The clouds loomed and the wind blew. The rain fell down and the scores shot up. The grass wasn’t a beautiful shade of green and the TV telecast seldom could follow the ball. And on top of it all, golf’s biggest name was missing. What were we to expect? It was supposed to be lackluster and un-exciting, like a French Open without Rafael Nadal, the NBA Finals with KG and Kobe riding the bench, like a Major without Tiger Woods.

Oh, wait. It was a Major without Tiger Woods.

The inevitable happened. We had to experience this year’s British Open without Tiger. A Major without the game’s single most dominating force, most recognizable face and fiercest competitor. Every analyst from one coast to the next was saying that the third Major of the year just wouldn’t be the same without Woods in the field.

But you know what? It didn’t stink. It actually turned out great. In fact, I enjoyed the Open just as much as a Major with Tiger because of one player and one storyline that made the weekend exciting and memorable: Greg Norman.

The 53-year-old shark plays more tennis these days than golf. He was all but done with full-time competition nearly 10 years ago. Yet he showed up to Royal Birkdale with a lifetime exemption to play and nothing to lose but a few golf balls.

And he almost won the whole darn thing.

It was great to see Norman in the hunt the whole tournament. The opening two rounds brought reactions ranging from shock (“Really? Greg Norman on the first page of the leaderboard?”) to pleasantly surprised (“All right! Greg Norman is winning!”) to outright skepticism (“That won’t last; that’s just one of those guys who plays well one day and will be out of it tomorrow”).

We had to wait until after the first-round hullabaloo to see who started separating themselves from the pack. We thought Adam Scott, ranked No. 3 in the world, would continue to play well into the weekend. We thought Rocco Mediate would pick up where he left off at the U.S. Open. We thought Greg Norman might fall off the leaderboard. We thought this tournament was going to get lower ratings than Sunday morning cartoons.

Boy, did we think wrong.

Norman had a smile on his face throughout the whole weekend and was relaxed and jovial. He chatted with his playing partners. He even helped up a cameraman who fell down a hill trying to film him. While the big names and likely contenders were folding, Norman played steady and was at the top the entire time.

And I don’t even feel sorry for him that he lost the two-shot lead he had going into Sunday. I honestly didn’t expect him to hold on. Four days of golf in treacherous conditions, walking 72 holes and bearing Britain’s brutal winds, is not easy for a 53-year-old. Though I was disappointed he didn’t shoot a little better on Sunday, he gave an honest effort and it was enjoyable to watch.

So sure, he didn’t win it all. But I don’t like reading that people are putting this blown lead right up there with his other blown leads in Majors. Those are a thing of the past and this time is different.

Norman was on no one’s radar before the tournament and I’m sure few saw him even making the cut. I’m absolutely positive if you asked him on the first tee on Thursday where he thought he’d finish, the answer would not have been third place. He played above expectations and held his form for nearly the entire tournament. We can’t say the same about Phil Mickleson, Ernie Els or Sergio Garcia, can we?

It was fun to wake up at 6 a.m. Pacific Standard Time on Saturday and Sunday and see Norman near the lead. I was rooting for his shots to hit the fairway, for his putts to go in. I was rooting for golfers close to him to blow up, fold, choke, make triple-bogey — whatever it took to leave Norman on top.

But Padraig Harrington played great the whole weekend and like a true champion on the final day. I won’t discredit his championship because it was very well deserved and hard-earned. But when people think back to this Open or see it on the highlight reel, I can guarantee the first thing that will pop into their heads will be Norman and his incredible run.

True, he didn’t have quite enough to finish on Sunday. But hey, that’s okay. He showed the world that he can still play and injected a bit of uncertainty back into golf. He followed Rocco Mediate’s old-guy-going-for-the-championship-against-young-guns script and made it his own. He had golf fans all over the world watching and believing that he could really pull it off.

In short, Greg Norman made this year’s British Open. I will forever remember watching him give the tournament some life and some “No way!” moments. I will also remember forgetting about Tiger Woods for four days, while watching Norman come so close to becoming golf’s oldest Major Championship winner.

Speaking of Tiger, do you think his knee will be ready for the PGA?

But wait — here might be an even bigger question out there.

With a third place finish, Norman earned a spot in next year’s Masters. Do you think he’ll show up?

Danny Belch is realizing that golf without Tiger can be exciting, too. Send him your thoughts at dbelch1@stanford.edu.