Veterans fill 2021 sports year with memorable moments

Not even Father Time could get one over on Tom Brady.

Cementing his argument as the NFL's greatest quarterback, Brady switched teams and kept winning, leading the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to a 31-9 win over the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl 55.

Brady's seventh Super Bowl title, at age 43 no less, was one of the best moments of 2021, when a continuing pandemic could not dim the brightest of stars of the sports world.

"It’s hands down one of the greatest accomplishments in sports history,” said Buccaneers tight end Rob Gronkowski, lured out of retirement by Brady to join him in Tampa Bay.

Brady wasn't the only veteran athlete to steal the spotlight in 2021, the year of the mature.

Phil Mickelson gave the silver-haired set a thrill, becoming the oldest major champion in golf history by winning the PGA Championship at 50. Lefty left some of the world's best — and younger — golfers in his wake at Kiawah Island, winning his sixth major championship at an age when many players are looking to move up a tee box.

“There’s no reason why I or anybody else can’t do it at a later age,” Mickelson said. ”It just takes a little more work."

Mickelson's moment capped an unforgettable golf season that included Hideki Matsuyama becoming the first Asian-born player to win the Masters, Jon Rahm curling in a birdie putt on No. 18 at Torrey Pines to win the U.S. Open and the United States' dominating win in the Ryder Cup.

Tiger Woods capped the year by reeling off 11 straight birdies with his 12-year-old son, Charlie, in the final round of the PNC Championship — 10 months after shattering his right leg in a car crash.

The Milwaukee Bucks veered back on course behind Giannis Antetokounmpo, winning their first NBA title in 50 years by outlasting the surprising Phoenix Suns in six games. The...

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