Why Tom Watson Might Be The Last Man Standing Tomorrow Afternoon

For just a moment, forget about that fact that Tom Watson is 59-years-old.

Forget about the fact that Watson won the 1977 Open Championship at Turnberry three years before his third round playing partner, Steve Marino, was even born.

Forget about the fact that he’s twenty four years older than Mathew Goggin, who will be paired with Watson in tomorrow’s final pairing.

Forget about the fact that Watson is easily old enough to be the grandfather of the child that Ross Fisher, who is currently at -3 and just one-stroke behind Watson, and his wife are expecting this week.  

All of this is completely irrelevant right now.

Watson is not playing like your average 59-year-old man.

Watson has hit thirty one of forty two fairways while averaging more than 296 yards off the tee this week.

On average, Watson is hitting the ball longer off the tee than both Goggin and Fisher – imagine that!

As players get older, putting is typically the first aspect of their game to go, or so they say.

Well, you can toss that notion right out the window as it pertains to Tom Watson this week.

Watson appears as if he has somehow been hypnotized and truly believes that it’s 1977 and he’s once again a confident young 28-year-old, looking to take down the great Jack Nicklaus.

Yes, it’s cold and windy, and he’s walking around with a new hip that was surgically implanted less than twelve months ago, but, who cares.  His hip, his age, the weather, the media frenzy or anything else has yet to affect him on the golf course.

Toss all of your pre-determined notions about what a 59-year-old man should and shouldn’t be doing out the window, because at this very moment, it simply does not pertain to Tom Watson.

Why will Tom Watson win the Open Championship tomorrow?  

There are two reasons.

First, Watson is the greatest American links golfer who ever lived.  Furthermore, no one in the field this week knows every nook and cranny of Turnberry better than Tom Watson.

Watson was hoisting the Claret Jug at Turnberry before most of the field was even born.

Whatever Mother Nature possibly has in store for tomorrow afternoon, Watson has seen it before.

Second, who else on the leaderboard has shown an ability to close out a major championship?

Mathew Goggin?

He hasn’t even won a PGA Tour event.  Goggin had many writers and analysts frantically flipping through their media guides this afternoon just to find out who he is and where he comes from.

Ross Fisher?

Although he has looked fairly steady in the few major championship he’s played in, who knows Fisher will react if he’s  standing on the 18th tee box while holding a one-stroke lead. 

He’s inexperienced.  He could confidently close the door or he could self destruct.  The fact of the matter is that there’s no way of knowing how Fisher will react because he’s never been in that situation before.

Retief Goosen?

Sure, Goosen has won two major championships.  But, one of which came after he three putted from inside of 12-feet on the 72nd hole of the 2001 US Open.

Goosen had a 22 inch put to win the 2001 US Open outright.  The pressure engulfed him at that moment and he missed a putt that he’d normally sink 99 out of every 100 tries.

If Goosen wasn’t able to defeat Mark Brooks the following day in an 18-hole playoff, his three put from less than 12 feet on the 72nd hole would have ranked right up there as one of the biggest major championship meltdowns in history.

Heck, Goosen nearly let the Transitions Championship get away from him earlier this year in Tampa.

Lee Westwood?

Westwood has just six top-10 finishes in the forty six majors he’s played in.

What many people forget is that last year at Torrey Pines, Westwood also had a very makeable putt to join Tiger Woods and Rocco Mediate in the Monday playoff.

But, Westwood left his 15-foot putt short.

Short?

How does one possibly leave a putt short that would have gotten him into an 18-hole playoff for the US Open?

Watson on the other hand has won eight majors, including five Open Championships.

In 1977 at Turnberry, a 28-year-old Watson went head-to-head with Nicklaus at The Open in a way that only Bob May has managed to do against Tiger Woods.

Luckily for Watson, Bob May will not be in the field tomorrow.

Watson also took down Nicklaus at the 1982 US Open at Pebble Beach.

Only five players in the history of the game have won more major championships than Tom Watson.

Who knows what tomorrow will have in store for Tom Watson.

Golf is a funny game, and as we all know, anything can happen.

If Watson is somehow still in contention as he makes the inward turn tomorrow afternoon, who do you think will be the last man standing?

59-years-old or not, I’d put my money on the eight-time major champion.