After the first round of the British Open at Royal Port Rush golf club in Northern Ireland, five people are tied for the lead, including American Harris English and Englishman Matt Fitzpatrick. The leading score is four-under par. I think the winning score will be 10- to 12-under par.
Royal Port Rush is a beautiful place if the sun comes out. When the sun is out, it is the Irish version of Pebble Beach. The two best Irish players, Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry, still have a good chance to contend for the championship. They’ve both shot one under par scores of 70. Shane actually won the championship the last time it was played at the course in 2019.
The Wimbledon tennis tournament ended last weekend. On the women’s side, Iga Swiatek of Poland dominated Amanda Anisimova of the United States in historical fashion, beating her 6-0, 6-0. Swiatek was expected to win, but not by that much. I feel bad for Amanda. I hope she gets some psychological help so she can recover and continue her earlier momentum in the U.S. Open late this summer. Jannick Sinner won in a well-played four-set match over Carlos Alcaraz. This was a good result for the future of the rivalry as the two best players in the men’s tennis. Alcaraz had beaten Sinner in the last five matches they had played so this was a sweet win for him.
The Phillies’ Kyle Schwarber deservedly won MVP of the MLB All-Star Game when he broke a 6-6 tie after the regulation game decided by a home run derby. I think this was a good way to end the all-star game to save the pitchers’ arms. Kyle is playing in the last year of his contract. I think it’s going to be important for the Phillies to resign him to a two- or three-year deal this off season. He is very popular with the fan base. I think he is like the baseball version of Jason Kelce for the Eagles. Since the designated hitter is available to all teams now, Kyle and Bryce Harper can share the role as they get older.
Looking forward to the second half of the season, I think it is important for the Phillies to win as many games as possible to avoid having to play in a National League Wild Card Series. This is a little crazy, but the Phillies’ next 21 games on the schedule are against American League opponents. I have never seen that before. Let's hope their bats wake up and produce some strong wins.
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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.
