Henrik Stenson Finally Looks Ready to Arrive, and Golf Fans Should Be Excited

In the Grand Slam scheme of things, as it relates to casual sports fans, male golfers from Sweden have been about as impactful as giant slalom skiers from Bahrain.

Plenty of sand, lots of grit, but no trophies to show for it.

Bear with us for a minute on the silly simile.

It’s time for Henrik Stenson to end the skein, and not just because he melded the analogy by turning up for the frigid third round of the 145th Open Championship on Saturday at Royal Troon with a knit ski cap on his head.

“See you on the slopes,” he cracked as he headed to the range to warm up.

Given a reason, fans everywhere will warm up to Stenson in a heartbeat if he can hold off Phil Mickelson and company on Sunday to finally hoist a major trophy.

Three years after the under-appreciated Swede finished second to Mickelson in the Open at Muirfield, he looks like an avalanche sliding downhill, picking up momentum and destined to obliterate everything in his path. 

“As of now, I would pretty much think it’s a battle of Phil and myself,” Stenson told the Golf Channel. “I know he never backs down and he’s one of the best players to play the game. I’m just going to try my hardest to keep him behind.”

What lies ahead could be a treat for fans who don’t know much about the Swedish veteran, who is possibly the wittiest man on the humor-starved PGA and European tours.

Hitting the finish line first would rocket Stenson to heights he can handle, and the payoff would be mutual for fans. In a stultifying game that can leave the most ardent aficionados in a stupor, Stenson is a breath of fresh Arctic air. 

All he has to do is outrun Lefty, the most popular player in the game not named Tiger Woods. Stenson, 40, shot a three-under 68 in the third round to finish 12 under. The score was good for a one-shot lead over Mickelson, with whom Stenson will play for the second day in succession on Sunday.

The data suggest his deliverance is nigh. Stenson is the lone player in the field to have posted a score in the 60s in each of the first three rounds, and he matched the best score of the day on Saturday. But holding off Mickelson, a five-time major winner, will be a huge challenge.

He surged past Mickelson with a round that included five birdies, rarely cracking a smile and grimly rifling his trademark 3-wood around Royal Troon like he was firing bullets. If fans only knew what was behind his imperturbable veneer.

Stenson is a bundle of mixed messages, at least to those who don’t know him. Behind his trademark wraparound sunglasses, Stenson looks as stoic as the Terminator, foreign accent included. His nickname, Ice Man, seems apt, but it’s a complete miscasting.

His longtime swing coach, Pete Cowen, all but laughs when he hears the moniker. Under that placid exterior beats the heart of a guy barely in control at times.

“Inside, he’s a volcano,” Cowen said in 2013.

For those who have taken the time to know him, Stenson generates more laughs than any elite player in the global game. He might not have won a major, but he’s achieved the career Grand Slam in the media center: interesting, insightful, sarcastic and self-deprecating.

If Swedes are, by reputation, characterized as staid and colorless, then Stenson is a pink Volvo with spinner rims. The one-liners, at times, come from out of nowhere.

In 2014, Stenson turned up at Doral in Miami, a few days after his wife gave birth to the couple’s second child, who was born in Orlando. After accepting the congratulations, Stenson cracked to an American writer: “I’m not crazy about having a Yank in the family.”

Twenty months ago, shortly before he won the European Tour’s lucrative Race to Dubai finale for the second year in succession, Stenson’s wife gave birth to another child, the couple’s third. As delicately as possible, I asked Stenson if they were planning any more children.

“Yes, I haven't done any official snip‑snips as of now…” he said, drawing huge laughs. 

For the rest of the week, every time I ran into Stenson, he pressed his index and middle fingers together like a pair of scissors, then broke out laughing. 

In a game that takes itself far too seriously, having Stenson as the Champion Golfer of the Year, the title bestowed on the winner at the Open, would be a welcome development.

He has plenty of work left. Americans have won the last six Opens staged at Troon. Three years ago, Mickelson held off runner-up Stenson just up the road at Muirfield to win the Open.

Stenson has made a habit of finishing second often lately, too. Since his win at the Dubai event in late 2014, his record included seven second-place finishes before he broke through to win on the European Tour on June 26.

That said, Stenson has climbed as high as second in the world ranking, the best position of any Swedish male. He currently ranks sixth. In a career that includes a win at the Players Championship, the so-called fifth major, Stenson has amassed nine top-10 finishes in the Grand Slam events—including a trio of top-three performances at the Open Championship.

While his short game is average, the sound of the ball coming off Stenson’s club sounds like a bullet hitting the side of a bus—a sharp, crisp metallic clang that is distinctive even in his galaxy of world-class players. 

“There are probably four or five players in the world who can win on ball-striking alone, and he is one of them,” Cowen said in 2013. 

A snippet of proof: Stenson played the back nine on Saturday in two under, while the rest of the field was a combined 201 over. In fact, he’s broken par on the upwind, blustery back nine in all three rounds.

“I thought it was just a wee breeze,” he cracked to the largely Scottish media afterward.

It ought to be an interesting duel between Stenson and Mickelson, two 40-something players who left youngsters like Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth and Jason Day in the dust.

Mickelson is a right-hander who plays as a lefty. Stenson is a left-hander who plays as a righty. They have the same club manufacturer. Mickelson’s paternal side of the family hails from Sweden. They’ve played as foes in multiple Ryder Cups.

While Stenson has never before slept on the 54-hole lead at a major, his 201 total is the lowest in the nine Opens staged at Troon. 

Considering Mickelson’s global accomplishments—including 42 wins on the PGA Tour—Stenson knows he’ll play the role of the dragon slayer on Sunday.

“Maybe I could have a few more Europeans giving me a push tomorrow, if we want to get the atmosphere of Ryder Cup going,” Stenson said at the post-round press conference.

Stenson, who has won the seasonal points crowns on both major tours, is poised for a crowning achievement.

“Yeah, it would be massive,” he told reporters after the round. “This is the one thing I'm looking for. It would be the icing on the cake. ... If I give myself a 50-50 [chance], it might happen, it might not happen.”

Then he got that familiar glint in his eye. 

“The sun will come up on Monday, anyway, hopefully,” he smirked. “Maybe not in Scotland, but in other parts of the world.”

Steve Elling covers golf for Bleacher Report. You can follow him at @EllingYelling. All quotes are firsthand unless otherwise noted.