Watching Winners Collapse

I watched a little more sports than usual today and saw three different people (or teams) who could have a sporting event collapse.

First it was the World Cup match between Italy and New Zealand.  Italy is a soccer superpower and New Zealand doesn't even have a full-time league in the entire country.  In one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history New Zealand battled to a 1-1 tie despite being constantly outmatched on the pitch.  Good on 'em, mate.

Then, on to NASCAR where an Australian, Marcos Ambrose, was leading the race on the road course in Sonoma, and with just a few laps to go, things went very wrong:

Jimmie Johnson scratched another item off his bucket list -- but not without unintended help from Marcos Ambrose.

Johnson inherited the lead in Sunday's Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway when Ambrose failed to keep up with the pace car during the final caution of the 110-lap race and pulled away from Robby Gordon in the final five laps to earn the first road-course victory of his career.

Ambrose had opened a lead of more than two seconds over Johnson when Brad Keselowski spun and stalled in Turn 7 to bring out the seventh caution on Lap 103. Attempting to save fuel during the caution laps, Ambrose lost power and slowed, and his No. 47 Toyota failed to refire.

Ambrose's engine finally started, but by then, the first six cars in the running order had passed him. Consequently, Ambrose restarted seventh with five laps left and was able to recover one position before the finish.

That would have been Ambrose's first Sprint Cup win and probably the best chance he'll have all year, or at least until the next road course race in Watkins Glen. I can't even imagine the disappointment he must feel tonight as he flies home.

But that wasn't even the biggest collapse of the day. That honor clearly goes to Dustin Johnson who started the day -6 at the US Open at Pebble Beach, three shots ahead of the field. Before the 18 hole massacre was over Johnson had lost 11 shots to par and finished a distant fifth. In one disastrous 4 hole stretch he lost seven shots.  For a brief time he played like me.

Congrats to the winners today, and better luck next time to those who had a bad day.