This club has featured an odd collection of U.S. Opens. The first Open held here was in 1955. Ben Hogan finished with 287, and was widely believed to have won his fifth National Open. But Jack Fleck, a municipal-course pro from Iowa, played the last four holes in two under par to force a playoff. Fleck then beat Hogan 69-72 in the playoff. Hogan never won another major tournament.
The second Open here was in 1966. This time Arnold Palmer had a seven-shot lead with only nine holes left. Amazingly, Palmer blew the entire lead with bogeys on 10, 13, 15, 16, and 17, and just barely parred 18 to force a playoff with Billy Casper. In the playoff, Palmer had a two-shot lead at the turn. But he collapsed on the back nine, and lost 69-73 to Casper. Palmer never won another major tournament.
The third Open here was in 1987. This turned into a battle between Scott Simpson (who won 7 tournaments in his PGA career) and Tom Watson (who won 39). Watson had a one-shot lead with nine holes to go. But Simpson overtook him down the stretch to win by one shot. Watson never won another major tournament.
The fourth Open here was in 1998. After three holes on Sunday, Payne Stewart led Lee Janzen by seven shots. But he blew the entire lead and eventually lost to Janzen by one shot. Remarkably, Stewart came right back and won the 1999 U.S. Open. However, he died in a tragic accident a few months later.
So now, as we approach the fifth Open at Olympic, I'm a little nervous about what will happen to Tiger Woods. On the other hand, it may help that Woods is a native Californian, that he played his college golf at Stanford, and that he's already won two National Opens in California. Certainly he looked like his old self today. But it should be a great tournament. The leaderboard after the first round is filled with big names -- although I've never heard of the leader. Michael Thompson, is a virtual unknown who currently ranks 90th in the Fed Ex Cup. He did reach the final of the 2007 U.S. Amateur, which was played at Olympic, and that probably helped him today. We will see if it helps him tomorrow.
Before we do the leaderboard, here is how the World's Top Ten golfers are doing. You can write off Donald, McIlroy, Bubba, and Dustin Johnson, but the others have a good chance:
1. L. Donald (ENG): +9
2. R. McIlroy (NIR): +7
3. L. Westwood (ENG): +3
4. T. Woods: -1
5. B. Watson: +8
6. M. Kuchar: Even
7. J. Rose (ENG): -1
8. H. Mahan: +2
9. J. Dufner: +2
10. D. Johnson: +5
And here are your leaders after Round 1:
1. M. Thompson: -4 (66)
T2. G. McDowell (NIR): -1 (69)
T2. N. Watney: -1 (69)
T2. J. Rose (ENG): -1 (69)
T2. T. Woods: -1 (69)
T2. D. Toms: -1 (69)
T7. J. Furyk: Even (70)
T7. M. Kuchar: Even (70)
T7. I. Poulter (ENG): Even (70)
T7. Mr. Beau Hossler (a): Even (70)
T7. J. Bohn: Even (70)
T7. J.B. Park (KOR): Even (70)
T7. R. Karlsson (SWE): Even (70)
T7. A. Presnell (AUS): Even (70)
Note: Mr. Beau Hossler is a 17-year-old high school student from Orange County, California. He actually qualified for last year's Open at Congressional Country Club, but he missed the cut.
I really hope the PGA let's the players decide it on the course this weekend. Golf would be so much better if, for example, Tiger and the big stars were allowed to ground sand wedges in the final rounds of major tournaments.
ReplyDeleteBut only the big stars.
DeleteEvery year, thousands of golfers – both professionals and amateurs with a USGA Handicap Index not exceeding 1.4 – file entries to compete in the U.S. Open Championship. For all but a handful of top players, the first stop in the process after the entry form has been accepted by the USGA is local qualifying at more than 100 sites across the country. Each local qualifier consists of 18 holes, with a select number of players advancing to the 36-hole sectional qualifying stage. The number of available spots is determined by the number of players at the local qualifier.
ReplyDeleteFinal standings at the May 14 local qualifier at Champion Trace Golf Club in Nicholasville:
1. Tyson Alexander (Gainesville, Fla.) 69
2. Trey Bowling (Manchester, Ky.) 72
2. Hunter Ford (Paducah, Ky.) 72
2. T.J. Bordeaux (Tacoma, Wash.) 72
5. Bill Shida (Duluth, Ga.) 73
5. Drake Duncan (Bowling Green, Ky.) 73
5. Lee Chaney (Morehead, Ky.) 73
5. Mark Blakefield (Maysville, Ky.) 73
No, Kentucky: Tyson Alexander was the only local qualifier to move on to the 36-hole sectional qualifier at Black Diamond Ranch in Lecanto, Fla.
DeleteBuddy Alexander, 1986 U.S. Amateur champion and coach of the University of Florida men’s golf team, caddied for his son Tyson. Tyson’s grandfather was PGA Tour professional Skip Alexander, the lone survivor of a 1950 plane crash that burned more than 70 percent of his body. One of 17 surgeries was to permanently freeze his burned fingers around the grip of a golf club. Skip helped the USA win the 1951 Ryder Cup by defeating hot-playing John Panton. With bleeding hands, Alexander won, 8 and 7, the largest margin in Ryder Cup history at that time.
Skip Alexander finished 11th in the 1948 U.S. Open. Tyson Alexander, however, failed to qualify for this year's tournament. The golfers to advance from the Florida sectional qualifier were:
-- Scott Langley (Manchester, Mo.), who yesterday shot 6-over (tied for 93rd);
-- Samuel Osborne (England), 6-over (T93), and
-- Brookes Koepka (Tallahassee, Fla.), 7-over (T109).
The first alternate from the Florida qualifier was Andy Zhang.
A small number of golfers manage to navigate both stages of qualifying to earn a spot in the 156-player U.S. Open field. And Ken Venturi (1964) and Orville Moody (1969) managed to claim the championship after enduring local and sectional qualifying. The odds are long, but qualifying is what makes the U.S. Open Championship the unique competition that it is. Former USGA Executive Director David B. Fay called the U.S. Open “the most democratic championship” in golf.
Delete1. Michael Thompson (born in Tuscon, Ariz.) -4 through first round
ReplyDelete2. David Toms (Monroe, La.) -1
2. Tiger Woods (Cypress, Calif.) -1
Graeme McDowell and Justin Rose are both 1-over for the day, so they've fallen out of the big, overnight tie for second place--not as far out as Nick Watney, however, who is 4-over for the day and now 3-over for the tournament.
Leaders Thompson, Toms and Woods all tee off in the middle of the Central Daylight Time afternoon.
But now McDowell has birdied Nos. 15 and 16 (his seventh and eighth holes of the morning) to get down to 2-under for the tournament and alone in second place. McDowell yesterday birdied Nos. 17 and 18, so we might be amid a charge from the 2010 tournament champion and 32-year-old from Portrush in Northern Ireland.
ReplyDeleteRory McIlroy, the 2011 champ who also hails from Northern Ireland, is 1-over for the day and now 8-over for the tournament. McIlroy, playing just a couple of threesomes ahead of McDowell, just birdied No. 17--but then McDowell parred, to stay at 2-under.
DeletePortrush looks nice.
DeleteLeaderboard at 11 A.M. PDT:
ReplyDelete1. M. Thompson: -4 (18 holes)
T2. G. McDowell (NIR): -1 (29)
T2. T. Woods: -1 (18)
T2. D. Toms: -1 (18)
Thompson tees off at 12:52 PDT; Woods tees off at 1:18 PDT; Toms tees off at 1:40 PDT.
Dan Jenkins @danjenkinsgd
DeleteLeader Michael Thompson calls himself Steady Eddie. Who shows up today? Wretching Rick? Staggering Stan? Fainting Fred? Vomiting Vinnie?
1:11 PM - 15 Jun 12
He's still the best.
DeleteYea! The commercial with the big Infiniti family is back on the air.
ReplyDeleteGraeme McDowell, who won the National Open in 2010, is looking very sharp. Through 13 holes today, he is 1 under for the day and 2 under for the tournament. If he wins this tournament, it will be the third year in a row that the winner of the U.S. Open came from Northern Ireland. (The last American winner was Lucas Glover, in 2009.)
ReplyDeleteYeah, I got lost this morning driving around Portrush via Google Maps. It was fantastic. The Internet is amazing.
DeleteAnd now Jim Furyk of West Chester, Pa., has gotten back to 1-under and the tie for third place, behind Thompson and McDowell.
ReplyDeleteHere's some football stadium in West Chester. You can navigate around and see that it was built in 1928.
DeleteIt would be an interesting to live on "Stadium Alley" in West Chester, Pa.
Muffett McGraw, Dave Barry and Jon Matlack are among the other natives of West Chester.
DeleteOK, this football stadium appears to be J. Oscar Dicks Stadium at West Chester Henderson High, home of the Warriors. Not only is this Jon Matlack's alma mater, it is also that of Al Bruno, "one of only three Wildcats to have played for Hall of Fame coaches Bear Bryant (Football) and Adolph Rupp (Basketball)," per Wikipedia.
DeleteMeanwhile, Furyk's back to even for the day and the tournament. McDowell has dropped a stroke, too--so he's at 1-under again with Toms and Woods.
DeleteAnd now McDowell is back to even for the tournament. So, we're back to Thompson in first place and only Toms and Woods tied for second with all three of those guys set to tee off in the next 70 minutes.
DeleteLeaderboard at Noon PDT:
ReplyDelete1. M. Thompson: -4 (18 holes)
2. G. McDowell (NIR): -2 (32)
T3. J. Furyk: -1 (32)
T3. T. Woods: -1 (18)
T3. D. Toms: -1 (18)
WEST CHESTER IN THE HOUSE! Furyk birdies No. 7, which is playing as one of the course's easiest holes so far this weekend, and he's back to 1-under with Toms and Woods, three behind Thompson. Furyk has one more hole to card in his second round.
ReplyDeleteI like Jim Furyk, Dave Barry, and Muffett McGraw. So this makes me happy.
DeleteSay good-bye to Rory McIlroy. He was the best golfer in the world last year. Now he's just finished shooting 77+73=150 (+10), and he will miss the cut for the fourth time in his last five starts. That will give the British press a lot to write about before next month's British Open.
ReplyDeleteSay hello, however, to Sergio Garcia.
ReplyDeleteLeaderboard at 1 P.M. PDT:
ReplyDelete1. M. Thompson: -4 (18 holes)
T2. J. Furyk: -1 (36)
T2. T. Woods: -1 (18)
T2. D. Toms: -1 (18)
Meanwhile, England just scored to tie their match with Sweden at 2-2 in the 64th minute.
ReplyDeleteIf you think soccer games are low-scoring, just watch England when it has an English coach.
England came roaring from behind to stun Sweden 3-2. The Swedes have been effectively eliminated from Euro 2012, while England has taken a big step toward moving into the knock-out stages.
DeleteNot counting an win in an exhibition game last November, this was England's first victory over Sweden since 1968.
So some guy named Tiger Woods is now our leader.
ReplyDeleteThompson, having played Nos. 9-14 so far today: par, par, bogey, double, par, bogey ... brings him to even for the tournament.
ReplyDeleteWoods, having played 1-4: par, par, birdie, par ... 2-under.
Toms, 1-3: bogey, par, par ... even.
Thompson birdies 15, so he's now tied with Furyk at 1-under for second place.
ReplyDelete1. Tiger Woods (born in Cypress, Calif.) -1 through 22 holes
ReplyDelete2. Jim Furyk (West Chester, Pa.) -1 through 36
3. Michael Thompson (Tuscon, Ariz.) -1 through 25
Tiger bogeys No. 5, so now these three are all tied at 1-under. No. 6 is playing as one of the hardest holes on the course, and Woods bogeyed there yesterday.
DeleteAnd Beau Hossler, the 17-year-old from Mission Viejo, Calif., just birdied No. 9 to move to 1-under with the leaders.
DeleteHossler just finished his junior year of high school. One of the ESPN guys just speculated that Mr. Beau is going to be pretty popular "with the ladies next year." "He may not have to wait that long," said another.
DeleteAnd then, after some chuckling, everybody seemed to remember they were talking about a 17-year-old boy and moved on.
On the hard sixth hole, Tiger is standing in a green-side bunker, about to strike a ball in the fringe just at its edge. His feet are about two-and-a-half feet lower than the ball, so he's having to hold the club at about a 10-degree angle ...
DeleteThe ball zips by the hole, but Woods now is just in the rough on the opposite side of the green. Fourth shot coming ...
DeleteRolls a 3-wood to about six inches and then putts out for bogey-5, so Woods drop back to even for the tournament.
Delete"He was just 17. You know what I mean," Chris Berman sings, as Hossler rolls in a par putt on No. 18 (his 10th hole of his second round) to remain tied in the now three-way tie at for the lead at 1-under.
DeleteI'm really glad I missed that particular bit of coverage.
DeleteThe Leaderboard at 3 PM PDT:
ReplyDeleteT1. J. Furyk: -1 (36 holes)
T1. Mr. B. Hossler: -1 (27)
T1. M. Thompson: -1 (25)
T1. T. Woods: -1 (23)
T5. D. Toms: Even (22)
T5. A. Presnell (AUS): Even (19)
PGA TOUR @PGATOUR
ReplyDeleteBeau Hossler turns to the front nine at 1-under par (T1). Ahead of him are the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 5th, 6th & 7th hardest holes on the course
5:05 PM - 15 Jun 12
Tiger just finished that run of holes in bogey-bogey-bogey. He has slipped to 1-over for the tournament and two off the leaders.
DeleteThompson doubles No. 18, his 10th hole of the afternoon, and now the first-round leader turns to the tough front nine at 1-over for the tournament.
DeleteHossler birdies No. 1! The 17-year-old is 2-under for the tournament AND LEADING THE U.S. OPEN!
Delete1. Beau Hossler (born in Mission Viejo, Calif.) -2 through 29
ReplyDelete2. Jim Furyk (West Chester, Penn.) -1 through 36 holes
3. Alistair Presnell (Australia) even through 21
Presnell bogeys No. 13 (his fifth), and Hossler bogeys No. 2 (his 12th). So Furyk just decided to go and run back downstairs to the Holiday Inn Express lobby and celebrate with a second free happy-hour cookie during this commercial break.
DeleteBut before Furyk can get back to his room, Tiger rolls in about a quarter-mile putt for birdie on No. 10. Woods is back to even for the tournament--one behind leaders Furyk and Hossler.
DeleteAnd now it's time that I recall coming in 64th in the 64-player, 1986 First Region boys' golf tournament, by about 10 strokes behind the 63rd-place finisher. (It all went downhill after a pretty decent, for me, tee shot on the first hole, when I turned around to all my assembled competitors behind the tee box to learn that my pants zipper was down.)
DeleteBeau Hossler, 17 years old, has double-boyed his 14th hole of the second round (No. 4). Hossler is back to 1-over for the tournament, and Furyk is alone in the lead.
Delete1. Jim Furyk (born in West Chester, Penn.) -1 through 36 holes
ReplyDelete1. Tiger Woods (Calypso, Calif.) -1 through 33
1. David Toms (Monroe, La.) -1 through 32
4. Alistair Presnell (Australia) even through 28
5. John Peterson (Fort Worth, Texas) +1 through 36
5. Nikolas Colsaerts (Belgium) +1 through 36
5. Graeme McDowell (Northern Ireland) +1 through 36
Hossler finishes his round at 3-over for the tournament.
DeletePresnell is just now starting to play the brutally difficult Nos. 1-8 stretch. His third shot on the par-4 first hole roles several yards off the back of the green ...
DeletePresnell doubles No. 1, so now we have Furyk, Toms and Woods tied for a two-stroke lead on the remainder of the field.
DeleteMasters darling Bubba Watson is 10-over and will need a load of heroics on the 17th and 18th holes to stick around the remainder of the weekend.
ReplyDeleteThe Round 1 leader, Michael Thompson, just finished his round with a birdie. That's 5-over for the day and 1-over for the tournament, and that's got to be frustrating given that he opened the day with a three-stroke lead on the field. However, Thompson is just a couple of strokes off the lead group, and that's a pretty impressive hold of serve given that he made that turn to the tough Nos. 1-8 at the same 1-over.
ReplyDeleteTiger Woods is the greatest athlete I've ever seen. For sure.
ReplyDeleteK.J. Choi is tied for eighth at 1-over for the tournament through 13 holes today. He played the front nine in 1-under today, and, of the five holes he has remaining, two are playing among the easiest of the course (one the hardest). The 42-year-old former powerlifter from South Korea could make a chase at the top of the leaderboard here.
ReplyDeleteChoi parred the first of the two easy holes, and now he's bogeyed the hard one. So now he's 2-over. Of course.
Delete