Ben Curtis was virtually unknown before he won the 2003 British Open. Since then, he has been virtually forgotten.
However, the 31-year-old American is determined to show that he is no one-hit wonder, proving himself over the last six months of 2008 with a number of top-10 finishes.
Though he did not win any big events, he finished tied for seventh at the 2008 Open and runner-up at the PGA Championship. He ended the year with more than $2.6 million in winnings for 17th place on the PGA Tour money list.
In an interview with news agency Reuters, Curtis said he is hoping 2009 will be the year he establishes himself as one of the world’s elite golfers. He said:
“If I could always play like that, like the last six months of the year, I couldn’t wish for more. Every week I was playing well. Even if I missed the cut, it was close to being really good. My form was great.â€
For now, though, Curtis’ biggest achievement was his Open triumph at Royal St Georges, where, as a 300-1 outsider and playing in his first major, he fought back Fijian Vijay Singh and Denmark’s Thomas Bjorn for a one-stroke victory.
But it hasn’t been a great ride since that career-defining triumph more than five years ago. He has not really challenged that much in majors until last year and most pundits wrote off his win as a fluke.
Curtis is eager to show that he can battle it out with the top players on a regular basis. And if he continues the kind of form he has shown since July, he has a good chance of fulfilling his immense potential.
