Oldest Major Gets More Youth

Japanese phenom Ryo Ishikawa, still just 17 years old, played his way into the oldest major, the British Open, on Sunday by winning on the Japan Tour.

Ishikawa's berth in the Open Championship was secured with a birdie putt on the final hole at the Mizuno Open. That putt locked down the win, his third on the Japan Tour. His first came at the age of 15.

When the Open is over, Ishikawa will have played in three of the four majors in 2009. He missed the cut at The Masters but will also play the PGA Championship via special invitation from the PGA of America.

But Ishikawa won't be the youngest golfer in the field at the 2009 British Open. That distinction goes to 16-year-old Italian Matteo Manassero, who earlier this month won the British Amateur Championship and its automatic qualification into the Open.

Manassero will be the second-youngest player to play a British Open. The youngest was Young Tom Morris, who was just 14 years old when he first played the Open in 1865.

But then, in 1865 there were only 12 golfers in the field. The accomplishments of Ishikawa and Manassero are far more significant. (Young Tom Morris shot 60-57 in the first two rounds at the 12-hole Prestwick before withdrawing. But he would go on to win four Open Championships.)