‘Brutal’
weather
bumps
scores
By John Huggan
It contained, as summer days in jolly old England can do, a bit of everything weather-wise. At the start of the third round, it was wind
and rain, closely followed by rain and
wind, then wind alone and then more
rain. Later, it was not quite as windy
and the rain eased. By evening the
wind was a breeze and the precipitation had gone, a hazy sunshine having
superseded both.
Given all of that, it was no surprise
that scoring patterns followed suit,
the earliest starters getting the
worst of the conditions, especially
over the opening holes. The 495-yard,
par- 4 fourth was worst though. Into
what 1999 champion Paul Lawrie
called “a howling gale,” the first six
players—who averaged double
bogey for the hole—could barely
make the 250-yard carry from (
forward) tee-to-fairway.
“It was brutal,” gasped Lawrie,
ironically no stranger to such conditions in his native Aberdeen, Scot-
Despite the inclement weather, Fowler shot a third-round 68 that tied Dustin Johnson for the day’s low round.
By Tim Rosaforte
George Coetzee spent a semester at the University of San Diego before returning to South
Africa, but what a semester it was. “George was the most talented freshman I’ve ever coached,”
said former USD coach Tim Mickelson, now at Arizona State. “He also partied more than any
freshman I ever coached.” Coeztee eventually got his act together, came up through the Sunshine Tour and is now inspired by the major championships won by Charl Schwartzel and Louis
Oosthuizen. His goal was to one-up Schwartzel, who missed the cut making his major debut
at Royal St. George’s in 2003. Coeztee did more than that. After surviving a five-for-one-spot
playoff in the dark at Sunningdale, the 24-year-old went deep into the weekend with his name
still on the leader board. “I’m going to enjoy every second of it tomorrow,” Coetzee said. “That’s
what I’m here for. I’m here to compare myself to the best and see how I fare in the majors.”
