Those black bears that lollygagged around the course during parts of the U.S. Senior Open - otherwise known as the golf tournament of Depends diapers and bad driving - deserve to be treated to steak dinners by the irrelevant geezer golfers in the field.

If it wasn’t for those black bears - particularly the bold one from Friday who shared both the attention whore syndrome and likely the intelligence of Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo - the Senior Open never would have gotten any SportsCenter time. Those bears completely saved the tournament from itself. They made everyone forget they were watching a bunch of golfers who nobody ever cared about, golfers who aren’t even any good now that they are playing on the worst “pro” golf tour in the world.

If you didn’t know better, you might think the United States Golf Association brought in the black bears to give people something to be interested in. Those bears had a sense of theater, an appreciation for what it takes to put on a good show. They were made for TV performers.

Which is much more than you can say for the actual golfers. Eduardo Romero won despite shooting a 3-over 73 in the final round. Romero gained two shots when he bogeyed a hole. That’s because Fred Funk was triple bogeying another one. Wow, what scintillating shot making.

Forget that old “These guys are good!” slogan from the PGA Tour. The Champions Tour needs to break out with a “Hey, these guys need a nap. Give them a break!” advertising campaign.

At least, the USGA still calls them what they are: Seniors, old guys who shouldn’t be on the sporting stage any more. How could you not help but root for those bears?

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