If you are just waking up on a Sunday morning wondering what is happening at The Open, you are in for a treat.
The wind is blowing and it is raining on and off at this town of Troon on the Ayrshire coast, perfect weather for the Open, right !
Henrik Stenson at 40 has shot 68 65 68 -12 and he leads Phil Mickelson who is 46, and has shot 63 69 70 -11. The closest competitor to them is Bill Haas at -6, so it is not match play but it is shaping up to be just that as they tee off at 9.35am (est) this morning.
The all important weather today in Troon has the wind blowing from the WSW, 10-15mph gusting to 20 and it's 13*c right now. The normal or prevailing wind is from the NE which as you know by now has most off the front nine playing downwind and the back nine into it. Today is almost the opposite, there are a lot of cross winds.
https://www.google.ca/?gfe_rd=cr&ei=EcrMVb3XM4WN8QeTx63wAQ&gws_rd=ssl#q=the+weather+for+troon+scotland
Yesterday was a preview of what I expect to see today as the lead changed back and forth between these two playing in similar conditions.
A point that may be crucial today is that Stenson is -6 on the more difficult back through 27 holes and he hasn't had a bogey there in the last 23. That's the best of any others in the field. His 54-hole total of 201 beats the record for an Open at Troon, previously set by countryman Jesper Parnevik in 1997.
This is his first lead in a major albeit by one and remember another telling point is that Phil already has five majors including the Open in 2013 at Muirfield where he beat Henrik by 3 shots.
“There’s only one thing that matters, Stenson said. “I know he’s not going to back down, and I’m certainly going to try to not back down, either. So it should be an exciting afternoon. … I’ve worked hard these first three days to put myself in this situation and I’m going to try my hardest tomorrow to finish the job.”
On the other hand Mickelson had a scrambling 70, his swing not as reliable as it was in Thursday's 63, but his short game saved him.
So it sets up an intriguing final, Phil has been here done that while Henrik wants that first major to go with a Race to Dubai, a FedEx Cup and Ryder Cup on his CV
I picked him at the start of the week and see no reason to change. He is driving so well and is the better long iron player..
I picked him at the start of the week and see no reason to change. He is driving so well and is the better long iron player..
Like I said, we are in for a treat
Bryan Angus
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