Freak Luck Is A Strange Thing

In the past Argentina has been plagued by inflation, which reached 2,000 percent in 1984. By 1989 inflation had reached 5,000 percent making the nation's currency almost worthless. Imagine being in a golf tournament and the purse was $1,000,000 when you started and $10,000 when you finished?

However, recently things got much better in Argentina. The government created the nuevo peso Argentino (new Argentine peso) bringing inflation under control, and Angel Cabrera won the U.S. Open waddling home with 1,260,000 Nuevo Pesos Argentinos and the entire country shouted Ay! Caramba.

Who would have believed it? The Duck beat the Tiger, but it happened and I, as a bit of a duck myself, couldn’t be happier. Fire up another Winston, hand me that second helping of mashed potatoes, and let’s play golf. Angel Cabrera is the 2007 U.S. Open Champion. Chips and salsa one under par on Sunday, abs of steel two over. Somewhere Billy Casper is laughing, jiggling of course, but still laughing.

Cabrera didn’t win it, Tiger lost it, you say? Pour me another shot of Tequila while I disagree. He and Tiger may play a hundred times in the future and Tiger may win a hundred out of a hundred, but on those four days Angel Cabrera was the best golfer was the world, not Tiger Wood, not Jim Furyk or anybody else. It’s time to realize that your favorite nine and seven football team is not a better team than that. You are what you are. Could the 1980 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team beat those commie Russian bastards again? It doesn’t matter; they have their Gold Medal just like Cabrera has his name on the trophy and 1,260,000 of Nuevo Pesos Argentinos in the bank.

As Johnny Miller waited for Furyk and then Tiger to make their moves, Angel Cabrera and his caddie sat nervously in the locker room waiting. "I was definitely feeling nervous, but I assumed that this is the same sensation everybody was having in my place," said Cabrera through an interpreter. And, it was at that very moment that I realized that had Cabrera and his caddie switched bodies perhaps Angel would be getting a little more respect. But who cares? Angel Cabrera is Lyle Lovett marrying Julia Roberts, and who wouldn’t trade their abs for that?

On 361 days this year Tiger will be the best golfer in the world, but not at the 107th U.S. Open. Is the mystique gone, or just back in Florida thinking about baby Sam that would arrive shortly? Pack away your red shirt and grab your passport for the British Open next month. Phil Mickelson will be there along with Retief, Furyk, Padraig, Ernie and Vijay, but look out for that chubby guy sitting in the smoking section.

As Rocky Balboa once said, “Freak luck is a strange thing,” so the next time you tee it up with your buddy that has beat you like a red-headed step child once a week for the last year, remember Rocky Balboa and Lyle Lovett and know that all things are possible. You are the U.S. A. Hockey Team, David with a slingshot, and yes, Angel Cabrera. So, light up that Winston, and take one more trip through the buffet line because tomorrow you could win the club championship.

Granted, it would help if you could hit the ball 390 yards like Angel Cabrera, the 2007 U.S. Open Champion.