Thursday, July 15, 2010

British Open Commences with an Old Friend Rising



Is it an apparition, a mere illusion? Or is ever-so-volatile John Daly tied (one stroke ahead of Tiger Woods) in second place during the first round of the British Open, at a course where he raised the Claret Jug fifteen years ago? In the wee hours of the morning here on the east coast, while most were asleep, John Daly was putting together one of his best rounds in years, putting up 7 birdies next to just one bogey. Daly casts an complex and convoluted shadow across the golf course, being equally revered and reviled by golf fans (getting taken into custody for being drunk outside of a Hooters one minute, and doing wonderful work for Make-a-Wish the next). Golf's most notorious bad boy is now 44 and struggling to hold on to relevancy, which would truly make this a compelling story if Daly were able to repeat his performance over the weekend. A year ago, Daly shot an 88 in the Buick Open, a laughable number that would have crushed most golfers attempting to resurrect their career. Yet here we are, one year and a 22 stroke difference later, looking at John Daly's name towards the top of the leaderboard.

St. Andrews Links in Fife, Scotland has played host now to 27 British Opens. Were I to pick a favorite for number 28, I would have to go with:

Zane Scotland.



Come on. That's like Bill America winning the US Open. It's just too good. (Side note, Scotland is 2 under through 12)

The ESPY Awards were hosted on ESPN last night, with the big winners being Drew Brees and the Saints, Landon Donovan, and Shaun White. It was an enjoyable evening except for one moment: Best Play.

The winner was Brett Favre's last second touchdown pass to Greg Lewis.

Yawn.

In a year where we saw a kid leap over the catcher to nab home plate, Mark Buehrle making the greatest defensive play ever by a pitcher, Patrick Kane win the Stanley Cup in overtime, and Landon Donovan score the most important goal in US Soccer history, the award went to a regular season NFL touchdown pass. That's what happens when your balloting is purely fan-driven (most fans are idiots, myself included).

If they would have had a Dick of the Year ESPY, they would have given it to LeBron James during an hour long special.



myLot User Profile

1 comment:

  1. What does all of this have to do with Pittsburgh Sports?

    ReplyDelete