Jimenez is on course to set major history

Already the oldest winner in European Tour history, Spain’s Miguel Angel Jimenez yesterday boosted his chances of becoming the oldest major champion as well in the 142nd Open Championship.
Spain's Miguel Angel JimenezSpain's Miguel Angel Jimenez
Spain's Miguel Angel Jimenez

American Julius Boros has held that distinction since winning the US PGA Championship in 1968 aged 48, but 49-year-old Jimenez claimed the clubhouse lead at a fiery Muirfield thanks to a second round of 71.

Jimenez, who broke his leg in a skiing accident last December shortly after winning the Hong Kong Open aged 48 and 318 days, carded two birdies and two bogeys to finish three under par, one ahead of England’s Lee Westwood, world No 1 Tiger Woods and Sweden’s Henrik Stenson.

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“Of course I feel pressure, anything that is important to you makes you feel pressure, but as long as I can handle it there is no problem,” said Jimenez who returned to action in the Spanish Open in April and finished fourth in the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth five weeks later.

“I have been playing golf for 25 years and sometimes you think maybe it’s too many, but it’s okay.”

Woods, whose last major title came in the 2008 US Open, carded two birdies in his first five holes but then had to wait until the 18th for another after dropping shots at the eighth and 11th.

“I’m in a good spot,” the 37-year-old said.

“I’ve just got to continue plodding along, continue just being patient, putting the ball in the right spots.

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“We’re not going to get a lot of opportunities out there but when I have I’ve been able to capitalise and hopefully I can continue doing that.”

From the start of his professional career, Woods played in 46 consecutive major championships and won 14 of them. Since the last of those victories five years ago there have been 20 more. Woods has played in 16 and won none.

Jordan Spieth may have dropped four shots in his final four holes to slip to slip to one over after two rounds but the 19-year-old still did enough to guarantee his presence over the weekend – further extending his unexpected spell away from home.

Spieth packed his suitcase for the AT&T National three weeks ago but after finishing sixth got the chance to play in the following week’s Greenbrier Classic. He then had no time to return home before the John Deere Classic, which he won in a play-off to suddenly find himself in the field for the Open and on board a plane for Scotland.

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Observant American journalists have noted the reappearance of at least one pair of trousers but fortunately his rented accommodation this week does have a washing machine.

On the first day a BBC TV camera got struck by a shot from Thomas Bjorn and during the second round radio reporter Alistair Bruce-Ball was in the firing line.

Bruce-Ball was hit, fortunately on the headphones, by a wayward tee shot from Brandt Snedeker at the 13th.