A week ago in summing up the Wimbledon Tennis Championship I referred to the rarity of those unforgettable, exceptional and utterly thrilling spots moments we experience.
If we had them all the time, they wouldn’t be as special.
This past week’s Open Golf Championship, the final major of the year, didn’t have those kind of electric moments that we remember.
Except for one thing.
For 36-year old Georgian Brian Harman, it was life fulfilling.
Harman became an unlikely titleholder defying those who wondered whether he would hold up after taking a five shot lead at the halfway mark.
He not only did precisely that, but performed better in the last two rounds, while many of the big names of professional golf fell by by the wayside and could never mount a charge.
No one saw this coming.
Harman had won only two PGA tour events, the last one, the Wells Fargo in 2017, stoically played consistent golf amidst the steady, sometimes heavy rain in that crucial final round at the Royal Liverpool Club in Hoylake, England.
The 5-foot 7 contender from the University of Georgia took the lead with a 65 in the second round, and never let anyone else get to within arm’s length the rest of the way.
When Masters champion Jon Rahm shot a sensational 63 in the third round to move into second place, it appeared that the battle was on.
But Rahm and the others failed to keep it going. Meanwhile, Harman actually extended what was a 10-under score after two rounds, to 12-under after three, and finished at 13-under, the only competitor under par in double figures in the championship.
This major, like all the ones leading up, was anticipated to be the setting that finally would see Rory McIlroy finally win a major that has eluded him since 2014.
McIlroy had won the Scottish Open the week prior to the big one, and had chalked up an Open victory on the Royal Liverpool course that same year. Rory then captured the PGA title later in 2014. He hasn’t won a major since.
He was a contender, for sure. He had his chances, but the putts wouldn’t fall and his wound up in a tie for sixth.
However, the putts did drop for Brian Harman.
Oh, did they.
And what is always considered the key factor in every championship, putting told the story.
So did the ability to rebound quickly from adversity.
In the third round, Harman bogeyed two of the first four holes, only to come right back with a pair of birdies to right the ship.
Then again, in the final round, he bogeyed two of the first five, only to rapidly rally with two consecutive birdies to set him straight once again.
So, while obviously you gotta have the talent, temperament seems to play a major role in winning championships.
A five shot lead can evaporate in the blink of an eye, but Harman wouldn’t let it happen.
The steady left hander looked like a machine most of the time, with those never-ending waggles prior to his swing that garnered much attention and comment.
How difficult it must have been to establish consistency in that rain. Countless dry gloves were hanging under umbrellas held by caddies and the players.
The routine toweling off of the club head and the grip.
Not easy to stage a charge at the leader.
But there proved to be no real challenge to the leader, who calmly handled those conditions that we often witness at the Open (or the British Open that’s only referred to in our country).
For some of the sport’s headliners, like Dustin Johnson and Justin Thomas, the final major of the season was a disaster.
Neither one came close to making the cut, and Thomas, in particular, is in a serious funk, that may take awhile to dissipate.
Golfers of all skills truly feel that when their game goes sideways, they will never get it back.
That includes all who play the game, and yes, it includes even those on the highest level, like Justin Thomas.
But it’s their livelihood, and they work incredibly hard to regain their ability to compete.
We’ve seen the likes of Rickie Fowler, and Jason Day, who was runner-up to Harman, stage the kind of comeback from the depths to once again be a factor.
It will be the same for Justin Thomas.
We just don’t know when.
No, the Open Golf Championship across the pond did not have the nail-biting thrills and excitement we hope to see when we invest the time in watching sports.
The expected intense competition for the famed Claret Jug proved to be a runaway.
A runaway for one veteran golfer no one expected to stand at the top.
The drama was missing.
There was no heart-stopping final moment deciding the champion.
But just remember, when we witness those times, there is always that someone who comes away feeling it was the greatest moment you could imagine.
In the Open Golf championship, that someone was Brian Harman.