Gary Player says Henrik Stenson's Open success was richly deserved
By Chris MacRae
Last Updated: 18/07/16 10:14am
Gary Player believes Henrik Stenson showed he was the best golfer at The Open on Sunday - both on the course and in the mind.
The Swede tied the record round in a major as he carded an eight-under-par 63 to win at Royal Troon by three shots after a titanic tussle with Phil Mickelson.
It was a first major triumph for Stenson and Player felt it was richly deserved as he held his nerve to birdie four of the final five holes to land the Claret Jug with a cumulative total of 264.
The three-time Open winner told Sky Sports News HQ: "I was so excited for Henrik Stenson. He's such a wonderful golfer there's no one in the world who plays better than him.
"He deserved to win, he played magnificently. He's a wonderful man, with a great sense of humour. He was second to Phil in 2013 and now with patience he beats him. It was a great tournament.
"Was it the best ever? Bobby Jones with a fat old shaft and a club face like a frying pan and a ball that went 70 yards less than today shot 285 at St Andrews to win in 1927 so we have to be very careful to say what is the best ever.
"The Open is the greatest tournament on the planet. The US Open, they have got to 'trick it up' to make it a test but here, the links golf is the ultimate test. You go in the bunker, you have to play out backwards sometimes. It is a test of the mind.
"Before you tee off you have to say, 'I'm going to have adversity this week and either I am going to accept it or I am a cry baby'. Stenson can walk off there and say, 'I was a man this week'... and he was.
"One of the important factors in golf besides courage is patience. Everybody talks about long driving, but 70 per cent of shots are played within 100 yards of the hole.
"The three worst drivers I saw of the top 30 players of my lifetime were Seve Ballesteros, Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods - and they were all No 1 in the world. Why? Because they were the greatest at recovery play and the greatest from 100 yards in."
Tom Lehmann, winner of The Open at Lytham St Annes in 1996, was equally impressed with Sunday's drama, adding: "It raised a lot of eyebrows and caused a lot of amazement to see two players so far ahead of the field and to see Henrik Stenson just finish the way he did was an amazing thing. I am very happy for him and I was very impressed by the quality of golf that both he and Phil produced."
Gary Player was speaking at the Gary Player Invitational event at Wentworth. The tournament involving top players and celebrities is a pan-global charity event played in six different countries to improving educational standards and helping children around the world and has raised $60m.
