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Hit the snooze button

July 21, 2016

It's a good thing this years British Open was very interesting to watch because this is the one week of the summer where the sports scene is asleep. Even more so this year with my Phillies not being in contention for anything but the hope that they finish 500.

The British Open turned out to be a two horse race between Henrik Stenson and Phil Mickelson. The course was pure links style and the weather was predictably unpredictable! Stenson and Mickelson ran away from the field in record-setting fashion. Stenson won with a British Open record breaking score of 20 under par beating Tiger Woods record that he set in 2000 of 19 under par at Saint Andrews. Mickelson also set a new record by beating the third-place player, JB Holmes, by an incredible 11 shots. This broke Jack Nichols' record that he set in 1977 at the British Open when he finished 10 shots ahead of the 3rd place player.

Stenson and Mickelson's level of play was pretty darn impressive the entire week. They made Royal Troon Golf Club golf look pretty easy when it wasn't even close to that for the other players.

Right from the beginning of the week it looked like Phil Mickelson was going to win his second British Open title. In the first round, he almost broke the all-time lowest scoring round record but his putt on the 18th hole lipped out. Everyone was shocked that it didn't go in! Stenson shot a 65 in the second round to tie Mickelson for the  lead going into the weekend. Their good play at the start of the Open was a key factor in both of them being able to get ahead and stay ahead when the weather turned lousy on Friday and Saturday. It really was a great Open to watch.

In other news, Tiger Woods has announced he will not be playing for the rest of the PGA Tour season. This is not a surprise. I just wish he would agree to release a video of him practicing to prove a point that he's actually making progress towards a comeback next year. It just leaves too much to everyone's imagination.

Now don't worry. I know next week starts NFL training camps. I'm sure that ESPN and the NFL network are chomping at the bit for them to get started. Let's hope there are minimal injuries so we can enjoy a great football season.

  • A 2002 Cape grad and 2007 UD grad, Lewes resident Sumner Spence is one of the Cape area's biggest sports fans. Although he’s used a wheelchair his entire life, he has lived vicariously through his sports-playing father, brother, and friends, who gave him his love of sports. He hopes to provide new and interesting perspectives on the sports stories and issues of the day. Email Sumner at sumspence@gmail.com.

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