Fifty-nine is one of the magic numbers in the game of golf. In fact, it may be the most magical of all numbers associated with this great game and on Friday, in the second round of the 138th British Open at Turnberry, Tom Watson introduced the magic number of 59 to major championship golf.
Watson, who owns five Claret Jugs, posted a second round score of even-par 70 to share the halfway lead with American Steve Marino atop the leader board of the 2009 British Open at 5-under par.
Watson began his day on No. 1 with a birdie, only to follow that up with a bogey at No. 2 and a par at No. 3 to sit fairly stable at 5-under par through three holes of his second round.
That's when the living legend did something we all do at one time or another; he boarded the bogey train at No. 4 and didn't get off until he recorded a par at No. 8. The string of five bogeys in a six-hole stretch seemingly eliminated the sentimental favorite into the "Aw, too bad; it was fun while it lasted..." category.
Then Tom Watson did what all the greats seem to do when a round is going south; he dug in and regrouped. Watson stopped the downward spiral of his opening nine with a birdie at No. 9 and then added three more at Nos. 11, 16 and 18 to post a bogey free inward nine of 3-under par 32 and stand at 5-under par, 135 through 36 holes.
The magical 59 associated with Watson on Day Two of the 138th British Open?
Watson is the oldest 36-hole leader of a major championship at 59 years, 10 months and 3 days.
Wow: In the end, it wasn't enough. Tiger Woods came up three feet short on his birdie attempt on the 18th hole to exit a major championship before its conclusion for only the second time in his career. The only other time Woods missed the final 36 holes of a major was when he MC'd at the 2006 US Open shortly after his father's passing.
Woods followed up his lackluster first-round 71 with an uneven 74 that included three birdies, three bogeys and two double bogeys. To his credit, Woods never caved, never quit and rallied when it all seemed lost to post birdies on Nos. 16 and 17, giving hope that we were going to witness another Woodsian feat. But, it was not to be. Par was all the Striped one could muster at the 18th, falling one shot short of the cut line.
For Woods, 2009 has been a season of perception and reality. The perception is that Woods can seemingly will himself into the winners circle as he has at Bay Hill, the Memorial and his own event. The reality is whatever prep work he is doing in the off time between the last win and the next major isn't working. Following each of the big wins so far in 2009 came a big let down at the next event, which happened to be a major.
So, when will we see Tiger next? The Buick Open comes up July 30 to August 6 at Warwick Hills Golf and Country Club in Grand Blanc, Mich. After that is the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational in Akron, Ohio, August 6-9 and then the next week, the PGA Championship from Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minn., August 13-16.
What will see from Tiger when we next see him on the golf course? That is anyone's guess, including Stevie Williams, Hank Haney and maybe even Tiger himself.
The Cut: The cut in the 138th British Open came at low 70 scores and ties and fell at +4. The list of those missing the cut at +5 included former major champions Woods, Ben Curtis, Mike Weir and Todd Hamilton, as well as Colin Montgomerie, Charley Hoffman and DJ Trahan.
Some in the group missing the cut at +6 were Tim Clark, KJ Choi, Anthony Kim and Japanese sensation Ryo Ishikawa.
David Toms finished at +7 as did Rory Sabbatini and David Duval. At +8 were Sandy Lyle, Charles Howell III and Bubba Watson.
Some in the group at +9 were Stephen Ames, current US Open Champ Lucas Glover and Brandt Snedeker.
Sir Nick Faldo, Hunter Mahan and Carl Petterson were going home at +11. Greg Norman missed the weekend at +12, Geoff Ogilvy was +13 and Ian Poulter finished at +14.
What anyone can take from the scoring at the British Open is this: on any of the highlight shows, from ESPN's "SportsCenter" to The Golf Channel's "Live From" programs, you'll see made putt after made putt, fantastic shot after fantastic shot. All the big names must make all the big shots all of the time. The truth is that they don't. They make pars and bogeys and double bogeys just like the rest of us. But they also make a lot more birdies and manage their games from tee to green far better than the average golfer. If you learn one thing from watching a professional struggle, learn to manage your golf ball better around the course and you'll see your scores drop.
Next: What next, not only for the fans but for the field and the broadcast of the 138th British Open? Well for the field, with Tiger out of the picture, it's a free play to try and capture golf immortality. Once you have your name on the trophy, they can't take it off. It wasn't by accident that the Claret Jug was sitting next to interview subjects while Jim Huber was chatting them up on TNT's broadcasts. Padraig Harrington checked out the names as did Tom Watson while waiting to go on the broadcast.
For the fans it is a chance to see a new talent emerge and claim maybe their first major or maybe an old friend who reacquaints themselves with championship glory. The final 36 holes are certain to be a fascinating ride for at least one player who will carry the title of "Championship Golfer of the Year".
For the broadcast entity, it is essential that Tom Watson stay in the mix and provide at least a little bit of history as well as some magic to keep viewers interested. Ironic that in a weekend filled with golf from morning till night, Tiger will be just like one of us and be on the couch watching the action from afar.
