Cameron Smith wins the Open

Cameron Smith overcame Cameron Young and Rory McElroy in an exciting finish to become the winner of the 150th British Open. This outcome is not a total surprise since Cameron Smith had already won the Players Championship this year. He has become one of the best putters in the world. Rory McElroy had control of the tournament for most of the weekend, but his problem was putting. He just couldn’t make enough birdies to give himself a cushion down the stretch. I was cheering for him to break his eight-year drought in the majors. If he continues to play as well next year, he’s going to win one, and I bet he's working on his putting in the meantime. Cameron Young hung in there the entire day and sunk an eagle on the 18th hole to finish one stroke short of a tie. Cameron Smith's score of 20-under par tied the record for the lowest winning score in a major championship. This was not surprising given the unusual weather pattern last week in Scotland. There was very little rain or wind, which almost never happens at the British Open.

For the first time in a long while, the Phillies might have exciting September baseball to play. Right now, they’re in the thick of the wild card chase in the National League because of the expanded playoff field. The trade deadline is Aug. 2 this year. I think the biggest need for the Phillies team is a new fourth starting pitcher since Zach Eflin has had chronic knee injuries for the last two years. They also need Nick Castellanos to start playing like he was at the very beginning of the season, especially because nobody knows whether Bryce Harper will be able to come back from his thumb injury and be effective.