Venus and Verlander each get long-awaited victories

Two different sports. Two different competitors. Two different examples of athletes proving persistence will be rewarded while disproving the doubters.

Venus Williams won a tennis match, Tuesday, July 22, her first victory in 16 months.

Fewer than 24 hours later, Wednesday, July 23, Justin Verlander pitched a winning baseball game, his first in 16 starts this season. 

Williams is 45. Verlander is 42. So much for Father Time. 

And so much for doubters who never believed that either party could take the next step in careers destined to finish in their respective Halls of Fame. You felt sorry for Venus as she continued entering tournaments and getting defeated all too quickly, often in the first round. She seemed better off stepping away, as did her younger sister, Serena.

But Venus stepped back in and stepped into the winners’ circle, defeating Peyton Stears, a fellow American, 6-3, 6-4.  

“There are no limits for excellence,” said Venus, thinking the way that champions always think, which is why they are champions.

And if anybody should know excellence, it’s Williams.

“You know it’s the first step,” said Williams. “It’s hard to describe how difficult it is to play a first after so much time off.”

Sixteen months off, since a loss to Diana Shnaider in the first round of the 2024 Miami Open. 

Verlander’s time off came at the end of the 2024 baseball season. A free agent, he signed with the San Francisco Giants, who hoped he not only would pitch as in his younger days but also provide leadership for others.

It was not until Wednesday, however, that he got his first win of the year, as the Giants defeated the Braves 9-3 in Atlanta.  Even then, he was questionable because it might be delayed by the all-too-typical southeast weather. Rain began to fall in the middle of the fifth inning as Verlander needed just three outs to qualify for his first victory since the end of the 2024 season when he was with Houston.

“I figured something like that would happen,” said Verlander. “It would be like, ‘OK, this would be the game that gets rained out,’ and there’s going to be a two-hour delay, and they won’t let me go back out.” Fortunately, there was just a light drizzle and no delay, and Verlander made it through the fifth inning, which meant he and the Giants would make it into the win column. 

But nothing was going to ruin the day for Justin or for Venus. 

“So going into the match,” said Venus. “I know I have the ability to win, but it’s all about actually winning. So this is the best result, to play a good match and win.”

That statement was virtually echoed in the Giants' winning clubhouse.

“We know every time he goes out there, guys try extra hard and for whatever reason it just hasn’t worked out,” Bob Melvin, the Giants manager, said of Verlander. “For him to be able to get through five after throwing 40 pitches in the first inning, there’s some toughness involved in that.” 

As for Venus Williams, to return with a win, there’s also a toughness involved.

Next for Scheffler: Completion of the personal Grand Slam

Scottie Scheffler insists he’s nothing special. Obviously, he’s wrong.  He is “the Champion Golfer of the Year.”

Truth be told, he’s much more. He’s the man the announcers on Golf Channel kept relating to Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus.

He’s the man who needs only a victory in the US Open—the next one is at Shinnecock Hills on Long Island in June—to equal one of golf’s most sought-after goals: a personal Grand Slam.  Scheffler’s victory Sunday in the Open Championship at Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland gave him the third leg of the slam. It seems inevitable that Scheffler, age 29, and at the height of his game, will achieve the fourth. 

Funny how this year progressed. The talk all winter and spring was whether Rory McIlroy could win the Masters and complete his own grand slam. Which, as we know, he did. There was something else involving golf when the year began: Scheffler’s Christmas Day injury, cutting his hand on a broken glass while making dinner. That kept him out of action for the beginning of the season. But he certainly has come back. And his golf at the Open Championship was so dominant that going into the last day, the only issue was who would finish second behind Scottie, and that turned out to be Harris English.

Scheffler began the last round in the Open with a four-shot lead, which was increased for a while to seven shots, and despite a double bogey at the eighth hole, his first stumble after 32 consecutive holes with nothing worse than a par, he remained in control.

The closing round three-under par 68 gave him a four-round total of 267, 17 under. That was four shots ahead of English, who had a 66. Third, after a 67, was Chris Gotterup, who won the previous week’s Genesis Scottish Open. There was a three-way tie for fourth at 273 among Hao-Tong Li (70), who recorded the best finish ever for a player from China, Matt Fitzpatrick (69), and Wyndham Clark (65). Another shot back at 274 were last year’s winner, Xander Schauffele (68), Robert MacIntyre (67), and Rory McIlroy (69).

McIlroy is from Northern Ireland. Shane Lowry, who is from Ireland, was the 2019 Open Champion. He was effusive in his praise of Scheffler.

“I played with him the first two days,” said Lowry. “And honestly, I thought he was going to birdie every hole. It was incredible to watch.” 

Scheffler won for the fourth time this year. He is the first player in the last century to win his first four majors by at least three shots. He has won 20 times worldwide since February 2022, and this was the 11th straight time he turned a 54-hole lead into a victory.

“I’m very fortunate to come out here and being able to compete,” admitted Scheffler. “I’m living out my dreams. This is amazing to be able to come out here and compete and win.”

Only Open question: Who would finish second to Scottie?

There still was a question remaining Sunday when the Open Championship entered the final Round at Royal Portrush.

Who might finish second? Possibly, the quite unflappable guy named Haotong Li. Maybe the quite emotional guy named Rory McIlroy.

But as the tournament resumed, there was no question who would be the winner. 

Almost no question.

Scottie Scheffler, merely the number one golfer on the planet, held a 4-shot lead after Saturday’s third round, and not only had he won the previous nine tournaments when he was in front after 54 holes, but he also had taken two of the other three majors this year.

“Anytime you can keep a clean card around a major championship,” said Scheffler, who didn’t make a bogey. “You are going to be having a pretty good day.” Scheffler rarely has a bad day when he is playing, which is why he is number one in the rankings.

In this oldest and most historic of tournaments, he shot a 4-under par 67 Saturday, and was at 68-64-67–199. 

Li, the pro from China, who plays the DP World Tour, was at 203 after a 67. Third at 205 after a 66 was Matt Fitzpatrick, the Englishman, while McIlroy who also had a 66 was at 205 for the three rounds.

They tell us nothing is certain in golf, where you can gain or lose shots in an instant. Remember Arnold Palmer’s 4-shot lead in the 1966 US Open disappeared in 2 holes? And of course notoriously, Greg Norman blew a 6-shot lead in the 1996 Masters. 

Yet it’s difficult to believe Scheffler, who hits fairways with consistency and appears never to be rattled, would allow this one to get away. 

“I’m just trying to execute, not overthinking things,” Scheffler said. “I feel like I’ve been doing the right thing so far, and I’m looking forward to the challenge of (Sunday).” 

Li, 29, seems in his own world.  Asked if he was affected by the situation, Li all but yawned. “I think to play without expectations,” said Li. “Is kind of a good thing for me.”

There are plenty of expectations for McIlroy, who grew up in Northern Ireland not far from Portrush. His triumph in the Masters in April gave him victories in all four grand slam tournaments and made him more popular than ever, as hard as that is to imagine. 

His appearance at each hole Saturday brought a huge reception. 

“One of the coolest moments I’ve ever had on the golf course,” McIlroy said.

John Perry of England had a cool moment Saturday when he made so far the tournament’s only hole in one, knocking an 8-iron into the cup on the 192-yard 13th. He had a 67 and was at 213. That was exciting, even though the ending of the main event may be less so.

“Even when he doesn’t have his best stuff,” McIlroy said of Scheffler, “he’s become a complete player. Yeah, it’s going to be tough to catch him.” “But if I can get out (Sunday) and get off to a similar start to what I did today (three birdies in four holes) to get the crowd going…you never know.”

Sorry, Rory. When Scheffler is on a roll, you know.

Is Scheffler the strongest in this battle at Portrush?

Paul Gallico, a sportswriter-turned-novelist best known for The Poseidon Adventure, once said, “The Battle isn’t always to the strong or the race to the swift, but it is a good way to bet.”

And to choose winners.

Another sportswriter (blush) often has pointed out that the longer the competition—individual or team—goes on, the greater the chance the favorite will win.

Headed into Saturday’s third round of The Open Championship at Portrush, Northern Ireland, it should be no surprise that the man in front is the world’s No. 1 golfer, Scottie Scheffler.   

Yes, there is half an Open remaining, and his lead is precarious, a single shot, especially with two other major champions on his tail. Still, you very much have to like his chances. You always have to like his chances. For much of Friday’s second round, Scheffler toyed with the Dunluce Links, Portrush’s main layout, making eight birdies and recording a 7-under par, 64. That put him a swing ahead of Britain’s Matt Fitzpatrick, the US Open champion in 2022, and two ahead of Brian Harman, winner of The British Open in 2023, and China’s Haotong Li. Fitzpatrick shot a 66 on Friday, while Harman and Li each carded 67s.

“He’s going to have the expectation to go out and dominate,” Fitzpatrick said of Scheffler. 

Whether he meets those expectations and he very well might, could depend on the fickle Irish weather, which shifts from sunshine to a downpour in seconds, as Scheffler realized early in the second round. Watching and listening on television, you could hear three things from across the sea: when the weather got nasty very early in Scheffler’s round.

There was the pounding of rain on umbrellas, the confirmation by an announcer on the television who said, “It is raining cats and dogs,” and an apparent outburst by Scotty who muttered something that sounded like, “Oh, spit.” Later on, the Golf Channel issued an apology for what was caught by the microphone next to Scheffler. 

Certainly, there was no reason for Scheffler to apologize for his remarkable golf, which included eight birdies. He almost had one more, but his 15-foot putt on the 18th was inches away

Rory McIlroy—the local kid who, 20 years ago as an amateur, set the course record at Portrush with a 61 (although a less difficult set-up than for The Open)—is at 139.

Two successful veterans (don’t call them seniors), 52-year-old Lee Westwood (70, 69–139) and 55-year-old Phil Mickelson (71, 72–143), both made the cut.

Shane Lowry, who won at Portrush the last time it was held there, in 2019, was assessed a two-shot penalty when, after a long video review, it was judged his ball moved during a practice swing at the 12th hole. That gave him a 1-over 72 and a 36-hole score of 144, even par.

The raucous cheers Lowry received the previous Portrush Open for his triumph will go towards someone else this time, quite probably Scotty Scheffler.

Portrush: Phil and a five-way tie for the lead

So the Open—the British Open, if you will—lurched into the second round Friday with a leader board that resembled a roll call at the United Nations and a man in contention who had all but disappeared the last few years.

That would be our old (emphasize old) friend, Phil Mickelson, who is 55, and shot 70, which was 1-under par Thursday at Royal Portrush.

Five players were tied for first at 67, Jacob Olesen (Denmark), Haotong Li (China), Matt Fitzpatrick (England), Christiaan Bezuidenhout (South Africa), and Harris English (USA).

The betting favorite, Scottie Scheffler, is very much in contention after a 68, and with three rounds remaining, Rory McIlroy certainly isn’t out of it at 70.  

If there were surprises for this Open at Northern Ireland, the weather certainly wasn’t one of them. A day that started with sunshine breaking through the overcast had periods of rain and enough wind to blow ill-struck balls every which way.

It also had a guy not long out of prison. Ryan Peake of Australia, who spent five years behind bars for assault, was paired with Mickelson and asked Phil for his autograph after shooting a 77.

Li, one of those tied for first, became infamous a few years ago when he threw his putter into a pond at the French Open, and his mother waded into the water to retrieve it. There was no reason to get angry with any of the clubs he utilized Thursday, especially the putter. He got around Portrush testing Dunluce Links without a bogey. As did Justin Rose.

Mickelson became the oldest player to win a major, when at age 50, he took the 2021 PGA Championship at Kiawah Island. He was one of the very early starters Thursday in this Open. He showed his famous short game brilliance quickly, holing a shot out of a greenside bunker on the par-3 third, after failing to get out on the previous swing.

“That was a crazy one,” said Mickelson. “To make it, it was obviously a lot of luck. I was just trying to save bogey, and I got lucky and it went in.” 

Scheffler, number one in the world rankings, hasn’t as much been lucky as determined and consistent. He’s won two different majors, the Masters (twice) and the PGA Championship. He hit only three fairways Thursday at Portrush, yet he’s only one shot behind.

“I actually thought I drove it pretty well,” said Scheffler, seemingly irritated about questions about his accuracy. 

“When it’s raining sideways,” sighs Scheffler, “believe it or not, it’s not that easy to get the ball in the fairway.”  

“Really only had one swing I wasn’t too happy with on the second hole,” he said. “But outside that, I felt like I hit a lot of good tee shots, hit the ball really solid, so definitely a good bit of confidence for the next couple of rounds. 

Confidence is necessary, along with a great swing and maybe a few breaks. Particularly at the Open.

The Open returns to Portrush where the cheers still echo

What some thought could be a question—the return of the Open Championship, the British Open, to Northern Ireland after decades—instead turned out to be a celebration.

That was 2019, and the pain of the difficulties of years past, the violence between the English and the Irish, known euphemistically as “the troubles,” seemed swept away by a fortuitous sporting event. And an Irish winner, Shane Lowry.  

The cheers and chants—“Ole, ole, ole”—still echo in the mind.

 The Open comes back this week with no doubts, and with as much excitement as possible for the oldest tournament in the game.

Royal Portrush, a plot of land that is spectacularly beautiful––and for golfers, agonizingly difficult—sits on the Atlantic where the waves crash, the wind blows, and more often than not, the rain falls.

As challenging as any course, where the Open has been held in its 152-year history, Portrush offers huge dunes and a hole, the 17th, named Purgatory.

It’s long been golf country. Graeme McDowell grew up in Portrush and went on to win a US Open at another seaside course, Pebble Beach, in 2010.

Rory McIlroy, who was the favorite for that 2019 British Open and will be among the favorites this time, is also from Northern Ireland. As is Darren Clarke, who won the British Open in 2011, along with David Faherty, who kept us entertained on television after he stepped away from competition. 

The Open is traditionally held on links courses, where the bunkers are deep and numerous golfers are almost as dependent on the weather as they are on their swings. It’s been said there is too much luck involved on links courses, that a crazy bounce can determine who ends up in first place. But the great Jack Nicklaus often said the people who hit the best shots usually get the best bounces. 

Nicklaus won The Open. So did Tom Watson. And of course, so did Tiger Woods—and those guys were hardly surprised champions. Wherever the tournament goes week to week, Scottie Scheffler inevitably is the choice, along with McIlroy, Sepp Straka, and Justin Thomas.

Yet golf is different from other sports. You have no control over what another player does, only what you do.

True, McIlroy and Scheffler won the year’s first two majors, the Masters and the PGA Championship. But longshot J.J. Spaun took the US Open.

Who knows what to expect for The Open, which last year was won by Xander Schauffele. Maybe Rory, having completed his personal Grand Slam with the victory at Augusta, will follow up with a triumph at The Open. He’s determined to atone for his problems of 2019 when he hit his opening tee shot into the crowd and eventually missed the cut. The gloom was as thick as the rough.

The win by Lowry, who’s from the Republic of Ireland, helped eliminate that gloom. Yes, two different countries, but ask the residents of either and they will say, “We are all Irish.”

McIlroy was measured in describing his thoughts for this Open and his chances.

“We all want to do better. We all think we can just get a little bit extra out of what we have,” said McIlroy. “It has been an amazing year.” 

“The fact that I’m here at Portrush with the Green Jacket, having completed that lifelong dream, I want to do my best this week to enjoy everything that comes my way, enjoy the reaction of the fans, and enjoy being in front of them and playing in front of them.”

“But at the same time, I want to win this golf tournament, and I feel like I’m very capable of doing that.

Fritz not on ESPN’s bottom line, but he’s in the Wimbledon semis

Taylor Fritz has made the Wimbledon semi-finals. But he can’t make ESPN’s bottom line.

Probably not a surprise since the sports network delights in big names, and the other three men who have advanced to the semis are as big as they come in the sport of tennis—Carlos Alcaraz, Janek Sinner, and Novak Djokovic.

Fritz, at 27, although hardly unknown, is not quite in the class of those other three, each of whom has won at least one grand slam, and in the case of the seemingly ageless Djokovic, 24 slams.

The matchups Friday in Centre Court will be Fritz against number two-ranked Carlos Alcaraz of Spain, who will be going for his third straight Wimbledon title, and the number one-ranked Sinner against Djokovic, who has seven Wimbledon victories to his credit.

If you’re excited by the presence of this group and what may result from the competition, you’re not alone. This is when the sport grabs even those who don’t know a volley from a rally, but do know the stars, who rally and volley—and win.

For the first time, Fritz got past the quarterfinals at Wimbledon, Tuesday, defeating Karen Khachanov of Russia, 6-3, 6-4, 1-6, 7-6 (4). At last, an American male had made it this far since John Isner in 2018.

If you are wondering about the next step or two, the last American player to win the All England title was Pete Sampras in 2000.  

Djokovic, 38, defeated Italy’s Flavio Cobolli, 6-7 (6), 6-2, 7-5, 6-4. Not that Cobolli is unpopular, but the crowd was screaming wildly for the guy they call the Joker.

If Fritz seems like the odd man out, he’s unbothered. In fact, he’s more than satisfied, finally playing the way that had been both predicted and expected since he was a teenager in Southern California. 

When your mom, the former Kathy May, was a success and you took the California Interscholastic Federation crown, there is no way to enter the battle anonymously. So, Fritz had to deal with that sort of pressure as well as more than an occasional injury. He did have a breakthrough of sorts in 2024, reaching the final of the U.S. Open at Flushing Meadows, but his opponent was Sinner, who showed no weakness or no mercy, winning in straight sets.

“Having played the quarterfinals here twice,” said Fritz about Wimbledon, “and lost in five twice, I don’t think I could have taken another one.”

Fritz, fifth in the world rankings, won’t have that worry.

He did have another worry when the skin on one foot was rubbed bare after a strip of tape was pulled away. Quick attention from the attending medical staff corrected that problem. Fritz had an explanation for how the match turned around after he breezed through the first two sets and seemingly locked up the win.

“I’ve never really had a match change like that so drastically,” said Fritz. “Where I felt so in control, playing great, serving great. I didn’t feel like my serve was in danger. “I felt like I couldn’t miss and then, out of nowhere, I just started making a ton of mistakes.” 

He fixed whatever was wrong. And make no mistake, Taylor Fritz is one of the last four men remaining in the 2025 Wimbledon singles and the only American.

For Taylor Fritz, Wimbledon turns into a long day and night triumph

Wimbledon goes on. And so does Taylor Fritz. If a bit wearily. But not a bit unhappily.

There is no sport quite like tennis, where there is a category called lucky losers, and no tournament quite like The Championships, which is the way Wimbledon is listed. 

Rankings and seedings may mean very little, as the current Wimbledon verifies. Top players in both the men’s and women’s brackets are getting beaten in what might be described as upsets, although really it is proof that, with rare exceptions, such as Carlos Alcaraz, Janik Sinner, and Aryna Sabalenka, anyone in the draw can defeat anyone else.

Meaning that while Fritz, America’s number one male player, should have breezed through his first two matches, he may have been fortunate just to have won both.  

And here’s where Wimbledon, the only of the four Grand Slam tournaments still played on nature’s green grass, becomes a large part of the story.  The summer days are long in Great Britain, but eventually the sun goes down.  

For decades, daily play at Wimbledon would end in darkness. Then, some sixteen years ago, after too many rain delays, a roof was constructed. Of course, lighting had to be installed. The predictable result was that even when the weather was fine, play would go on after dark, at least until the local curfew at 11 pm.

Which certainly had an effect on Fritz in his opening round match Monday against Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard of France, after Fritz lost the first two sets. Fritz managed to win the third, and then it was decided to close the roof and use the lighting, and after a half-hour break, to continue under the roof and under the lights. That didn’t stop Taylor, but the curfew did.

And so he and Perricard came back Tuesday, Fritz then taking the fifth set. Taylor was again on court Wednesday, and again needed to survive an extended battle, this time with Italy’s Gabriel Diallo, that went five sets, Fritz winning 3-6, 6-3, 7-6, 4-6, 6-3. That match required three hours and six minutes, and medical assistance for Fritz. He incurred a bloodied elbow after diving to reach a ball when he had a break point while trailing 3-2 in the fourth set.

“That’s an incredibly hard match,” Fritz said. “The fourth set that I lost, I really don’t think there’s much I did wrong at all.”

Not an easy three days for Fritz, but certainly more rewarding than for fellow American Francis Tiafoe, who was defeated Wednesday by Britain’s Cameron Norrie, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 7-5.

No American man has won a Wimbledon singles title since Pete Sampras in 2000. Fritz will probably not be the next, but at least after these first two long victories, he’s still very much alive.

And, looking forward to getting a brief break, with no match scheduled on Thursday. 

“Tomorrow is going to be a very, very light hit. I think I’ve played plenty of tennis,” was Fritz’s post-round comment to the media. “I’m very due for a nice, relaxing day.”  

Barry may not get into the Hall, but he will get a statue at Oracle

The award Barry Bonds and his supporters would prefer is a bust that sits in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Which, if he gets—and that remains a question—will not arrive for some time. 

So Bonds, for a while, will have to be satisfied with another piece of equipment, a statue at his long-time place of employment, Oracle Park in San Francisco.

Larry Baer, the Giants' President and CEO, was asked about adding Bonds' statue to the five already outside the ballpark. “Barry is certainly deserving of a statue,” said Baer. “And I would say he is next up.”

Those already in place are five former Giants who also are in the Hall of Fame—Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Juan Marichal, Gaylord Perry, and Orlando Cepeda. 

Bonds unquestionably hit more home runs than any major leaguer in history, a total of 762, the majority while wearing the uniform of the San Francisco Giants.

That made him a beloved figure in the Bay Area, but because of the unending reports that he was the beneficiary of drug use that aided his performance, he was equally disliked away from Northern California. Bonds ’abrasive attitude when he dealt with the media also contributed to his unpopularity among baseball writers who recognized his talent but were hesitant to deal with him. 

Bonds, now 60, seems to have mellowed somewhat, although that change has not yet improved his status among those who vote for induction into the Hall. There is no question of Bonds’ skill.  It’s reflected in the number of home runs, including the all-time single-season high of 73 in 2001.  It was just his personality and constant talk of steroids that made him disliked.   

Bonds never was officially denied the opportunity to be elected to the Hall, as were others such as Shoeless Joe Jackson and Pete Rose, who are now deceased. 

Perhaps the change in the revised admission to the Hall will also extend toward Bonds. Although the ostracized players, all except Rose, were involved in the 1919 Black Sox Scandal —fixing the World Series against the Cincinnati Reds—before the latter group was cleared last month by Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred.

Baseball people would like to believe their game, once the “National Pastime,” is a reflection, as the man said in the movie “Field of Dreams,” of “what is right in America.”

So now that all is forgiven to the accused fixers, maybe now Bonds will be forgiven for his transgressions.  

Whatever, Barry will get his statue as he continues to get cheers. Giants fans can only wish there were someone on the current roster who could hit like Bonds. 

Maybe someday there will be.

J.J. grabs a tournament that was a very wide Open

OAKMONT, PA. — J.J. Spaun overcame a historically difficult golf course, the worst of Mother Nature, and the best of competitors to become the champion of the 125th U.S. Open.

On a Sunday of rain, suspense—and a 90-minute suspension—Spaun grabbed the lead and then grabbed the glory by ramming in a 64-foot birdie putt on the last hole.

There had been as many as five players tied for first on the back nine, it was truly a wide-open Open with the climax very much in doubt.

Spaun had hedged into the lead on 17 and then stomped off as an enthralled crowd roared its approval. A winner of only one prior event, Spaun had not been considered among those to take the tournament.

“Yeah, it’s definitely like a storybook fairytale ending,” said Spaun. “Kind of an underdog fighting back, not giving up, never quitting. With the rain and everything and then the putt, I mean, you couldn’t write a better story. I’m just so fortunate to be on the receiving end of that.”

A 34-year-old from Southern California, who played at Long Beach State as did Xander Schauffle, Spaun, whose given name is John Michael, is known only by the initials.

Now he’ll have an addition to the listing, a major golf winner.

“I thought it was a good thing having the delay. It happened to me at The Players earlier this year where I was kind of struggling on the front nine. I had the lead going into Sunday, and we had a four-hour delay, I think. I ended up turning that round into a nice fight where I got myself into the playoff.”

Spaun could only come in with a two-over par 72 for his final round, a not-unusual finish for the U.S. Open. But his four-round total of 279 was two strokes clear of Robert MacIntyre, one of the many who were at least briefly in or sharing the lead.

Spaun started the day a shot behind Sam Burns, but he had been a big factor throughout, having leaped into the first-round lead and then never losing touch as the tournament swirled among many, including Adam Scott, who at age 44 was seeking a last hurrah to go with his 2007 Masters title. Scott faded at the end, shot 79, and fell to 12th place from a third-round position of second place.

Scottie Scheffler, the number one-ranked golfer in the world, rallied somewhat, and after a poor beginning in the first and second rounds, ended up in a three-way tie for seventh place.

This was the tenth Open at Oakmont, and each one has provided both the excitement the USGA wants and the weather it doesn’t.  

The key is that the course provides the difficulty and character that is sought for the event that becomes the golfing championship of America.

Burns still ahead at Oakmont, but look who’s right there: Adam Scott

OAKMONT, Pa. — The day was loaded with warnings, literal ones posted on scoreboards or carried on flashing signs. 

Dangerous weather is approaching, they read. Prepare to take shelter.

They were aimed at the hardy spectators stomping around Oakmont Saturday, watching the scores shift during the third round of the US Open.

When the rain stopped and play ended, there was Sam Burns once more back in the lead. Burns had a 1-under par 69, and his 54-hole total of 4-under 206 is a shot ahead of J.J. Spaun and the persistent Australian, Adam Scott. 

Scott, playing in his 96th consecutive major, shot a 3-under 67 and is tied for second at 207 with J.J. Spaun, who was in front at the close of the first day, and for a few holes Saturday.

Scottie Scheffler looked a little more like the golfer who is number one in the world rankings, with an even par 70. That put him at 214, seven behind Burns. 

There is a seeming United Nations group very high on the leaderboard, including Vicktor Hovland of Norway (209), Carlos Ortiz of Mexico (210), Tyrrel Hatton of England (211) and Thriston Lawrence of South Africa (211), Rasmus Neergaard of Denmark (212), Robert MacIntyre of Scotland (213) and Marc Leishman of Australia (214).

Told that there have been seven first-time major winners in the Opens at Oakmont, Burns, who would be the eighth if he holds on, responded, “Yeah, it would be incredible. I think as a kid growing up, you dream about winning major championships, and that's why we practice so hard and work so hard. All these guys in this field I think would agree that to have the opportunity to win a major is special. I'm definitely really excited for (Sunday).”

But the last round of any major, especially the Open, is daunting and enervating, a test that is as much mental as it is physical. The pressure is there, and so are the conditions.

Scott is 44 and has a Masters victory to his credit. His career is far from finished, but at his age, a win in the US Open would be particularly fulfilling. 

“Everyone out here has got their journey, you know,” said Scott. “Putting ourselves in these positions doesn't just happen by fluke. It's not easy to do it. I really haven't been in this kind of position for five or six years, or feeling like I'm that player. But that's what I'm always working towards. It's not that easy to figure it all out.”

“But if I were to come away with it tomorrow, it would be a hell of a round of golf and an exclamation point on my career.” 

Let’s hope no warning needs to be issued about the weather.

Scheffler not out of the Open, but seven shots back, is he in it?

OAKMONT, Pa. — Two weeks ago at the Memorial Tournament, Scottie Scheffler was a dominating winner and became the understandable favorite for the US Open. But golf is not like other sports.  

In the Super Bowl, you worry about one other team. The same thing in the NBA finals. Golf, however, there are dozens of opponents, including the most irritating, yourself. Every swing can create a problem or exacerbate your previous problem.

The odds makers and most of the golf people made Scheffler the choice to win the 125th Open, and halfway through the tournament, that remains a possibility, but not a probability.

After 36 holes on a historic Oakmont Country Club Course just a few miles east of Pittsburgh, that is proving to be as difficult as expected. Scheffler, number one in the world rankings, trailed surprising leader Sam Burns by seven shots.

Burns, Friday, had the tournament’s low round so far, a 5-under 65, and at 137 is a shot in front of first-round leader J.J. Spaun.

The biggest worry for Scheffler, trying to win The Open for the first time, to add to his two Masters and one PGA Championship, may not be the number of strokes between him and the lead, but the number of golfers.

He trails such stars as two-time Open Champion and three-time PGA Championship winner, Brooks Koepka; Adam Scott, also a Masters champion; and three other major titlists—Jason Day, Jon Rahm, and Keegan Bradley.

“I was not getting the ball in the correct spots,” said Scheffler, “and paying the price for it. Felt like me getting away with 1-over today wasn’t all that bad. It could have been a lot worse.”

The weather also could have been worse. Throughout the grey, humid afternoon, warning signs were posted to advise fans to take cover because of impending thunderstorms. 

The downpour arrived after Scheffler finished. He was able to get to the range in an attempt to relocate whatever was lost in his game, but numerous tough luck competitors got drenched as they completed their last few holes.

“Any time you’re not hitting it the way or playing up to my expectations I think it’s frustrating,” said Scheffler.

He spent a few minutes in that stretch of holes, which are called the church pews, because with strips of grass among the bunkers, there is a resemblance to a house of worship. They are great to look at, but not to play from.

Scheffler was in no danger of missing the cut, but he alluded to doing so. 

“Overall, definitely not out of the tournament,” said Scheffler. “Today was, I think, with the way I was hitting it, was easily a day I could have been going home, and battled pretty hard to stay in there.”

Which is what great golfers always do. As much as you can be one shot away from trouble, you’re similarly one swing away from success.  

“I’m four-over. We’ll see what the lead is after Friday, but around this golf course I don’t think by any means I’m out of the tournament.”

We’ll find out in the next two rounds.

On the U.S. Open opening day, it’s J.J. all the way

OAKMONT, Pa. — The 125th U.S. Open began with a double eagle—also known as an albatross—the leader wasn’t Scottie Scheffler or Rory McIlroy but a man who is in first place that goes by the initials J.J., which doesn’t even match his first name. That would be J.J. Spaun, one of those guys you see on a leaderboard and sometimes wonder what he is doing there, which is a very unfair judgment for someone who has found his role on the tour. 

Spaun began with a chip-in par on the first hole at Oakmont Country Club, in the wooded country east of Pittsburgh, and played 18 holes at a place known to cause nightmares and high scores, without making a bogey.

Spaun, a native Southern Californian, came in with a 4-under 66, which was one shot lower than Thirston Lawrence, of South Africa. There was a three-way tie for third at 68, a group that included S.W. Kim, a familiar figure on leaderboards this spring, Sungjae Im, and our old friend Brooks Koepka, who merely won back-to-back Opens in 2017-2018 and PGA Championships three times. Koepka has been hiding on the LIV tour, but arrives annually at the major championships in a big way.  

“I'm more focused on what I'm doing,” said Koepka, who is now 35 years old. “More focused on how to just keep plugging away and get through some holes, get through tough holes and try to take advantage of the easy ones.”

Scheffler, number one in the world ranking and the favorite in this year’s Open, shot a 3-over 73. McIlroy, starting on the 10th hole, didn’t have a bogey until his second nine and then stumbled to a 4-over 74. Reed, who won the 2018 Masters, holed out his second shot on the par-5 fourth hole, becoming the fourth golfer to record a double eagle in Open history. But a triple bogey seven on the closing hole left him with 3-over 73. 

Spaun, 34, who played collegiately at San Diego State, has one victory on Tour, the Valero Texas Open in 2022. Some might find it hard to believe that he is in front of what some consider to be the toughest tournament in golf, but the US Open frequently offers surprises and every once in a while a very unexpected winner, such as Orville Moody in 1969 or Scott Simpson at Olympic Club in 1987.

That idea has worked in every tournament, particularly in the Open when there are many more hard holes than easy ones.

Pars still matter at a U.S. Open, even after Gil Morgan’s round shook the USGA

OAKMONT, Pa. —  His name is Gil Morgan. Dr. Gil Morgan. He was an optometrist. He was also a good enough pro golfer to win tournaments. And to be the first golfer 10-under par halfway through an Open.

That was 1982 at Pebble Beach. And although he didn’t win—Tom Watson did, chipping in for a birdie on the 17th to beat Jack Nicklaus—that round had an effect on the set-up of the tournament. 

The Open was supposed to be brutal. No one was supposed to be 10-under par, as Morgan was for a while. When Ben Hogan won in 1951, he called Oakland Hills in Detroit a monster, and the late Tony Lema once said the Masters is fun, the Open is not.

The Open still is a difficult test but no longer impossible. The golfers that tee off Thursday in the 125th U.S. Open at Oakmont, just east of Pittsburgh, are so skilled that virtually nothing can stop them from scoring.  

When you have players such as the world’s number one, Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy—who just completed his own grand slam by taking the Masters—and Jon Rahm, who has a U.S. Open and a Masters, expectations are for great competition.

Scheffler, who won the PGA at Quail Hollow a month ago, to go along with his two Masters, played in the 2016 Open here and missed the cut.

“That was a tough pill to swallow,” said Scheffler, “missing the cut by one.”

He was learning then. Now others are learning from him.

“But what I really remembered was coming back the next year (he meant coming back to the Open which in 2017 was in Erin Hills in Wisconsin) and I think I made like a putt on 18 to get into a playoff in qualifying, ended up getting through the playoff and qualifying and coming in finishing low am.”

Now he just finishes low in everything.

Scheffler was the favorite coming into this Open, understandably, and has the consistent game worthy of an Open choice.

Yes, the setup requires accuracy and good putting, but what else would you expect from the nation’s championship?

“I’d say there’s definitely a strength factor coming out of the rough,” said Scheffler. “This golf course, there’s not many trees out there, but there’s so many bunkers. I don’t really know if this is a golf course you can necessarily just overpower with a kind of bomb and gouge type strategy, especially with the way the rough is.”

Two weeks ago, at the Memorial, McIlroy spent more time explaining why he didn’t come into the Media Room for interviews at Quail Hollow than talking about his game. But now he seems to have that problem corrected. It’s golf that concerns him.

“You have to have your wits about you this week,” said McIlroy, who did play here in the ‘16 Open. “It’s still a big brute of a golf course, and you’re going to have to have your wits about you this week throughout the bag, off the tee, into the greens, around the greens.” 

That’s no surprise at a U.S. Open.

Oakmont memories: Jack, Arnie, O.J., and Johnny Miller’s 63

OAKMONT, Pa. — This is a tale of a kid from San Francisco who became a champion, Johnny Miller. 

And, of a kid from San Francisco who became a pariah, O.J. Simpson. 

And of a kid who became probably the best golfer in history, Jack Nicklaus.

And of a kid, when no longer a kid, helped turn the game into the intriguing and popular sport it has become, Arnold Palmer.

And of a golf course above the Allegheny River in Pennsylvania, to which all the individuals are linked.

And also has a unique connection with a sportswriter, me.

For the tenth time, the golfing championship of our nation, the U.S. Open, will be played at historic, captivating Oakmont starting Thursday. It’s unlikely the future can match what happened there during the Opens of the past. On the course where, in 1973, Miller set a record low score that lasted some fifty years, 63. Or off the course, where OJ’s memorable pursuit by the police on the Southern California freeways. That happened on June 17th, which was my anniversary. 

Now come the personal references. 

Until 1965, the US Open schedule required the final 36 holes to be played on Saturday, which meant that if there was a tie, there would be an 18-hole playoff on Sunday. 

Which is what happened in 1962. In that playoff match, it was the big guy from Columbus, Ohio, Nicklaus, and the local favorite, Arnold Palmer, who lived just thirty miles away in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. I was at the Santa Monica Evening Outlook. I saw Jack winning on TV. I couldn’t cover it because I was getting married that day.

But I know that Arnie, a bit shaken, said, “Now that the cage is open, everybody better run for cover.”

Arnie had another chance at Oakmont in 1973. He was one of the leaders going into the last day. But Miller, six shots behind and in 13th place, started with four consecutive birdies, and had closed to within two before the leaders had even teed off.

When I was a golf writer for the Chronicle, Miller finished eighth in the 1966 US Open at San Francisco’s Olympic Club. We became friendly at a time when writers and athletes had no problems talking to one another.

Johnny’s triumph at Oakmont was great news in the Bay Area, of course, and I was fortunate to be peripherally linked. What stays in my mind that day was John’s wife, Linda, who had stayed back to pack for their trip home, dashing to the course in time to watch her husband win.

That other guy, O.J. Simpson, I covered when he was at USC and later with the Bills and Niners. He was always cooperative during interviews. Who knew?

Miller, the one-time boy wonder at San Francisco’s Lincoln High—the same school that produced another U.S. Open champion, Ken Venturi—turned 78 a few weeks ago. Always outspoken and painfully honest, he went from the fairways—he also won a British Open—to the airwaves, starring as a TV commentator for a long while. He wasn’t afraid of taking a shot or taking credit.

That last round at Oakmont in ‘73, he not only overtook Arnie, but also stars such as Jerry Heard, Tom Weiskopf, Lee Trevino, and Julius Boros.

“It was just all the who’s who in golf who were vying for that U.S. Open,” Miller told Bob Harig, then of Sports Illustrated, a couple of years ago. “I had to go through all those guys to win it outright. That’s what makes the story of the round honorable. Makes it cool.”

It was more than that. For decades, it was untouchable.

About Rory McIlroy, leaked stories and late deadlines

So Rory Mcllroy insists he will approach interviews as carefully as he approaches his golf shots, meaning perhaps telling us nothing.  

Which is exactly what he did after each of his four rounds at last month’s PGA Championship at Quail Hollow, and after the final round of the 2024 U.S. Open at Pinehurst. 

McIlroy was perturbed about a media leak from a Sirius XM reporter stating that at the PGA, Rory had a driver that, during pre-tournament testing, was declared non-conforming.

Again, the question arises, what, if anything, a competitor is obligated to say after play.

A few years ago, I was at a soccer match in England, and with deadlines approaching, I said to a British writer, “It is so late you are going to have a tough time getting any quotes in about the match.” 

He virtually sneered at me, “My paper pays me for what I say, not what the players say. Most of them don’t understand the game anyway.”

The athletes often make the same point about the journalists and particularly about fans. But wisecracks aside, in sports, all sides benefit from the questions asked and the answers given.

There was a time when the whole idea of sports writing was to tell us what happened. Now more than ever, because of television—replay after replay—know what has happened.

What we wish to know is how and why.  

And every word spoken or written about a sports star or a game, positive or negative, keeps us attentive and keeps ticket sales booming.  

Rory always was one of the best. Along with Jordan Spieth, he could fill a notebook or a recording disk almost without taking a deep breath. And all that exposure did nothing to hurt anyone’s commercial appeal.

Maybe the ballplayers from past decades were the strong, silent type, responding to a question with a grunt or a snort. The kids today grew up watching television. They know how to deal with a microphone as well as they do a five iron, a bat, a basketball, or a hockey puck.

And yet there always is going to be unhappiness, misunderstandings, or misconceptions. People like good news. Not all the news is good, but what the media must do is tell the story, good news or bad news.

Collin Morikawa is a two-time major golf champion. He grew up in the Los Angeles area, hardly isolated, and graduated from Cal. All that said, he refused to do an interview after blowing a three-stroke lead with five holes to play at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March.

“I don’t owe anyone anything,” he said a week later at the Players Championship. “No offense to you guys, but for mec in the moment, I didn’t want to be around anyone.”

Agreed. The response is understandable but, in a way, unacceptable. The crowds these golfers draw, the paychecks these golfers earn are both a direct result of the exposure in the media. 

The way one handles the difficulty and disgust is no less important than in the method he or she handles success.  

There is no rule that a PGA tour golfer must speak after a round. Doing an interview is voluntary.  And also, in the scheme of things, necessary.

The great Ben Hogan, noting writers rarely stepped on the course to watch, once said, “If we didn’t come in to talk to you guys, nobody would know what was going on.”

What’s going on right now is Rory McIlroy becoming wary of those who tell his story and the story of the game he plays.

Of Mr. Irrelevant, Steph, and Gael Monfils; how do we define greatness?

So Mr. Irrelevant has become Mr. Permanent—at least for the next five years, the length of his contract extension with the San Francisco 49ers. And if Steph Curry is healthy enough to make putts in that tournament at Tahoe, then make baskets next fall when the season starts, the Warriors will be fine.

Yes, it is a summer of near sporting silence in the Bay Area other than the Giants, and, of course, the newly arrived Valkyries of the WNBA.

Everybody needs a few days off, including athletes and general managers, but for fans and journalists, it’s a period of near boredom. Plenty of sports on television from the wee small hours—the French Open, Roland-Garros, comes on at 2 am Pacific time zone—through midday, golf tournaments, to evening, the NBA playoffs. And don’t we miss the Warriors?

They tell us the future is a myth, but at this time of the year, and when the local teams have not produced as hoped, the future is all we have.

One would think that for Brock Purdy and his $265 million contract extension, the future is quite promising. You must have defenders and offensive linemen—the Niners went after the latter group in the draft—but it always comes down to the man who takes the football when it is snapped.

When the great John Elway retired, after leading the Denver Broncos to two Super Bowl victories, longtime NFL coach Norv Turner was asked how much Denver would miss Elway.

“I can’t say exactly,” said Turner, “but a great quarterback will win two games his team probably would have lost without him.”

Does winning reflect greatness, or does greatness reflect winning? The debate can be carried to every game we play competitively.  

At the French Open, the 39-year-old Gael Monfils won his first-round match and then on Thursday lost his second to a younger man, Jack Draper. Monfils has never won a Grand Slam tournament, but does that mean we shouldn’t call him great?

Whether some day Brock Purdy, who was unwanted until the last round of the ’22 draft, will be called great is to be determined by his play and the results of his team. Purdy will be under greater pressure than ever, from the outside. However, maybe to the contrary, he will feel less pressure because he knows where he will be for a long while.

“Pressure is a privilege,” said the legend Billie Jean King, a quote posted at the home of the U.S. Open, Arthur Ashe Stadium. “It’s only through embracing it that we achieve our most significant breakthroughs.”

The privilege has belonged to Steph Curry, Gael Monfils, and dozens of others. Now it belongs to Brock Purdy. Summer can’t end fast enough.

Scheffler has his third major, and the future is captivating

CHARLOTTE, N.C. —  The question about Scottie Scheffler should be less about what he has done, and he is already number one in the world rankings, than what he is capable of doing.

Scheffler won his third major Sunday, the PGA Championship, at Quail Hollow Club. At age 28, he has years and years of golf and success remaining. Although the final round turned out a bit more dramatic than many suspected it would be, in the end, the result was exactly what was expected: Scottie finishing first by a significant margin, five shots.

He came in with an even par 71 that, after a few bogeys and a hot streak by Jon Rahm, briefly dropped Scottie into a tie for the lead. But as winners do, Scheffler held control and before darkness was able to hold the Wanamaker Trophy, adding that to the two green jackets from his Masters triumphs in 2022 and 2024.

Scheffler finished with a seventy-two-hole total of eleven under 273. Tied for a distant second at 278 were Harris English (who had the day’s best, 65), two-time U.S. Open champ Bryson DeChambeau (70), and Davis Reilly (72).

To celebrate after the final putt, Scheffler flung his hat on the green, reminding us of Arnold Palmer’s similar tactic.

“It was a long week,” said Scheffler. “I felt like this was as hard as I battled for a tournament in my career. This was a pretty challenging week.”

It was a week of rainstorms, double bogeys (remember, Scottie made one Thursday on 16), and a collection of different leaders, many with non-American passports that at times made you wonder what was going on.

Then Scheffler gave the tournament a star and gave himself more than a chance.  

“The first two days, I did not swing it my best, and I was able to post a score somehow. Outside of the last five holes (Saturday), that’s where I really kind of put myself ahead in the tournament. I mean, the back nine today (Sunday) was pretty special as well.”

Scheffler, who graduated from the University of Texas, has a wonderful perspective about a game that can be as painful as it can be rewarding. 

“I love coming out here and trying to compete and win golf tournaments, and that’s what I’m focused on,” said Scheffler. “After this week, I’m going to go home and get ready for next week’s tournament, and the show goes on. If I show up and miss the cut next week, I’m going to have to answer questions of what went wrong and just start over again on Thursday. That’s one of the things that can be frustrating about our game, and it’s also what’s great about our game. If I had a tough day today and came in with a loss, I could step back up on the tee Thursday next week and have another chance to win a tournament.”

“It’s an endless pursuit, and it’s a lot of fun. It’s definitely one of the great joys of my life to be able to compete out here.” 

He’s halfway to his personal grand slam. Although it is doubtful, he might achieve it in the next two months, with the U.S. Open in June at Oakmont and the British Open in July at Royal Portrush.  

We hardly can wait.

After the shifting stops at the PGA, no surprise Scheffler leads

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A wild third round of the PGA Championship that included everything from a morning thunderstorm that delayed play to a United Nations selection of different leaders Saturday, came to a quite predictable ending.

When the rain and the shuffling had stopped at Quail Hollow Club, the man who was number one, not surprisingly, is also the one who is number one in the world, Scottie Scheffler.

After the guys had their moments at the top of the leader board—whether alone or tied— including Jhonattan Vegas, Bryson DeChambeau, Alex Noren, John Rahm, and Si Woo Kim, it was Scheffler all alone in first place, by three shots. 

His third round score of 6-under par 65 gave him a total of 202, 11-under par. And assuming he stays on track—yes, you should assume nothing in golf, but this guy is great—he will add another major to his two Masters victories.

Second at 66-205 is Noren, the Swede who went to Oklahoma State, while tied for third at 206 are Davis Riley and J.T. Poston.

Vegas, of Venezuela, who was in front after the first and second rounds, shot a 2-over 73, and slipped into a three-way tie for fifth at 207 with Kim and Rahm. 

The final three holes on Quail are known as the Green Mile, although they total a bit less than that distance. Scheffler fell victim in that stretch with a double bogey on 16 on Thursday, but he more than made up for that Saturday. He had a couple of bogeys, including the 13th hole. Then he responded with a wonderful 3-wood from the 14th tee that carried some 300 yards. He made the putt for an eagle 2.

“I came out with a nice low spinning draw and hit it really solid and was fortunate to get up there on the green,” Scheffler said. “From that distance, yes, I executed the shot. There’s a little bit of luck involved.”

He followed that immediately with a birdie three at 15.

When asked how big the two bounce-backs were after the bogeys on the back nine to keep the momentum going, Scheffler said, “They are really important. I mean, especially after the bogey on 13 to respond the way I did on 14, it’s a really hard shot.”

Spectators and golf writers are obsessed with what happens on the scoreboard. The pros often contend they do not pay attention. 

So when Scheffler was asked whether he knew about the constant shifting of lead, he said, not unexpectedly, “I was trying to post the best score that I could shoot today, and that’s what I was concerned with out there.”

The start of play Saturday was delayed some four and one-half hours by the weather. That might have made some golfers impatient and upset. But Scheffler just went about his usual routine.

As champions always do.

Vegas is the Venezuelan who left the diamond for the course

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — He started by hitting rocks with a broomstick. Now what Jhonattan Vegas is trying to hit is the jackpot.

Halfway through the PGA Championship that was to be the showcase for Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele, and Rory McIlroy, it’s Vegas who’s in the spotlight and in the lead.

Not by much, a single stroke, but when play comes to an end Sunday evening, the margin would be plenty. Then again, with 36 holes remaining at Quail Hollow Club, where the rough is thick and the greens are slick, the one shot may not hold up. 

Vegas shot a one-under 70 Friday in the second round of this 107th PGA Championship, maintaining the lead he had surprisingly taken Thursday as one of the last players to complete his round. He's at 8-under 134 and two shots ahead of Matthieu Pavon, Matt Fitzpatrick, and Si Woo Kim.  

Max Homa, the Cal grad, and Scheffler are both another shot back at 137. Scottie, a two-time Masters Champ, remains very much a presence at this PGA. 

When you think of sports stars from Venezuela, you think of shortstops such as Luis Aparicio, Omar Vizquel, and Ozzie Guillen. But Vegas, although he did play baseball growing up, stepped away from the infield and onto the tee. He perfected his game with what implements were available, that broomstick and the rocks, near the oil field camp where he lived.

No one from South America has ever won a PGA Championship, which makes the 40-year-old Vegas even more of a focus than others high on the leaderboard.

“I had a solid round (Friday), a little bit up and down," Vegas said. “I feel like finishing so late yesterday, not getting a great sleep, and having to come back early kind of put me not in the best mood all day.”

Still, Vegas, who would play for the University of Texas before turning pro, kept his game enough in control to stay in first.  And found a proper measure of satisfaction.

“Every chance you get to lead a major and play with the lead is never easy,” said Vegas. “You’ve got to keep the pedal down, keep your head down, and keep working hard. So I feel proud of a solid round today.”

Pavon, from France, had played on the DP World Tour before coming to the United States and winning the 2024 Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines. 

Someone wondered if the PGA “felt like a big-time tournament”—a silly question about one of the game’s four majors. Pavon responded, “I was able to play Wells Fargo (at Quail) last year, so I knew what test of golf this tournament could be. I think it’s even bigger now being a major.  The atmosphere is great, and the golf course plays tough.”

It's supposed to. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be a major.