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| | Tuesday, December 14 Games of the Year | |||||
| You've voted for the best games in football, basketball and baseball. But those weren't the only great games taking place in the past year. Here are few more we dug up and we want you to tell us which was the best.
Check out a description of each event and let us know which you feel is the best. After you vote, you will be sent to the next poll.
The finish was the one nearly everyone wanted -- The Kid and The Intimidator going bumper-to-bumper at the Daytona 500. And by using the type of daring moves Earnhardt has made so many times, Jeff Gordon won NASCAR's premier event in one of the classic finishes in the 41 years of racing at Daytona International Speedway. Gordon beat Dale Earnhardt by a little more than two car lengths for his second Daytona 500 win in three years. "Trying to keep him behind me is one of the hardest things I've ever done at Daytona," Gordon said. U.S. Open Golf Round 4 Payne Stewart wins with putt on 18th hole (6/20/99): Pinehurst No. 2 became the stage for one of the tightest duels of the year as Payne Stewart and Phil Mickelson battled for the national championship, with Tiger Woods and Vijay Singh also in the mix. Mickelson grabbed a one-shot lead on No. 15 before Stewart made a huge par-saving putt on No. 16 to catch him. Stewart then birdied No. 17 for the lead, then found trouble with his drive on No. 18. Forced to lay up, Stewart faced a 15-footer for par and the championship. He drained it for the longest winning putt on the 72nd hole in Open history. USA over China in Women's World Cup. USA wins on penalty kicks (7/10/99): Both teams were expected to meet in the final for several weeks, and when they did, 90,185 fans (a world record for a women's sporting event) watched the U.S. women win their second Women's World Cup title. After two scoreless halves that featured a lot of defensive play, China nearly ended the game in the first 10-minute overtime period, but U.S. midfielder Kristine Lilly headed the ball off the goal line to force the shootout. Both teams' penalty kicks were flawless until U.S. goalkeeper Briana Scurry saved China's third shot. Moments later, U.S. defender Brandi Chastain, who had been cut from the team in 1995, slotted the winning shot on the U.S. team's fifth attempt. The Americans' victory was perhaps best captured when Chastain ripped off her jersey and waved it above her head as she dropped to her knees and was surrounded by her teammates. British Open Golf Round 4 Paul Lawrie wins in 3-way playoff while Jean Van de Velde chokes (7/19/99): Paul Lawrie won, but Jean Van de Velde will forever be remembered for the 1999 British Open. Van de Velde took a three-shot lead to the 72nd hole, but a series of poor decisions led to his ball in the rough, the water and the bunker on his way to a triple-bogey. His poor play led to a four-hole playoff with Lawrie and Justin Leonard, won by Lawrie with a pair of birdies. Lawrie had begun the day 10 strokes back, marking the biggest comeback in Open history. U.S. Open Women's Semi-Finals Hingis over Venus Williams and Serena Williams over Davenport (9/10/99): Richard Williams, the father of Venus and Serena, had been predicting a Williams-Williams final in the weeks leading up to the 1999 U.S. Open -- it would have been the first all-sister Grand Slam championship since 1884, when Maud Watson beat her sister Lilian in three sets at Wimbledon. But Martina Hingis wasn't thrilled with the idea. "I just didn't want that finals to happen," Hingis admitted later. "Williams-Williams." And she ensured it wouldn't, beating Venus Williams 6-1, 4-6, 6-3 in the semifinals. Serena, who went on to win her first Grand Slam title, beat Lindsay Davenport 6-4, 1-6, 6-4. USA over Europe in Ryder Cup Sunday Singles matches and a big USA comeback (9/26/99): Hopes of returning the Ryder Cup to the United States were slim at best as the Sunday singles matches rolled around. Down 10-6 after two days of team play, the Americans came out hot, winning the first six matches. But the Europeans needed just four points for the win and appeared to have it sewn up until Justin Leonard rallied from 4-down after 12 holes with Jose Maria Olazabal, making a 40-footer for birdie on No. 17 to put the Americans over the top for the 14½-13½ win to complete the biggest comeback in Ryder Cup history. | ALSO SEE Poll: Games of the Year Poll: NBA Game of the Year Poll: College basketball Game of the Year Poll: College football Game of the Year Poll: Baseball Game of the Year Poll: Wide World of Sports Athlete of the Year | |||||
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