None in the crowd of roughly 10,000 suspected that when Bobby Locke of South Africa tapped in for a two-shot victory and a record score in the British Open, he would be the last player from outside the United States to hoist the claret jug at Royal Troon.That was in 1950.Since then, there have been six Opens on the Ayrshire links in Scotland, and six American winners.Surprising?It was to Phil Mickelson, who cupped his hand under his chin and stared in deep thought as he went down the list of champions at Royal Troon -- Arnold Palmer and Tom Weiskopf, Tom Watson and Mark Calcavecchia, Justin Leonard and Todd Hamilton. The list complete, Mickelson came to a predictable conclusion.I would be shocked if anyone other than an American won this year, Lefty said with a laugh. Theres something to those trends.Really, its nothing more than a coincidence. The club motto at Royal Troon translates to as much by skill as by strength, which goes against the American style of power golf that is all about hitting it high and far and firing at flags.I wouldnt say its more Americanized. Birkdale has probably a little of that, Jim Furyk said. We had a hell of a run there starting in the mid-90s (10 victories by Americans in 12 years). I think its just one of those things that happens.Odds are it can happen again.Royal Troon has received enough rain this spring -- with more in the forecast during the Open -- that it likely will play substantially softer, meaning more targets and less bounces that define the subtlety of links golf.As for the players?Dustin Johnson and a dozen other Americans are among the top 25 in the world. The attention has shifted away from Jordan Spieth, who a year ago came within one shot of a playoff in his quest for the Grand Slam, to the 32-year-old Johnson, who is just now starting to deliver on his awesome potential.Johnson broke through for his first major after four close calls, beating Oakmont and the USGA to win the U.S. Open by three shots. After a week off to celebrate, he chased down world No. 1 Jason Day on the back nine at Firestone to win a World Golf Championship. Johnson was the 36-hole leader at St. Andrews a year ago. He contended in the final round at Royal St. Georges in 2011 until a 2-iron that sailed out-of-bounds. He can handle links golf.This will be his first time seeing Royal Troon, and he was intrigued about the gentle start -- three par 4s under 400 yards -- and the tough finish.Troon is a tale of two nines. The wind is helping on the shorter outward nine holes. This is where players score, and it prompted Colin Montgomerie to say that if youre not under par after nine holes at Troon, you may as well go to the clubhouse at Prestwick and have lunch. Prestwick, the first home of the British Open, is next to Troon.The inward nine turns back into the wind and is relentless with tight fairways and prickly gorse bushes.Probably the toughest finishing stretch, Paul Casey of England said. Carnoustie is tough, I think Troon is a better set of finishing holes.Such is the stage for the 145th Open Championship, where the list of favorites keeps getting longer.Spieth started the year at No. 1, has won twice and nearly won the Masters, and already is down to No. 3. Day remains No. 1 after the PGA champion added The Players Championship, a World Golf Championship and the Arnold Palmer Invitational to his trophy collection.Of those 13 Americans in the top 25, seven have yet to win a major, which has a small piece historical relevance at Troon. Four of the last Open champions had never won a major until their names were on the claret jug (and they never won another).Branden Grace of South Africa was stunned to learn it had been 66 years since someone outside the United States had won the claret jug at Royal Troon.Not to be funny, but hopefully an international player can win it this year, he said.Then he was told the last Royal Troon champion was a fellow South African.Now theres some motivation, Grace said. Might have to do some history searching myself.Heres one clue: Locke was a great putter.Thats what had been holding back Johnson, a good putter who just had not seen many disappear into the cup until recently. Thats what makes Spieth and Day so dangerous. And that could decide the fortunes of Rory McIlroy, who won the claret jug at Royal Liverpool in 2014 and missed out on his title defense at St. Andrews after injuring his ankle playing soccer.But it starts with Johnson, who will try to become only the seventh player in the last century to the U.S. Open and British Open in the same summer.Ive thought for a couple years ... thats hes the most talented player there is in golf, former Open champion David Duval said. He has that weapon that is just basically unbeatable -- driving the golf ball -- and as hes improved his wedges ... that almost becomes unbeatable.And at Royal Troon, it doesnt hurt that hes an American.I think theres a good chance, Casey said, that American streak continues. Viktor Arvidsson Jersey . Burris threw two TD passes, including a key 15-yard fourth-quarter strike to Bakari Grant that effectively countered a Toronto comeback bid and led Hamilton to a 33-19 victory. 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The 31-year-old Spain midfielder hasnt played since Madrid lost in the Copa del Rey final to Atletico Madrid in May due to back and foot injuries. On December 5, the Supreme Court of India will reconvene to address the long-standing impasse between the BCCI and the Lodha Committee. Since July 18, when it approved a majority of the recommendations proposed by the Lodha Committee for best practices in the BCCI and its state associations, the court has directed the Indian board to implement them. The BCCI, though, has steadily resisted implementing most of the recommendations.Despite finding substance in the Lodha Committees claim of the BCCIs intransigence, the court opted to exercise patience. It reserved its order on superseding the BCCIs office bearers with a panel of administrators, as was recommended by the committee in September.Instead, the court gave the BCCI time to prove it would convince the states to adopt the approved recommendations in total. But at three meetings conducted by the BCCI since October, including two special general meetings (SGMs), the state associations remained steadfast in their defiance of certain recommendations.Consequently, the Lodha Committee, in its latest status report, asked the court for the second time to remove all ineligible office bearers at the BCCI and state levels, and to appoint an observer to oversee the boards business deals.Click here for the key points of the case till October. The following is a synopsis of the hearings since then, and the key questions before the court when it reconvenes on Monday.What did the court state in its previous order?On October 21, the court passed an interim order asking the BCCI to cease and desist from disbursing funds to state associations until the association gave a written resolution that it would adopt all the recommendations approved by the court.The court also asked BCCI president Anurag Thakur and secretary Ajay Shirke to meet the Lodha committee within two weeks from the date of that order and submit an affidavit of compliance, elaborating on the recommendations already implemented by the BCCI and what it had done to persuade the state associations to adopt the remaining recommendations.Have the states submitted written undertakings? Only the Hyderabad Cricket Association submitted an undertaking to the Lodha Committee, saying it would comply with the July 18 court order without any reservations.What about Thakur and Shirkes affidavit of compliance?On November 5, Thakur submitted a report to the committee stating that 30 state associations had rejected adopting the recommendations in total, and instead had wanted to vote for and against each one at the boards SGM on October 1. Thakur said he was rendered incapable despite being armed with the court order and could not force the recommendations on the members who said any amendment to the BCCI constitution required a three-fourth majority by vote.On October 15, at an informal meeting of the board, Shirke reminded the members that not complying with the court order would have consequences. According to Thakur, the members still stuck to the decision taken at the October 1 SGM. At its latest meeting, on December 2, the BCCI said the members had reiterated their stance of not adopting the recommendations in total, and woould wait for the courts observations on December 5.ddddddddddddWhat were the immediate consequences for the BCCI and the state associations? Having understood the BCCI would not adhere to the court order, the Lodha Committee played hardball as well. It did not appoint an auditor to oversee BCCI contracts, as directed by the court on October 21, or specify the threshold limit for various contractual agreements entered into by the board, thereby limiting its operational freedom. The court had said that any contracts exceeding the threshold limit would need to be approved by the committee.The board, therefore, was unable to release funds to the states ahead of the ongoing home Test series against England. It had to approach the court, which said INR 58.66 lakh (USD 86,000 approx) could be disbursed to each of the five state associations hosting the England series.While the BCCI has been defiant in public, some of its senior office bearers and officials are worried the image of the board has taken a hit, especially after the tender for IPL broadcasting and media rights for the next cycle starting in 2018 was postponed indefinitely because the committee had not appointed an auditor or specified a threshold limit. The IPL rights bids were to be opened on October 25.What has the Lodha Committee said in its latest status report?On November 18, the committee submitted its third status report on the BCCIs response to the July 18 court order. It said that the office bearers of both the BCCI and the states who fall foul of the eligibility norms - as per the recommendations - should be removed with immediate effect. The committee also suggested that GK Pillai, the former home secretary in the federal government, be appointed an observer of the BCCI and that he oversee the financial transactions of the board.Is there anything else that the court needs to decide on? There is one other issue, concerning Thakurs alleged request to the ICC for a letter questioning whether the appointment of a comptroller and auditor general official on the proposed Apex Council amounted to government interference in the BCCI. The ICC does not permit government interference in member boards, and members can be suspended if such interference is allowed. In such a scenario, the BCCI might have used the threat of Indias suspension by the ICC as valid grounds to strike down that particular recommendation.ICC chief executive David Richardson had said Thakur had wanted such a letter. Richardson said Thakur had verbally asked for a letter and ICC chairman Shashank Manohar turned down the request, saying the BCCI needed to put it down in writing first. Thakur submitted an affidavit on October 17 denying the charge.In its October 21 order, the court said prima facie that it was clear Thakur had asked Manohar for a letter, a matter of serious concern. It asked the Lodha Committee to write to Manohar asking for an affidavit to set the record straight. On December 5, the committee will reveal the contents of the affidavit in court. Wholesale NFL Womens Jerseys China Womens NFL Jerseys Nike NFL Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys Outlet Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Wholesale NFL White Jerseys Discount Jerseys ' ' '