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+--- Thread: 'Caddyshack' comes to life (/thread-10862.html)
'Caddyshack' comes to life - Occhidiangela - 07-08-2003
I refer to the USGA Women's Open Golf Tournament. It was great! Sometimes, the right things happen for all the right reasons, and it just restores your faith that the good guys/gals do sometimes win.
While Tiger Woods undid his so called slump and tied a tournament record in Chicago while staggering to a mere five shot victory (looks like he's back, no surprise) the drama of tournament golf at its most gruelling was held in Oregon on an environmentally friendly course. At Pumpkin Ridge, there are certain hazards/rough where, if you hit it into the native grasses, you have to drop out of it: it is treated as water for environmental reasons. A truly "Green" golf course, methinks, as "Green" as they are liable to get anyway.
I watched a couple of hours on Saturday, and saw the delightful Scot, Ms McKay, lose her lead. A shame, she's a class act. A young qualifier named Hilary Lunke moved slowly up the board as the stars sputtered and faded. She is a Stanford grad, a recent bride, has never won on tour, barely makes the cut most of the time, and is a seriously short hitter (all she has in common with Tiger Woods is Stanford). She qualified by one stroke in sectionals, and ended up in the final round on Sunday. She is the "anti Anika."
The reigning goddess of golf and a class act in her own right, Anika Sorenstam, put herself into position to win on Sunday, but missed a half a dozen puts that were makable. Her Normanesque blocked right shot on 18 put her at bogey, one off the lead, where a birdie (which I was betting on, given her distance and the shot she had) would have won her the tournament.
Angela Stanford, who won last week, birdied the last hole to tie the leader, as did Kelly Robbins, a veteran with considerable game. Hilary left the birdie put about 4 inches short for a win. That had to hurt.
Today, I came home early to watch the playoff's last 7 holes. It was riveting. Stanford overcame an early disaster or four and caught back up. Robbins was up and down all day, but faded late thanks to a putter that betrayed her and a sloppy sand shot. Her bid for eagle on 18 was perfectly bold chip out of jail, and just barely rolled past the hole. Stanford, one shot back at +1 for, sank a medium long putt to tie the leader on 18. She had done the same thing Sunday. The crowd went ape#$%&. Her comeback was magnificent, a 32 on the back 9 at the Open in a playoff. Hilary Lunke answered with a smooth as silk birdie, there on the final hole, all those people and cameras staring at her, on the 90th hole of the Open, to finish at -1, with a 70 for the day. She is the first woman to ever win the Open with a birdie at the final hole in a playoff. The first qualifier to ever win the US Women's Open.
It was great. Her first win ever. Hubbie, who she met at Stanford, was her caddie all week.
I don't usually look to the LPGA for uplifting inspiration, but that nice young lady, 24 or 25, and her two co-competitors today were what tournament golf is all about: giving it everything you have on a tough course and a Cinderella story ending with a birdie at 18 just iced it. I whooped with glee when that final putt dropped.
And, unlike "Carl" from Caddyshack, this Cinderella was a nice young lady from Minnesota.
I am still smiling.
'Caddyshack' comes to life - Guest - 07-08-2003
Seriously. I dont like means golf and like womens golf even less, but held my interest there. It was a nice job of bypassing the details of the sport and getting at the human competition.
'Caddyshack' comes to life - Occhidiangela - 07-08-2003
The human element. :)