U.S. Open’s ending had us cringing a bit
A GRIP ON SPORTS • The U.S. Open began and ended the same way this year. How’s that? It began with sadness with the way Tiger Woods was playing. It ended with sorrow for Dustin Johnson. Read on.
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• Empathy is not a word often associated with sports. Winners win, we celebrate. Losers lose, we move on. Oh, occasionally we commiserate. But more likely we blame, we find fault, we break down every little aspect of the loss. Golf, however, is a bit different. It isn’t a team sport. There is no coach to rail at. Only one lonely man or woman standing over a golf ball, their fate in their hands. No one else’s. Thursday we watched Woods play and wanted to cry, just because of how far the mighty had fallen. Yesterday we watched Johnson putt on 18 and wanted to cry again, just because you could tell he hurt so much. See, Johnson choked over his 12-foot putt. A putt that would have given him the one thing he wanted, a major championship. A U.S. Open championship. As he stood watching Jason Day putt, you could tell Johnson wasn’t in full control. It showed when Day asked him if he wanted him, Day, to putt out, to get out of Johnson's way. Johnson seemed to not be listening, to not comprehend what was asked. His answer was slow, halting. He let Day make the decision. And then Johnson hit the most important putt of his life. Until the next one. He missed both. And now he’s made history in another way. He’ll always be remembered as the guy who three-putted 18 at Chambers Bay, giving the U.S. Open championship to Jordan Spieth. It’s enough to destroy even the most mentally strong among us. But that’s not a description anyone would give Johnson. He’s struggled when major – as in “major championship” – pressure has hit him before. Sunday’s have not been his best days, whether it’s shooting in the 80s at Pebble Beach or inadvertently grounding his club at Whistling Straits. And off-course problems have fueled rumors and innuendo for years. Which made him the sympathetic figure as he took a two-stroke lead at the turn yesterday. He was an easy-to-root-for guy. Then he made tentative stroke after tentative stroke, most often around the greens, and the lead disappeared. He was out of it. Then he wasn’t. First Brandon Grace made a big mistake on 16. Then Spieth made one on 17. Johnson made a birdie and boom, the game was on. Heading up the par-5 18th, all the 31-year-old from South Carolina had to do was make birdie to play with Spieth in an 18-hole, winner-take-all playoff today. He did better than that, actually. A great drive and an even better 5-iron gave him the opportunity to win. Or the opportunity to boot it away. The latter happened. As the second putt rolled past the cup you could see Johnson’s shoulders slouch. It was either in disappointment or despair. Maybe both. But one thing we can be sure of. It was another bitter ending for a man who has had plenty of them.
• To be honest, the only emotion I felt was empathy. Johnson seemed so defeated. If I could, I would have reached through the TV and pulled him aside. Looked him in the eye. Told him it took depths like these to make one appreciate the victories to come. And they certainly will, I would say. Some day you will be hoisting that trophy. Just remember how you feel right now. Learn from it. Let it motivate you. Whenever you don’t want to spend another minute on the practice green, remember this feeling. Let it be your coach. Then, when you step on the course to compete, forget it. Focus on the joy you’ll feel when you stand up to receive your green jacket at Augusta. Or when you are handed the Claret Jug at St. Andrews. Or maybe next year at Oakmont, when the USGA president hands you the trophy. That’s what awaits you. But I couldn’t do that. All I could do was feel sad. Sad for him. Until he walked away from the green toward the scoring tent and he took his son Tatum in his arms. The same son whose name is on his golf bag. Johnson raised him up, looked him in the eyes and the father smiled. The joy of seeing your eldest like that pushed aside all the pain. Let a smile come through. Maybe that’s why the U.S. Open holds its final 18 holes on Father’s Day. Just for that.
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• Indians: The best type of hit-and-run? How about one in a tie game, bottom of the ninth in which the hit happens to be a game-winning home run? Pretty tough to beat, huh? Chris Derrick watched that happen last evening at Avista and has the game story and a blog post about Spokane’s 4-2 victory over Hillsboro.
• Shock: Spokane was in Portland last night for an ESPN2 game against the Thunder. As per usual, the Shock started fast, saw their opponent rally back but this time held on to the lead and a 69-54 victory. Freelancer Nick Daschel has the game story.
• Golf: There were a million story lines at Chambers Bay on Sunday, with Jim Meehan covering the main ones in this story of the round as well as this notebook and this note. ... The condition of the course, especially the greens, continued to be a main element of the drama, with most golfers who complained not blaming Chambers Bay or its administration, but heaping scorn on the USGA. ... Having won the first two majors of the year, is Spieth the next big thing?
• Mariners: The M’s were just nine innings away from giving me hope for the rest of the season. Of course, they booted their chance, losing 6-2 to the Astros and finding a way not to sweep themselves back into contention. ... Hisahi Iwakuma is getting ready to return to the rotation after his stint in Everett on Saturday night. Who goes when he is activated?
• Sounders: The top three teams in the Western Conference all play in the Pacific Northwest. ... Real Salt Lake got a key win over Sporting Kansas City last night.
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• That’s it for today. If you are doing anything Hoopfest related this upcoming weekend, I recommend you start hydrating right now. It’s going to be hot – this morning the forecast for Sunday’s high: 105 – and the better hydrated you are, the less chance of something untoward happening. ... Don't forget, the U.S. women play tonight in the World Cup's round of 16. Until later ...
