British Open Results 2012: Golfers Who Shined at Royal Lytham & St. Annes
If Ernie Els owned the final few holes at the 2012 British Open from Royal Lytham & St. Annes on Sunday, then Brandt Snedeker owned the first half of the historic major.
Both golfers shined all tournament long, remaining at the top of the leaderboard throughout and playing unbeatable golf on multiple occasions.
They are not alone, though, and are joined by a promising talent who started and finished the 141st Open Championship on fire.
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Ernie Els
Without question, Ernie Els shined brighter than any other player at the 2012 British Open. Els shot two-under in the final round, hitting four birdies on the back nine to win his second career Open Championship, and fourth career major tournament.
What made Els' performance at Royal Lytham so much more impressive, though, was the fact that he had not won a major since the 2002 British Open at Muirfield. When leader Adam Scott opened the door for Els late by bogeying the final four holes, the 42-year-old South African was in perfect position to claim the Claret Jug.
Nicolas Colsaerts
German Nicolas Colsaerts shot a remarkable five-under, 65 in Sunday's final round to finish one-under par for the tournament. Colsaerts came out on fire in the first round, shooting a 65 to as well, but fell off in the second round, shooting seven-over par on Friday to all but put himself out of striking distance heading into weekend play.
Colsaerts will be kicking himself for his second-round struggles, but there is no denying that he has gained some confidence from his incredible start and finish to the 2012 British Open. His seventh place finish at Royal Lytham was the best of his career there. Before 2012, Colsaerts had never been passed the first two rounds at the Open Championship, so it's safe to say he shined brighter than the sun this past weekend.
Brandt Snedeker
Despite coming back down to Earth during the weekend's final two rounds, American Brandt Snedeker set a tournament record and absolutely owned the first two days of competition at Royal Lytham. Snedeker shot 10-under through the first two rounds, setting a record for the best two-round start in Open Championship history. Snedeker never even bogeyed until hole No. 5 in Round 3.
Snedeker had never been past the qualifying stages of the British Open before this year, so he must be acknowledged for his brilliance across the pond this summer. The fact that Snedeker double bogeyed two consecutive holes during Sunday's final round and still finished just four strokes back of winner Ernie Els, tells us that it's only a matter of time before the American breaks through at a major tournament. Snedeker hasn't shined this bright since the 2008 Masters, when he finished tied for third.
2012 British Open Top 10 Results (Courtesy of TheOpen.com)
| 1 | ELS , E. | F | -7 | 273 |
| 2 | SCOTT, A. | F | -6 | 274 |
| T3 | WOODS, T. | F | -3 | 277 |
| T3 | SNEDEKER, B. | F | -3 | 277 |
| T5 | DONALD, L. | F | -2 | 278 |
| T5 | McDOWELL, G. | F | -2 | 278 |
| T7 | COLSAERTS, N. | F | -1 | 279 |
| T7 | AIKEN, T. | F | -1 | 279 |
| T9 | OGILVY, G. | F | E | 280 |
| T9 | JIMENEZ, M. | F | E | 280 |
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