9 months ago
64 United States' Brian Harman celebrates connected the 18th greenish aft winning the British Open Golf Championships astatine the Royal Liverpool Golf Club successful Hoylake, England, Sunday, July 23, 2023.
Kin Cheung / AP Photo
Brian Harman turned backmost each situation successful the British Open, from large names to atrocious weather, and took his spot among large champions Sunday with a triumph that was ne'er earnestly successful uncertainty astatine Royal Liverpool.
Harman doubly responded to a uncommon bogey with back-to-back birdies, leaving everyone other playing for second. He closed with a 1-under 70, making an 8-foot par putt connected the past spread for a six-shot victory.
At property 36, helium is the oldest first-time large victor since Sergio Garcia was 37 erstwhile helium won the Masters successful 2017.
That wasn't a surprise. Not galore would person seen this coming astatine the commencement of the week. Harman had gone 167 tournaments implicit six years since his past triumph successful the 2017 Wells Fargo Championship. This is lone his 3rd rubric successful his 12 years connected the PGA Tour.
And past the avid outdoorsman made winning golf's oldest title look arsenic casual arsenic shooting food successful a barrel.
Masters champion Jon Rahm birdied his past spread for a 70 to marque it a four-way necktie for 2nd with Tom Kim (67), Sepp Straka (69) and Jason Day (69).
That turned retired to beryllium the B-flight.
Harman took the pb connected Friday greeting with the 2nd of 4 consecutive birdies aboriginal successful the 2nd round. He ne'er trailed implicit the last 51 holes, starring by 5 shots aft the 2nd circular and 5 shots aft the 3rd round.
There was 1 anxious infinitesimal aboriginal connected Sunday successful a dependable rain. Harman deed his thrust into a gorse bush near of the fairway connected the par-5 5th spread and had to instrumentality a punishment drop. It led to his 2nd bogey of the round.
Rahm, playing successful the radical ahead, looked to get 1 of those breaks that autumn to large winners. His thrust had landed betwixt bushes, allowing for a changeable conscionable abbreviated of the greenish and a birdie.
The pb was down to 3 shots. The rainfall wasn't stopping. The remainder of the links, on with the unit that comes with Sunday astatine a major, was inactive up of him.
Harman drained a 15-foot birdie putt connected the par-3 sixth, a 25-foot birdie putt connected the adjacent spread and helium was connected his way.
Corey Conners (76) of Listowel, Ont., tied for 52nd astatine 4 over.
