The 2016 British Open is also Phil’s 11th runner-up finish in a major, second only to Jack Nicklaus. But I don’t have a point where I can look back and say, “I should have done that or had I only done this”.
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Having climbed to fifth in the new world rankings, Stenson, who had only a handful of top four finishes at the majors on his CV, hopes this is the beginning of a lengthy spell in contention for the sport’s top prizes.
“I felt like it was my time”, said the 40-year-old, who admitted that the confidence boosting win at the BMW International Open in June played a huge part in his turnaround of fortunes.
“I was fortunate to watch every second of today’s final round of the Open Championship, and I thought it was fantastic. I played a bogey- free round of 65 on the final round of a major, usually that’s good to do it, and I got beat”. At Oakmont, only two other players broke 70 on the last day.
Stenson paid tribute to his adversary during the final round and praised Mickelson’s performance.
The game was up for Mickelson when Stenson came up with a stunning long putt for birdie at the 15th to go two shots clear and leave his opponent with too much to do.
Stenson finished at 264, breaking by one shot the 72-hole scoring record in the majors that David Toms set in the 2001 PGA Championship at Atlanta Athletic Club.
“It was one of those situations where he was turning professional, and they kind of gave him the courtesy of allowing him to play and practice out there”, Blackmon recalled Monday. This was only natural, given Mickelson’s competitive spirit and record of five major titles.
“I’ll try to look at the positives and take that into Baltusrol and keep my game sharp over the next week or two as opposed to going home and taking some time off”, he said. “I knew I had to keep on pushing, I [thought] this was going to be my turn”. “I knew Henrik wanted to use his three wood, he always will when he is under the cosh. I’m just delighted I managed to do that with a couple of birdies at the right time”.
Not since the legendary “Duel in the Sun” in 1977, between Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson at Turnberry, has The Open seen such fireworks as the runaway all-Callaway battle unfolded.
The 40-year-old Stenson’s round equalled the lowest in any major championship and his winning total was also a record for any of the “Big Four” tournaments. If this was a better-ball match, they would have shot 59.
“It’s probably the best I’ve played and not won”. On the 15th hole, Stenson drained an unbelievable 50 foot putt for birdie to stretch out to a two shot lead going into 16, site of the a deciding factor in Stenson’s win.
“I’m happy with the way I played, but disappointed it wasn’t enough”. He finished third, 14 shots behind. In 2013, the Swede won the PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup and the European Tour’s Race to Dubai, becoming the first player to win both.
While they might not have been thinking matchplay on the first tee, what unfolded from the outset was a classic head-to-head encounter, starting with a two shot swing on the first hole.
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Beside the green, Stenson’s wife Emma sobbed. Had he won, he would have become the fourth-oldest major victor and the second-oldest in the Open behind “Old” Tom Morris.
