Brian Harman, just the quiet man’s triumph at the British Open in golf

Brian Harman is a player I’ve always liked. It’s true that he’s never in people’s pools to win because he’s only had two tournaments on his record, but he’s a golfer with a very special style that I love. But always. He plays very naturally, very relaxed, and what surprises me is that he won so few. If you look closely at his performance, it’s rare that he’s not in the top 10 or 15 every week. This time he was always in the lead and I was very confident that he would hold on. I saw him very calm, very serene. That’s his way of understanding golf. Ever since he played these four days, he always does that. It doesn’t twitch. It’s like he’s on a walk. He enjoys what he does

The key to Harman’s victory was that he was the player with the best green speed. As a general rule, it is not done that many times throughout the tournament. Except him. Everything he shot at he did so with perfect power. It was a rarity that the long putt he hit didn’t leave the ball within two feet.

Jon Rahm had his day on Saturday. Everything was in his favor. However, overall over the four days, it wasn’t bad, but not at the level required for a big win. He hit it well with his drive, remember the lucky 5 hole yesterday, but if we carefully analyze his rounds we will see that he left very few balls near the flag. His second shot during the last day didn’t go well either, and that’s something important for winning important championships. It’s true that he had a good tournament, he finished second, but to win the big one you need a little more.

As for Rory McIlroy, he has been lagging behind in the majors for some time now. There are phases where it seems like he’s going to push himself, that he can win again, but he can’t play his game in the big ones. Maybe it’s because he’s under a lot of pressure. He is at a level where his only motivation is winning major tournaments. The same will happen to Jon Rahm soon, surely, because those wins are what define the No. 1 races. And McIlroy has gone nine years without winning a major. Since the British won in 2014, this absence of major tournaments is starting to weigh on him. Jon did it this year, he gave us great joy at the Augusta Masters, and I hope he can do it again next year because it’s something fundamental to the minds of this type of player. McIlroy is in that rut and we’ll see how he handles it.

Finally, I would like to highlight what happened with Tommy Fleetwood. For me, the Englishman, along with the winner, was the best player from tee to green. The one who hit the ball the best, but the poor guy didn’t make a shot for two days. It was horrible. And that’s not a bad shot. In the end, Harman made the difference on the green, where victories are forged. This is not just about hitting the ball well.