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Johnny Miller remained reasonably humble during the NBC Sports telecast Sunday, when Henrik Stenson joined him as the only other player to shoot a 63 in a winning effort in the final round of a major golf tournament.

Rather than focus on Miller's 63 in the 1973 U.S. Open, NBC compared Stenson's battle with Phil Mickelson to the legendary Tom Watson-Jack Nicklaus duel in the 1977 British Open.

So where does Stenson's round rank in golf history? Right below Miller's.

The comparison is tricky, because the circumstances were so different. Stenson gets extra credit for having to fend off Mickelson, who shot a 65 and continually applied pressure as they played together in the last twosome at Royal Troon in Scotland. In contrast, Miller started his round several groups ahead of the leaders.

What distinguishes Miller's performance, though, is that "63" was unheard of in a U.S. Open, especially that day at Oakmont Country Club in Pennsylvania. Mickelson's 65 works against Stenson's case, in a sense. The field in Scotland also produced a 67, three 68s and seven 69s on Sunday. At Oakmont, only two other players broke 70 on the last day.

Anyone's shooting a 63 is just not supposed to happen in a U.S. Open. To their credit, British Open administrators allow the conditions to dictate the scoring, not being embarrassed by low numbers. If the absence of adverse weather makes the course more playable, they're good with that.

Nothing about Stenson's round should be devalued, except in comparison to Miller's effort. On a course where Mickelson shot a 63 in the first round and the winning total was 20 under par, Stenson's 63 is historic and exceptional — just not the best ever in a major.

The other phenomenon in play at Royal Troon was how the golf gods seemingly protected "63" as the gold standard in a major. Mickelson could have a posted a 62 on Thursday, but he lipped out a birdie putt on No. 18. Stenson may have topped Miller if not for barely missing a birdie effort on No. 17. He followed with a birdie on No. 18 that he didn't need to win the tournament, but he made it to get into the conversation with Miller's 63, historically speaking.

Stenson's round deserves that high level of regard, but not the No. 1 ranking.

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