he said.
And maybe that’s the point.
Maybe it’s time to stop having so much fun and start winning majors again.
Huggan: Three Americans impressed me hugely. If there was a point to be made, they made it. Phil was terrific for 63 holes, but then turned into "Old Phil" for the last nine. After showing me he really can play links golf in a wind, he reverted to type, missed the inevitable short putt, got too aggressive and, presto, didn't win. As for Johnson, get your money on now. He will win the Open at St. Andrews four years from now. I'll be shocked if he doesn't.
Elling: Dustin Johnson has been in the final group in three different majors over the past two seasons. That, alone, means something. Will he get over this setback? Why not? He always has. Not a deep thinker, per se.
Huggan: And Fowler? Like I said, loved watching him play. It looked like he was from, oh, somewhere like Northern Ireland. Whereas Rory is more suited to golf American-style. Call it irony. I like Johnson's play, even if I'm not a huge fan of his technique. That shut face worries me. But he has the perfect game for the Old Course -- see John Daly 1995.
