There are many classic games every year, but this year on The Royal Troon's Sunday, it is possible to discuss whether to write the historical position with "the greatest", which is really exciting...
For nearly four decades, "Duel in the Sun" has been considered the greatest Grand Slam encounter in golf history.
Now, the controversy has come.
The battle of the century took place at the 1977 British Open at Tambury Stadium, featuring Tom Watson and Jack Nicklaus. Watson caught four birds on the last six holes and shot a 130 (65-65) all weekend, with Nicklaus just one more shot than him and finishing 10 ahead of them in third place. Legendary sports columnist Dan Jenkinson described the day: "Never before has a game been like today!" ”
But now even the protagonist of that day admits that it is not unique. Henrik Stenson and Phil Mickelson performed one of the most classic showdowns of our time at the British Open – the nickname even thought out – the bite of Royal Troon!
Ahead of The Royal Troon's final round, Mickelson gained the favor of the fans. In the first round, the 46-year-old appeared to have come out of a three-year slump to lead the way with a record for nearly breaking the grand slam record for single-round clubs. On the final hole, he missed an 18-foot record-breaking putter, and when the ball suffocatingly brushed the cup out, his lifelong caddie, "Bone" Jim McKay, fell on the green.
Stenson trailed by five on the first day, but on Friday he shot a 65 to close the gap, followed by a 68 on Saturday, a 12-under-par total, one shot ahead of Mickelson and leading alone. The game turned into a two-man turn, with third-placed Bill Haas behind them by 6 strokes.
As if that wasn't enough, the most impressive showdown of recent decades took place in the final round. Stenson made a three-push on the first hole and swallowed a bogey, while Mickelson immediately grabbed a birdie, and the gap between the two sides remained two strokes up and down.
Over the next four hours, the two dazzled together to take down 13 birds and an eagle, with only one bogey. They tied five straight holes until Stenson completed the 18 and 50 feet putters on the next two holes, although he was better known for handling swings in complex situations than putters.
Mickelson's last chance came on the 16th hole, but he missed the Eagles push by a fraction of a centimeter. Stenson ended the day and the week with a 20-foot putter, and in the final round he shot a 63 to win the championship with a total score of 264, 20 under par, and a three-stroke advantage. The 264 stroke overall also set a record for the lowest number of strokes on 72 holes in Grand Slam history.
The closest to them is J.B. Holmes, who is 11 strokes behind Mickelson.
"Everybody else is playing one game, these two guys are playing another game." Holmes said afterwards.
The victory was very timely for Stenson, who climbed out of his career trough for the second time to reach the top five in the world rankings. But it was another heavy blow for Mickelson, his 11th time in a Grand Slam, and this time it was heavier considering whether he was in perfect shape or lost the game.
Even before the awards were presented, there was a tone that compared the epic final round to the legendary "duel in the sun."
As always, Nicklaus gave his final thoughts
"Our final round was also pretty good," he said, "but they're even better." What a great game today! ”
This article is translated from golfchannel.com