Wow!
I know it’s only a three-letter word, but it really does say it all when thinking back on the 100th PGA Championship at Bellerive in St.Louis.
It describes Brooks Koepka and his quiet determination to win another major.
It describes Adam Scott and his valiant effort to become relevant again.
It describes Tiger Woods and his stunning play on Sunday.
If you had a script for the final 18 at a major, this would be a good one to follow for any of the four big-time tilts.
It was a leader board packed with players who could have easily hoisted the Wannamaker trophy on Sunday.
Koepka was he best player over the four days but the most spectacular golfer out there in Sunday was Eldrick Woods. He was the Tiger of old except for a driver which had a mind of its own.
Laser irons into tucked away pins and a deadly putter, aside from one hole where he missed a couple of short putts. This was the Tiger who sent shivers through the field and made any leader cringe each time he heard a definitive roar. Except Koepka.
He heard the roars. He saw the leaderboards. He never waivered under the immense pressure exerted by a Tiger Woods crowd cheering loud enough to register on the Richter Scale.
Koepka was as calm as a tranquilized moose. If you put a blood pressure sleeve on him, it likely wouldn’t have registered. An ECG would have shown a flat line.
His win was overshadowed by Woods magnificent play on Sunday and that is unfortunate. But Koepka, who carries a Rodney Dangerfield-type attitude in his golf bag, still raised the trophy after the dust settled and for him, that eased any hurt feelings about all the attention paid to the 42-year-old who didn’t win.
I think we might see more majors in the hands of Koepka.
On another note:
I think the Queen must have knocked Sir Nick Faldo in the head when she knighted him years ago.
How else can we explain the comment about Tiger Woods. “This is the greatest comeback in golf. If he wins again, it would be the greatest comeback in sport.”
Well let’s look at some facts here Sir Nick.
No doubt Tiger’s back surgery was of great relief to him and he has returned to form. That surgery (ALIF-anterior lumbar interbody fusion) is a minimally invasive procedure where they go in from the front to leave the back muscles untouched. There is also a much shorter recovery time as opposed to going at it from the back.
Now a surgery is a surgery and there is no doubt he had to work hard to get back to where he is now. It is quite a feat and my hat is off to him. He is a unique athlete.
But the greatest comeback in golf?
Ben Hogan went head on with a Greyhound bus in 1949. He dove in front of his wife to protect her and wound up with a double fracture of the pelvis, fractured collar-bone and left ankle, chipped ribs and had some deadly blood clots to deal with.
Eleven months later Ben Hogan won the U.S. Open at Merion. Debate over.
I mean we could even look at Erik Compton who underwent a second heart transplant to still play on the PGA Tour. Sure, he didn’t win a major, but the man had his heart removed and replaced. To be even walking upright is a major accomplishment, let alone playing golf at its highest level. Wins or no wins.
Sorry Nick. That comment is a bogey on your scorecard.
