Mickelson Poised to Win U.S. Open

The 109th U.S. Open Championship has been wild, to say the least. With all of the suspended play due to rain and the marathon rounds of golf that have been played, it has been hard to get a real feel for how the final round of the tournament will play out. But through a few holes of the fourth round, a familiar face may be ready to sweep in and take the title.

Phil Mickelson, the No.2 player in the world, sits just 5 strokes back at -2. He had an up-and-down third round of golf, as he had 7 birdies, 3 bogeys and 1 double-bogey. In his typical fashion, he played absolutely brilliant golf at times while also struggling mightily.

He came into the third round trailing Barnes by 7 strokes, which at the time appeared to be an insurmountable lead with the way Barnes was playing. But, as usual, the third round changed everything. Barnes played extremely well early in the round and at one point was -11, but reality seemed to set in and he went down to his current score at -7. Glover, meanwhile, experienced the opposite of Barnes, as he got off to a rocky start and climbed his way back late in the round. These two are unlikely leaders in the fourth round of the U.S. Open — they both had to qualify to get in the tournament — but they did a good job of handling the pressure at times in the round. The fact that the two have played with each other before has appeared to provid them with a sense of familiarity in such an unfamiliar position. But there’s no telling how they will handle the final round of the U.S. Open with a chance to win. Moreover, there’s no way of knowing how they will handle a potential charge by Mickelson.

Mickelson could very easily be in a better position, as he has missed some easy par putts by his standards. While they are shots that he had trouble with early in his career, it was thought that he had corrected the problem. At any U.S. Open, making par putts is paramount, and Mickelson has so far failed to capitalize on those opportunities. Luckily for Mickelson, the rest of his game has been right on the money. He’s driving the ball very well, and on the first tee — which has quickly become the hardest hole on Bethpage Black to hit the fairway — he blasted the ball onto the fairway to begin his final round.

What Should the Browns do at Quarterback?

No position in the NFL is under more scrutiny than quarterback. When teams are losing, fans usually look at the coach and the quarterback as the reasons for why the team is losing. Teams that have franchise quarterbacks tend to do very well in the league, while teams that don’t tend to struggle. It’s why the quarterback is the most valuable position in the league and pays the most money. The offensive line is certainly a very important unit as well, but the line is not as valuable without a good QB.

The Cleveland Browns are a team that knows from first-hand experience just how important it is to have good QB play. The Browns went 4-12 last season, and a lot of that can be attributed to the fact that starting QB Derek Anderson struggled all season long. Because of injuries, Anderson played just 10 games all year, and all were rocky.

In 2007, Anderson had a career season and was rewarded by the Browns with a big contract. QB Charlie Frye got injured early in the first game, Anderson played well, and Frye was immediately traded to Seattle as Anderson was handed the rains. His numbers in ‘07 were stellar: 82.5 QB rating, 3,787 yards, 29 touchdowns and 19 interceptions. The Browns got an incredible bargain that season on a guy that they could not have expected much out of. The Browns nearly made the playoffs, but Anderson had a terrible performance against the Bengals in the second to last game of the season, and that 19-14 loss knocked Cleveland out of the playoffs. Maybe that awful performance from Anderson under pressure should have been a caution signal to then-head coach Romeo Crennel and then-general manager Phil Savage that Anderson was not the right man to lead the team when it counted.

Nevertheless, he received the huge contract, and coming off a 10-6 season, the Browns were the trendy pick to reach the playoffs in 2008. Things went the wrong way right off the bat for Anderson and the Browns, as the team went 0-3. By the halfway point of the season, the Browns were 3-5 with little hope of making a turnaround. At that point, many fans in Cleveland began to lobby for 2007 first-round draft pick Brady Quinn to get meaningful playing time. With the chances of making the playoffs all but over, why not throw Quinn in the fire and see what he had? Moreover, Anderson’s 2007 numbers were horrific: 66.5 QB rating, 1,615 yards, 9 touchdowns and 8 interceptions.

Excuse Me, But I’m Bored. No Tiger, And The US Open Now Becomes Mute

Well the public links course of Bethpage Black in Farmingdale , New York , for all sense and purpose looks as if the clouds are about to open up on it again . And it’d basically suggest to me that the US Open golf tournament is now about to become rather mute and of not much importance to the public at large. In particular the large audience of viewers that may well have been drawn to the drama at hand.

Ricky Barnes the tournament leader in the US Open watches his tee shot on the third hole of third round of the tournament. picture appears courtesy of getty images/ Sam Greenwood ...............

We had Phil Mickelson returning to the Tour looking to make some inroads into the tournament after taking a leave of absence to spend with his ailing wife , Amy. Mickelson’s wife had been diagnosed with breast cancer in its early stages. And the immediate course of treatment was first to see an oncologist to best see how best to combat the disease.

For Mickelson a return to the golf course and competitive play would be his solace away from the trauma that he and his wife were undergoing. And perhaps returning to the course he could allay his fears and try to tap into a rich vein of form and win one of the majors that has so far eluded him. It is afterall the country’s national championship. And the outpouring shown to the player from his peers and fans alike has been very positive to say the least.

Phil Mickelson watches his shot in the second hole of the continuation of the third round of the US Open from the public links course of Bethpage Black in Farmingdale , New York. picture appears courtesy of getty images/ Sam Greenwood ...............

Whilst this has been all playing out on the links. We’ve also seen the somewhat erratic play of the world #1 Tiger Woods. He’s now looking to add to his stature as the best player of his era and seeking to get ever much closer to what was once believed to the the unattainable record of Jack Nicklaus‘ eighteen major Grand Slam wins. Woods presently sits at fourteen win and his now folklore like triumph in last year’s US Open. Where he came back to defeat Rocco Mediate in a playoff still rings true with us all. And less we forget he did so winning on a gimpy leg.

And with the tournament now held hostage to the weather and with having only two rounds completed as of today. The likelihood of the tournament now playing out and ending on Monday now becomes even more of a certainty. And for the USGA this as such doesn’t at all bode well. The havoc wreaked by the inclement weather has all but put a damper on the ardor of the fans. And even though today they’re still prepared to turn up in their multitudes to watch the tournament unfold. The fact that the fourth and final round may well be played on Monday in many respects curtails the attendance figures. Though there may well be one or two of the more ardent of fans that are prepared to turn out to see the tournament reach its climax.

Currently tied for 7th five shots of the lead. Lee Westwood watches his tee shot on the third hole during today's play at the US Open. picture appears courtesy of getty images/ Sam Greenwood .......................

The leaderboard itself isn’t really filled with any great surprises. But both Woods and Mickelson are clearly within shot to make up ground should Ricky Barnes (-9), the first and second round leader falter. His 8 under par for the first two rounds of the US Open was a championship record. And he presently holds a one stroke lead over Lucas Glover. Also sitting close to the top of the leaderboard are the likes of Mike Weir , David Duval , Retief Goosen and Mickelson , himself. All have been major winners in the past. But perhaps the most surprising name mentioned here may well be that of Duval. He’s not had a top ten finish in a PGA sanctioned event in almost ten years. And his sole Grand Slam major win was that of the 2001 British Open at the Royal Lytham & St Anne’s Golf Club,Lancashire , England. Since then the player has toiled in almost near obscurity as his game floundered . And at the same time he had some personal issues of the golf course that had to be dealt with.

Woods reacts to a missed putt on the twelfth green of the third round of the US Open. Chances such as this shouldn't be flouted by the player. picture appears courtesy of getty images / Sam Greenwood .....................

One should also remember that prior to Woods’ arrival on the PGA Tour in 1996, Duval was the number one ranked player in the world. Since then he’s seen Woods ascend into the stratosphere rewriting history and the record books along the way. But a win or top five finish would be of great comfort to Duval at this moment in time. It’d finally suggest that his game is finally back where he wants it to be.

But fate has a very ugly way of revealing itself to those who’ve lacked confidence in recent times. And for Duval this may well also have been one of the real problems as to why his game suddenly vanished after those multiple wins on the PGA Tour.

As to the tournament itself , how it now plays out will be held in the hands of nature. The inclement weather and forecast of rain makes this event something of a real obstacle for the competitors. Every strategy they came into this tournament with must now be thrown out of the window. Because now it’s not so much about being structuring your game to the course. But more so about structuring your game to the elements and being somewhat conservative in your play. An errant shot and theb chances are that you’ll have played yourself completely out of contention.

So make of it what you will as the drama continues to play out across your tv screens. I for one fell by the wayside the moment that the storm clouds arose to make this tournament somewhat meaningless in its context.

Anyone For Tennis ?

Well it’s that time of year again and Wimbledon is once again upon us. And the All England Tennis & Croquet Club in South West London will be a buzz with all of the pomp and circumstance normally accorded one of the truly great sporting events of the Summer

A jubilant Rafael Nadal holds his Australian Men's Singles Finals trophy having defeated world #2 Roger Federer in an epic five set match in Melbourne at the Australian Open. picture appears courtesy of getty images/William West .....................

 

 

The event itself begins this Monday and continues over the ensuing fortnight. Where it will culminate with the men’s singles finals on the 5th July at the All England Tennis & Croquet Club, otherwise known as Wimbeldon.

And as only beffitting an event of such stature can one really appreciate what it means to the fans of the sport. When we discuss the sport . It merely comes down to the Grand Slam events. And these are the Australian Open, French Open , Wimbledon and the US Open. These quartet of events are the cornerstones of the calendar for men of the ATP Tour and the women of WTA. The international governing body of the sport is however the International Tennis Federation(ITF).

A triumphant Roger Federer kisses the Men's singles trophy having just defeated Robin Soderling of Sweden in the French Open singles finals at the Roland Garros Stadium, Paris , France earlier this month. picture appears courtesy of ap/photo / Bernard Armagne' .....................

And already this year we’ve seen the metoric rise of world #1 Rafael Nadal to the top of the men’s game. He won the Australian Open defeating his closest challenger and rival Roger Federer in what many have desrcibed as one of the epic men’s Grand Slam finals of Open era. This thrilling five set final took over four exhilerating hours for their to be a determination as to the who the champion might be. And at the end of it all the fans in attendance as well as the viewing public could not have been disatisfied with the outcome. What we all witnessed was sportsmanship at its finest. And two gifted competitors who gave their all.

Sadly, this Wimbledon event will deprive us of seeing Nadal compete and defend his Wimbledon men’s singles title. As the player has been forced to withdraw due to a nagging knee injury. This may well lay the groundwork for Federer , himself to go on and rewrite the history books and garner his fifteenth Grand Slam singles’ title. Having won the French Open, where Nadal made an unexpected exit on a surface that he’d proven to be dominant on. The win gives Federer all the encouragement he might need in achieving the feat. In doing so he’ll surpass the record that he and Pete Sampras jointly hold. Although it can be said that Sampras never achieved the career Grand Slam of having won all four major singles titles. Federer joins an illustrious list of men who’ve achieved that feat.

In all there have been six men to achieve the feat including Federer. And they are Fred Perry , Donald Budge, Rod Laver, Roy Emerson and Andre Agassi. Laver having been the only individual amongst the men to have achieved the feat twice in a calendar year. Once as an amateur (1962 ) and then as a professional (1969). It is indeed rarified air that Federer now finds himself in.