US Open Golf Shock at Bethpage By Rod Crowley At Isnare.com Ezine Articles

Ranked 73 in the world before winning the US Open, Lucas Glover has become the latest player to upset the odds and win a Major Golf Tournament for the first time. Glover was a 500/1 shot prior to the tournament but should we be too surprised that he won?

Others way down golf’s pecking order who have achieved similar include, Steve Jones who won the US Open in 1996. Prior to his shock win, Jones had not played in any of the previous Majors since the Open Championship in 1991 - a total of 18 consecutive Major tournaments. After winning, Jones failed to reach the top ten in any subsequent Major.

In 2003 unknown American, Ben Curtis, shocked the golfing world when he won the Open Championship at Royal St Georges. It was his first time in a Major and he won by a stroke from Vijay Singh and Thomas Bjorn. Curtis has since played Ryder Cup Golf and has had three further top ten Major finishes.

The following year in 2004, Todd Hamilton won the Open Championship at Royal Troon. At the time it was only the fourth time that he had qualified to play in a major Championship in 15 years. He too has never made another top ten finish since in any of the four majors, his best position being tied 15th at the 2009 US Masters.

Scot, Paul Lawrie was the beneficiary of a huge error made by Jean Van de Velde who dropped a three shot lead on the final hole at the Open Championship at Carnoustie in 1999. The mistake forced a four way play off which Lawrie went on to win. He has not finished in the top thirty of any Major since.

The US Masters has also had its shock champions, none more so than when Zach Johnson won in 2007. Although Johnson has performed reasonably well on the PGA tour, he had won once in 2004, The Masters was only his second top tier victory. He has failed in nine subsequent majors to make the top ten.

Shaun Micheel won the PGA Championship in 2003, having failed to qualify in all but two of the previous 19 Majors. Other than a creditable 2nd place at the same Championship in 2006 he has had no top 20 finishes since.

The year before in 2002, Rich Beem was the toast of the bookmakers, when he also won the PGA Championship. It was his only ever win on tour and it was only the second time in sixteen events that he had qualified to play in a Major Championship. He has not made the top 50 in any Major since.

These wins prove that Major Championships are not always about Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Padraig Harrington and the like, total unknown’s can come and grab their moment of glory despite the odds, their past performances or their form at the time. Golf is about 4 days of intensity, frustration, skill, consistency, confidence but most of all its about luck and courage and those above have proved that no matter how unlikely, ‘cometh the hour cometh the man’ and this makes the game even greater than it already is.

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