Capelle On Golf

British Open Coverage

It was well documented that those with the early tee times on Thursday got the worst of the weather at the 2008 British Open. According to the commentators, the course played about four shots tougher for those went off in the morning.

Indeed, the average scores for the top 15 at the end of the tournament confirmed their estimate. As the tables show, the morning wave on Friday scored 3.54 strokes higher than the afternoon wave. If golf were fair, they would have picked up those shots on Friday, but they gained only 1.37 shots back because the Thursday afternoon group faced less severe conditions on Friday morning.

In short, the Thursday morning wave got the worst of the weather, but was still able to place seven players in the top 15. During the final round these battle tested players outscored the Thursday afternoon group by an average of 2.75 shots! After surviving the rains and winds of the first day, 30-35mph winds in largely cloudless skies must have seemed like the proverbial walk in the park.

Padraig Harrington won the Open with his closing charge on the back nine on Sunday. But another key to his victory was not shooting himself out of the event on Thursday when so many like Els and Phil Mickelson (79) took themselves out of the running. Harrington’s 74 was the second best score among the top 15 who played their opening round in the morning.

Thursday Morning Wave (7 players in the Top 15)
1 - 7:58 Padraig Harrington (74-68-72-69)
2 - 9:09 Ian Poulter (72-71-75-69)
3 - 8:09 Henrik Stenson (76-72-70-71)
7 - 8:42 David Howell (76-71-78-67)
7 - 9:20 Paul Casey (78-71-73-70)
7 - 8:58 Ben Curtis (78-69-70-75)
7 - 8:31 Ernie Els (80-69-74-69)

Thursday Afternoon Wave (8 players in the Top 15)
3 - 12:58 Greg Norman (70-70-72-77)
5 - 12:47 Jim Furyk (71-71-77-71)
5 - 3:26 Chris Wood (a) (75-70-73-72)
7 - 12:58 Robert Karlsson (75-73-75-69)
7 - 1:09 Steve Stricker (77-71-71-73)
7 - 1:09 Robert Allenby (69-73-76-74)
7 - 1:53 Anthony Kim (72-74-71-75)
7 - 2:09 Stephen Ames (73-70-78-71)

The Top 15 – Average by Round
——————Rd. 1—Rd. 2—-Rd. 3—-Rd. 4
Thur. AM—76.29—70.13—73.14—70.00
Thur. PM—72.75—71.50—74.13—72.75

Notes on the Leaderboard
Ian Poulter shot a super round of 72 in the morning rains on Thursday, then closed strongly with a 69 for a much deserved solo second. The 32 year old Englishman recorded his second top 10 and his best finish by far in a major.

David Howell’s 67 in the fourth round is one of those best-of the-day scores that you often see from players who are out of contention on Sunday. He leaped from 57t into a tie for seventh.

Robert Karlsson, 38, notched his one and only top 10 in a major (a 5t) 16 years ago. Now in 2008 he’s got a chance for the top 10 slam. Should he do it, his will author what could be one of the most unheralded success stories of the year.

Robert Allenby took advantage of an afternoon tee time on Thursday to open with a 69, tying for first. On Sunday, however, a triple bogey on the dastardly sixth hole kept Allenby (7t) from tying for third.

Ben Curtis’ victory at the 2003 Open was considered a fluke, but darned if he isn’t still trying his hardest to validate his win. He very quietly won two tour events in 2006 and has finished in the top 10 in the last two Opens. He’s only 31 and he has the luxury of playing the rest of his career minus that never-won-a-major pressure that seems to be suffocating so many players.

Pat Perez was the best player to miss the cut. He was stuck in Match 2 with a horrific 6:41am tee time on Thursday. The result was an 82 in the downpour. Perez rebounded like a champ with a 68 in the second round, earning him the distinction of being the only player to break 70 and miss the cut. His 82-68-150 was a shot over the cut line.