You could sense this was coming early Saturday at the 146th Open Championship.
You could sense a really, really low number was out there to be had at Royal Birkdale.
The links course had its shields down after hammering the field on Friday.
The defenses were gone, the drawbridge was down, inviting the hoards to plunder.
Birdies were there for the taking, eagle possibilities also.
A links course with softer greens and no wind playing around 7,000 yards is an open invitation to low scoring when the best players in the world are on the property, as they were on moving day.
Branden Grace was the best of them.
After 442 major championships, there was finally a 62, courtesy of a near-perfect performance by Grace. We say “near perfect” because the South African did not birdie the easiest hole on the golf course — the short par five 15th.
When he replays this round, he will credit a totally hot putter for the magical number. He got his day started with a birdie from 15 feet at the first then a 30-foot bomb at the fourth. He drove the short par four fifth, as many did on Saturday, two-putted for birdie there. At eight a 25-footer went down then a tricky 12-footer with a big left-to-right break gave him 29 going out.
Grace didn’t make another birdie until 14 and another 30-footer found the hole there. He got to seven-under with a another long one at 16. He was the eye-balling the gettable par five 17th.
He parked a perfect drive, about 315 then a laser-guided iron from 239 went straight over the flag, leaving him about 20 feet for eagle. “I was disappointed not to make that,” he would say later of that eagle attempt. But he got a simple tap-in to land himself at eight-under. With the pressure of 62 looming over him, he hit a nice drive at 18 that found the light rough on the right side of the hole, leaving him a great angle and only 165 yards for his second. He didn’t make it easy on himself. He caught a flyer that went over the green onto the back fringe, leaving himself a pretty testy 80-some feet to two-putt for history.
Grace handled it like he was in a Sunday game back at the Bear’s Club in Jupiter, where he’s a member. His approach nestled just three short feet and he calmly finished it off for 62.
Pure history.
Johnny Miller lamented that the R&A set the course up easy. Maybe they did. Before the Jordan Spieth- Matt Kuchar final twosome could finish there were five 66s, four 65s and a 64 by Dustin Johnson, who could have easily shot his own 62. D.J. missed at least two short putts and didn’t birdie the par five 17th.
“It was a special day,” Grace said after his amazing performance, an understatement for sure. He claimed he was oblivious to the record. “I had no idea. I was just trying to finish the day without a bogey.”
He did that and more.
He did what none of the greatest players in the history of the game could not do.
Sixty-two!
A round for the ages at golf’s oldest championship.
Great stuff.
