By Erik Jacobsen
Staff Writer
Who needs Tiger Woods in a major championship?
That's the prevailing opinion now that Greg Norman has come out of nowhere to put himself in contention at this weekend's British Open. After his second straight 70, Norman is alone in second place at even par, one stroke behind leader K.J. Choi.
Seeing the Great White Shark in the hunt brings me back to my formative years when I first started to enjoy watching golf in the mid-1990s as a pre-teenager. Back then, Norman was the man, even though he rarely pulled through in crunch time (this is the guy who has 29 top 10 finishes in majors but only 2 major titles).
I'll never forget watching Norman's collapse in the final round of the 1996 Masters with a final-round 78. It was agonizing watching the man let a six-shot lead slip away into oblivion and eventually a five-shot defeat with one awful shot after another. When Norman fell to his knees after nearly chipping in for eagle at No. 15, it was the first time I truly realized what a cruel game golf is.
Now Norman is back at the age of 53, providing an interesting storyline. He joins Rocco Mediate and David Duval as the guys within three shots of the lead at the 36-hole mark that you can't help rooting for this weekend.
Norman has a new high-profile wife of less than a month and we all know he has friends in high places. But a victory this weekend would do way more to rekindle Norman's star power than those connections ever could.
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