South African Oosthuizen coasts to win at British Open

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland - It's easily the greatest walk in golf. Or maybe any sport.

Especially when you know you can make a 10 and still win. Even with tears in your eyes.

Yesterday, on the Old Course, those final 100 or so yards up the 18th fairway belonged to South African Louis Oosthuizen.

Everyone on the BBC telecast seemed to pronounce his name a little differently. Go with WHUST-high-zen. It's close enough. As long as the engraver can spell it correctly on the claret jug.

After two-putting for 1-under 71 to make the seven-stroke victory official, Oosthuizen was greeted on the green by his wife, Nel-Mare, and their 7-month-old daughter, Jana. More wet eyes. And warm embraces. Jana won't remember any of it. But she'll sure have plenty of pictures and stories to remind her.

"Without you, it wouldn't be worth it," he told them and the whole world later at his acceptance speech.

Back home, after a month of hosting the World Cup, Nelson Mandela was turning 92 years young. Wonder if those vuvuzelas are used for anything besides soccer?

"I woke up this morning and didn't know it was his birthday until I heard it on the news, on the Internet," Oosthuizen said. "That's amazing. It felt a bit special. Walking down 18, I was thinking about that. What he's done for our country is unbelievable."

South Africans Bobby Locke, Gary Player, Ernie Els and Retief Goosen have won 18 majors among them, including eight Open championships. Locke was victorious here in 1957. Now Oosthuizen is part of that. Player reached out to him before the final round.

"He phoned me this morning," said Oosthuizen, who closed with a 272 total, two better than Tiger Woods did here in 2005 and seven better than England's Lee Westwood could do this week en route to his second runner-up in a major this year. "We had a little chat. He spoke in my home language, Afrikaans. He first spoke to my wife. Then he was saying just to stay calm, have a lot of fun.

"And he said the crowd was probably going to be on [playing partner Paul Casey's side]. Then he told me the story when he played against Arnold Palmer when he won his first Masters [in 1961]. He said, 'They wanted to throw stuff at me.' But he was so focused on beating him in Augusta. That meant a lot."

His caddie, Zak Rasego, also carried Player's bag when he won the British Senior at Turnberry two decades ago.

"It's a fantastic day for us," Rasego gushed. "I've been with him through all his progress. It's unbelievable what he's done this week."

On the 150th anniversary of the first Open, Oosthuizen also joins the list of other giants who have made that same walk on this sacred turf: Bobby Jones, Sam Snead, Peter Thomson, Jack Nicklaus, Seve Ballesteros, Nick Faldo and Woods.

"To win the Open is special," Oosthuizen said. "To win here is something you dream about."

He's the first to get his first major at St. Andrews since Tony Lema 46 years ago.

The reality is, it was pretty much his tournament from the time he assumed a five-shot edge after Friday's 67, when he got the better of the starting times/wind conditions and didn't waste it. He followed with a 69 that still left him four in front of Casey, who, like Westwood, was trying to become the first man from England to win a major since Faldo in 1996 (Masters). Or win this one since Faldo in 1992.

Casey started with a bogey on 2 but birdied the sixth. Oosthuizen, after seven consecutive pars, dropped one at the 8th and the lead was three. Both players drove the ensuing par-4. But Oosthuizen made his eagle, while Casey two-putted. Things basically ended at 12, when Casey drove into gorse and took a triple-bogey while Oosthuizen was making bird.

The rest was mostly for second. At least for those watching on the telly.

"That's one thing I learned in this game," said Oosthuizen, who was ranked 54th on the planet, 4 months after getting his first European Tour victory. "You're certain when the last putt goes in."

Wonder how many folks had bothered to plop a few quid on him at 200-to-1? The best you could do yesterday was 4-to-5.

Rory McIlroy, who became the 22nd man to shoot 63 in any major on Thursday before imploding with an 80 on Friday, closed with a 68 to get a share of third with Casey (75) and Henrik Stenson (71) at 280. The 21-year-old from Northern Ireland has now played 12 rounds at St. Andrews. He has broken 70 in all but one. Go figure.

"Even if you took away the couple of sevens I had this week, I don't think it was good enough to get near Louis," Casey said. "That was an unbelievable performance. I'm disappointed, but the emphasis has to be on that."

Goosen had a 70, for solo sixth at 281.

"I knew [Oosthuizen] had a lot of talent," Goosen said. "It's nice to see. He grew up in an area [Mossel Bay] that's very windy. So, for him, these conditions are normal. The guy's got one of the best swings on tour. He's had a chance to win four or five events out there this year already.

"I think he'll be around for many years to come."

Still, the 27-year-old had made just one cut in a major before this. That was at the 2008 PGA, where he finished 73rd. Or last.

His nickname, by the way, is "Shrek." Which just happens to be playing right up the street.

"I won't be there, though," he laughed.

His universe will never be the same. But whatever happens, he will always have this moment.

"All of sudden, it was mine to throw away," is how Oosthuizen described the turn of events at 12. "I'm proud of the way I held my nerves. When I got to the ball, I was fine.

"Everyone around me told me it was a matter of believing. I got my mind around that. This week, it was something different. Everything comes together. You also got the bounces on your side and things like that. You need all those things to go your way. But it was still nerve-wracking."

At least until the final walk.

"When my tee shot was down on 18, I felt that was it," he said. "I'm definitely not going to 10-putt around there. I just hit the first putt to the right and then it didn't really matter from there. It's probably not the best of concentrations I've put into it. I just wanted to get the last putt in the hole.

"And I was too excited, really."

He had every reason to be. The two most imp

ortant ones were there to share it with him.

Pretty great, indeed.