The Summer Of 76 was a neat time.
A young Tampa Tribune sports writer was just getting a promotion to the FSU beat and would rise to golf editor.
The Golf Channel just produced a really great piece entitled The Summer Of 76. If you missed it, watch it when they replay it.
Johnny Miller was at the absolute top of his game and the golf-u-mentary does a great job of recapturing the culture and mood of those days.
It was at a baked-out Royal Birkdale that the world got its first glimpse of a 19-year-old phenom from Spain named Seve Ballesteros.
A magnificent duel took place for three days, Seve held the third round lead but then Miller got it in high gear in the fourth round and waltzed to the Open Championship. It was his second and last major and his game would retreat from that point on.
Seve, however, was on the rise and would become the face of the European Tour, which was fledgling in those days.
The Golf Channel did a great job with this one. The music was great, they have Peter Frampton and K.C. (front man for the Sunshine Band). They even dug up the guy who gave us Disco Duck.
Life was so much simpler back then, or so it now seems.
We would go on to spend a lot of time with Seve over the years on practices ranges and clubhouses. He was always fun, spirited, interesting and had that great accent. Miss him to this day.
Those were the best of times.
The PGA Tour was still a small-dollar circuit and golf was just getting some traction.
Yeah, the Summer Of 76.
Great times, great memories and this documentary, a must-see piece.
