The Open: 60 year old Tom Watson vows to win
The 60 year old Tom Watson who was given the honorary degree this week at St Andrews has vowed to get the sixth trophy of the championship this season.
The five times winner of the Claret jug could have sufficed on the feeling he had been experiencing in the past but it does not seem enough for the champion. He is not in the mood to dig old stories of his victories. This time at St Andrews, he is trying to win again and take another claret jug home.
"God, I hope a 60-year-old guy can do that. That would be pretty cool." These are the words of Tom Watson early this morning at 6;30 when it was announced that the 4 hole champion event will be cancelled due to bad weather conditions of torrential rain and strong winds, and it might take 11 years for the event to be held again.
The event of four-hole competition is a part of the celebrations to mark the opening ceremony of the The Open. There was prize money to give away to the winner but as there was no match so the money went to Seve Ballesteros Foundation a charity organization. The decision of giving £50,000 to the charity was of R&A.
Other than the 60 year old Tom Watson, 80 year old Arnold Palmer and 87 year old Roberto de Vicenzo were also to play in the inauguration ceremony. This is the 7th time for Tom Watson to play at St Andrews and altogether 33 times.
St Andrew seems like a common testing ground for the old and the young. First it was Norman at the age of 53 last year, now it is Tom Watson, whose 8 feet amazing putt made him the oldest major champion in the history of golf.
Looking at the past we see Tom Watson was only 9 putts away from victory against Stewart Cink who finished with 69 at Turnberry last July. This can be it for Tom but he is not yet ready to give up the will of winning the claret jug for the 6th time like Harry Vardon. At the moment Julius Boros, is the only American at the age of 48 who won the 1968 US PGA and remained the oldest major champion of all time.
Despite having gone under a surgery and having an artificial hip placed in his body making it more stiff. Tom Watson is not thinking of his history in the opens rather he wants to play like any other competitor and give his best.
With a little problem with the putting and not striking the ball well especially on the windy back nine of the course. Rest Tom Watson is all set with the kind of experience he has to take over the Old Course. It seems it won’t make much of a difference; all Tom Watson needs is the right winds and right posture. Even if he does not perform well on 18th July Tom Watson is exempted for four more years under a rule introduced because of his performance 12 months ago. To make it better if he finishes in top 10 then he is even allowed of being a part of the championship that is being held in 2015.Till then will Tom be physically fit or not only time will tell that. According to Tom himself he might expire till then.
This February Tom Watson came eighth at the Dubai Desert Classic and in the same year April he finished at 67 at the Masters. Not to forget the US Open at the pebbles beach where he was ranked the 29th.Chances are that the world might see Tom Watson again in action in the Open 2015,and who knows that he might take 7th Claret Jug home and celebrate the record of being the oldest defending champion ever.
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