Hamilton Wins British Open at Troon

It is a rare sporting event that encourages a crowd to cheer for every participant. Then again, the British Open at Royal Troon, Scotland, is a rare event indeed. Going in, the questions revolved around Tiger Woods and Ernie Els. Phil Mickelson, who had come so close to winning at Shinnecock Hills a month ago, took the lead with eight holes to go. And yet, Todd Hamilton walked away with the claret jug -- a man who barely made the tour at 38 years of age.

The word fluke does not describe Mr. Hamilton's success at Troon. That would suggest that somehow he lacked the talent necessary to win, or that somehow a truly bizarre twist of fate brought him to the top of the leaderboard. Neither was the case. He beat every player out there; nothing was handed to him. Even the four hole play off against Mr. Els was closely fought without any sudden meltdown by his opponent.

Mr. Hamilton only got his PGA tour card in December. Until then, he was a good golfer, but not good enough. After 11 wins on the Japanese tour, second tier at best, he learned what was missing from his game well enough to qualify for golf's senior circuit. Since the New Year, he has played in 21 tournaments, as if he doesn't dare miss a chance to play, as if he fears the magic card will vanish. He has missed the cut 8 times, including the Buick Classic, the US Open and the Western Open. Like tennis, professional golf is unforgiving financially -- losers starve. Missing the cut capital wasted. Mercifully for Mr. Hamilton, the $900,000 he won at the Honda Classic in March will bankroll him for many matches to come.

With the win at Troon, he is up a further $1.35 million, and he was won an exemption for the three American majors and the PGA tour for the next five years. That tour card can disappear now and not be missed. And if he wants to play at the British Open again, he has a standing invitation until he's 65.

As much as Tiger's fans were cheering his quite laudable result, and as much as Mr. Els deserved a win, it is hard to say that Mr. Hamilton's 76-hole victory hurt the game of golf. His is an overnight success that was years in the making.


© Copyright 2004 by The Kensington Review, J. Myhre, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent.


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