Calcavecchia, 50 and going strong
Mark Calcavecchia is holding onto second place in the standings as of halfway through the second day of the British Open. Though the winner of the 1989 Open at Royal Troon, Calcavecchia is not the most well known of players and had little hype surrounding him at the start of the tournament. St Andrews, however, is a course full of surprises, and right now Calcavecchia is it.
The 50-year-old American golfer does have talent. He posted the early low score of the day with his five-under 67, his best yet finish on the Old Course. Calcavecchia got 13 pars and five birdies as he plotted his way around the course, leaving him seven under for the tournament, five shots off the lead. He is a full time member of the US Champions Tour (for players over 50) and doesn’t let the youthful ambition of many of this year’s contenders get in his way.
"It's confidence," Calcavecchia said."You see a guy like Tom Watson last year almost winning at 60. It doesn't really matter how old you are if you're feeling good about what you're doing. I think old guys can hang with the young guys."
Greg Norman is another elder player who doesn’t think age is a deterrent at the Open, and considers Tom Watson to be an inspirational player for everyone,
"I've been feeling ancient and royal for a long time, I've got a little bit of arthritis in my knuckle. It hurts like h**l . . . But this game is about confidence. You see a guy like Watson almost winning last year and you know he was playing really well because he had confidence. It doesn't really matter how old you are if you feel good about what you are doing."
Watson had a very impressive showing at the 2009 Open at Turnberry where, a few months shy of his 60th birthday he went to the 72nd hole with a one stroke lead only to be defeated by Steward Cink in a playoff. Watson was trying to secure his sixth Open title. Norman is a two time winner of the Claret Jug, and nearly won it a third time two years ago at the age of 53. Watson and Norman both fell short of becoming the oldest player to win major, a title held by Julius Boros who won the 1968 PGA Championship at 48.
Calcavecchia hasn’t played in the other majors for two years, yet has only missed the cut for the British Open twice since 1999. “I always enjoy the Open. Having not played well at St. Andrews in the past doesn't mean anything to me." Calcavecchia’s previous best round at St. Andrews was a 69 in 2000, "I know the course and I got a few good breaks out there, missed a couple of bunkers by a couple of yards, and it's a difference of a couple of shots. Your ball rolls into one of those things, and who knows what you're going to make.”
If the weather keeps up the way it’s going, windy enough for play to be suspended, Calcavecchia will likely keep his second place position for the rest of the day. When interviewed, Calcavecchia was more talkative about his luck than his good plays,
“I'm just happy to have a game of golf for tomorrow," he said of his 6:30 am tee off, the first person out on the field.
"The R&A is nice enough to know that I like to play fast and they certainly know that I'm not going to hold anybody up."
He will not be so lucky tomorrow. Calcavecchia will likely start in the final group in Saturday’s third round. If Friday's general pace of play is any indication, he'll be doing a lot of waiting. That's the price you pay for being one of the leaders.
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