ST. ANDREWS, Scotland — The bespectacled, white-haired journalist from The Surrey Advertiser, on hand to chronicle his 37th consecutive British Open, cocked his head and asked Jordan Spieth a question that cut through the crosswinds during the tournament as deftly as did one of Spieth’s crisp iron shots on the Old Course:
When did golf become so youthful?
Down the stretch of Monday’s finale, the usual cast of leading men was nowhere to be seen. Tiger Woods, a 14-time major winner, failed to make the cut. Phil Mickelson, who has not won since the 2013 British Open, teed off early and put together a quiet three-under-par 69 to finish tied for 20th, eight strokes back.