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Englishman Bland making noise at U.S. Open

Fresh off first win, Englishman making noise at U.S. Open

JON MCCARTHY Jmccarthy@ postmedia.com

Minutes after Phil Mickelson won the PGA Championship, I received a text message that said simply, “Old guys rule.”

It was from my father and, silly as it seemed, he was apparently on to something. On

Friday morning at the U.S. Open, 48-year-old Richard Bland made his way around Torrey Pines in a rather amazing 4-under-par 67 to take the lead among early starters at 5-under.

“I was feeling pretty good about my game,” he said after his round. “I've been driving the ball well for five, six weeks now, which is the cornerstone if you're going to put a fight up for a U.S. Open.”

Blandy, as he's known to friends across the pond (who apparently choose nicknames the same way as hockey players), became an overnight sensation 20 years in the making last month with his first European Tour win, the Betfred British Masters, in his 478th start.

As far as fairy tale endings go, it seemed perfect. After losing his tour card at 46 years old, Bland returned to the developmental European Challenge Tour and earned it back for the third time.

“Golf is all I know,” he said Friday. “When times got tough and I lost my card two or three times, I think, what am I going to do, go and get an office job? I'm not that intelligent, I'm afraid.”

Two years later, he had the week of his life, making just a single bogey over four days at The Belfry to get into a playoff and win, achieving a lifelong goal. The post-round on-course broadcaster that day just happened to be his longtime swing coach Tim Barter, and with both men in tears they attempted to make sense of what had just happened, then the pair walked over to a podium where Bland's parents and family were waiting on video chat.

“What a player!” Dad shouted. “Are you OK, mum?” Bland asked.

“No,” his mother answered. “I've been waiting for this for so long.”

“You and me both,” Bland said, before ending with, “Can I have a roast lamb dinner on Tuesday?”

“You can have what you like,” Dad responds.

A more perfect denouement on a journeyman's career impossible to imagine, but in 2021 every big hit needs a sequel and Bland is working on a blockbuster this week. Powered by the same rocksteady driver that led him to his breakthrough win, Bland appears up to the U.S. Open challenge while playing in just the fourth major championship of his career.

“Every shot is a potential disaster around here, so you try to avoid those,” Bland said Friday.

Bland has been around the game long enough to know when you're on a hot streak, you just ride it and see where it takes you.

YOUNG AND OLD OF IT

It's an interesting time with players extending their careers into their 50s and young stars jumping on tour and directly into major championship contention in their early 20s.

We might well look back on this era as a unique moment in golf history.

There's very little doubt players will continue to arrive on the scene ready to win; junior and college programs are now run like professional tours, and science and training is only getting better. The question is whether this generation of young golfers will be able — or have the desire — to push their careers into their 40s or 50s.

With the game as lucrative as ever, there are no financial reasons to keep the pedal down for 30 years. More importantly, by accelerating the development of world-class athletes you also accelerate the pressures these young men and women and, let's be honest, kids are under. With today's top young athletes jumping directly into the spotlight, they aren't afforded the opportunity to mature and progress in relative anonymity until their time comes. Ready or not, their time is now.

Recently, tennis star Naomi Osaka elevated this issue from the sports realm into the mental health discussion as the 23-yearold grapples with the pressures of worldwide fame. On Tuesday, Matthew Wolff opened up about his recent decision to step away from the game temporarily. After struggling this year, Wolff is playing in his first tournament since the Masters in April.

“I think I just put too much pressure on myself,” he said. “And it was a hard decision because

I'm so new on the tour and it's my first or second year and I didn't want to walk away, I didn't think it was, you know, I don't even think I could to be honest, and then when I finally started to get to a bad enough spot, honestly I was like, you know what? I need some time.”

In today's sports world, every player is his or her own major brand and the pressure to keep that machine running smoothly is immense.

“I'm only 22,” he said. “Don't they say like the brain evolves at like 25 or something like that? It's like, I don't know, but ...”

Then there is social media; while it may seem like a great way to control your own message, it also puts athletes in a more intimate relationship with their fans, and the pressure to live up to the image on everyone's phone creates a wrinkle.

“I'm only trying to have positive thoughts in my head and be positive,” Wolff said. “And I mean, kudos to pretty much every professional athlete out there ... I haven't been in this world for a long time, but it's f---ing hard.”

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2021-06-19T07:00:00.0000000Z

2021-06-19T07:00:00.0000000Z

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