Golf Capsules: A lost opportunity at the U.S. Open
PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. (AP) — Even with 21 majors, they still had everything to gain by winning the U.S. Open.
For Tiger Woods, a chance to end six months of bad publicity with a 15th major. For Phil Mickelson, a golden opportunity to win something other than silver in the U.S. Open. For Ernie Els, a much-needed reminder that his best golf in the majors is not behind him.
Forgetting about Sunday at Pebble will not be easy.
Woods didn’t know this when he started the final round with a three-putt bogey, but he had to shoot only par-71 to join Jack Nicklaus, Ben Hogan and Bobby Jones as four-time U.S. Open champions.
He shot 75 and remains tied with Hale Irwin.
Els was tied for the lead in the final round, for about only 15 minutes, but he had not been in that position at a major in six years. Worse than his bogey-double bogey-bogey stretch along the coast was missing three putts inside 8 feet in a four-hole stretch late in the round.
As for Mickelson?
He started with a birdie and never made another one the rest of the day. Mickelson knows as well as anyone that bogeys are acceptable in a U.S. Open. What hurt him were a series of pars in the first hour, none more painful than the 328-yard fourth hole. He hit a 3-wood to 15-feet for eagle and three-putted for what must have felt like a bogey.
The winner was Graeme McDowell, who made only one birdie in his round of 74 to win a U.S. Open where the stars didn’t shine.
It wasn’t the first time this has happened in a major.
Seven years ago in the British Open, three of the top 10 players in the world challenged for the claret jug on the back nine of Royal St. George’s — Woods, Davis Love III and Vijay Singh — only to finish in the top five behind surprise winner Ben Curtis.
For all the majors that Woods, Mickelson and Els have won, they know something about losing. All of them have had close calls at least a half-dozen times in majors, when the championship turns on a putt or a bounce.
In this case, it’s a question of whom it hurts the most.
Woods is desperate for a victory to shift focus from his personal life, and to establish anew some form of intimidation he once had. Instead, this was the third straight major that Woods teed off in one of the final two pairings without winning.
He made bad swings at Augusta. He made poor decisions at Pebble Beach.
No one should have been surprised that Woods did not play his best golf Sunday, even after his 66 in the third round in which he finally delivered so many special shots that have defined his career. He keeps talking about a “long process” in getting his game back together, and there’s some truth to that. But he’s not there yet.
There is too much uncertainty over too many shots, and way too much commotion inside his head from outside forces, namely the state of his marriage and the unending fallout from his affairs.
“The two major championships I finished, I had a chance to win both of them,” he said. “So it’s not too bad.”
Mickelson took another step toward becoming his generation’s Sam Snead, who never won the U.S. Open. This might have been an even better opportunity than Lefty had last year at Bethpage Black, when he was runner-up for a record fifth time.
“I wanted to win,” he said. “I’m glad it wasn’t a second.”
The humor veiled great disappointment, for this U.S. Open opportunity came with much more than a trophy. Mickelson could have gone to No. 1 in the world for the first time, and gone to St. Andrews with great hype about a Grand Slam. Only five other players had ever won the first two legs of the modern Grand Slam.
Aside from missing key putts, Mickelson didn’t do much wrong. He three-putted from 20 feet on the 10th, missed an 8-foot par putt on the 14th that he struck perfectly, and picked up his last bogey when he had to make birdie, aiming at the flag on the 16th.
What stings for Els is that of those three, he had the best chance of winning.
A 5-iron to 2 feet on the 12th got him back to even for the tournament, two shots out of the lead. And after a bogey on the 14th, Els was poised to make a run with a wedge he stuffed on the 15th to 4 feet. He missed that (and had to make a 5-foot par), then missed a par from 8 feet on the 17th to fall to 2 over. Needing an eagle on the par-5 18th, his 3-iron was weak and to the right.
“I had some chances coming down the stretch, but I wasn’t able to convert,” Els said Monday on his website. “I guess a handful of other players could say the same thing. That’s major championship golf. It’s always won or lost by the tiniest of margins.”
In this case, it was a little of both.
Doug Ferguson covers golf for The Associated Press.
Notebook: Torrey Pines still on USGA's mind
PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. (AP) — When the USGA announced the U.S. Open would return to Pebble Beach in 2019 for the 100th anniversary of the course, and it would go to Erin Hills in Wisconsin for 2017, it raised the question of a golf course that was not selected.
What about Torrey Pines?
The public course in San Diego staged one of the most memorable U.S. Opens of the decade when Tiger Woods, on a shredded knee, birdied the 72nd hole in regulation to force a playoff, then beat Rocco Mediate in 19 holes.
"It's still in the conversation," USGA executive director David Fay said in an interview last week.
Whether Torrey Pines belongs in the same tier as Pebble Beach, Oakmont and Pinehurst No. 2 is up for debate. Even though its championship featured an unforgettable duel, so did Valhalla for the 2000 PGA Championship.
Even so, the course has what it takes — plenty of room, plenty of interest.
"Every time we announce an Open site or sites, people look at that as, 'My God, what about these other worthy candidates who weren't picked? Does that mean they're gone forever, out of favor?' That's not the case at all," Fay said. "Torrey Pines and the city of San Diego remain interested, and we remain interested."
The question is when. Although 2018 is the only vacant year the rest of the decade, it's hard to imagine the U.S. Open being played in California in consecutive years. The next seven U.S. Opens will be played in Maryland (Congressional), San Francisco (Olympic Club), Pennsylvania (Merion), North Carolina (Pinehurst), Washington state (Chambers Bay), Pennsylvania (Oakmont) and Wisconsin (Erin Hills).
Erin Hills completes what Fay refers to as all five subsets of public golf — resorts (Pebble, Pinehurst), state-owned (Bethpage Black), county-owned (Chambers Bay), municipal golf (Torrey Pines) and private ownership of a fee course (Erin Hills).
Even though the USGA is going to more courses the public can play, Fay said it would not ignore private country clubs that have so much U.S. Open history, such as Oakmont and Shinnecock Hills.
Where does that leave new country clubs?
"That probably will be harder," Fay said. "First of all, there are fewer country clubs designed to host big events. It will be difficult. But just as you say that, you never know. It will happen down the road."
SOMETHING NEW: Among those on the range Sunday at Pebble Beach were a half-dozen players with hopes of winning the U.S. Open, from Dustin Johnson to Graeme McDowell to Ernie Els to Phil Mickelson to Tiger Woods ... and Adam Scott?
Scott had missed the cut by one shot on Friday, yet hung around the Monterey Peninsula and was practicing Sunday afternoon. His private plane will not be ready for a few more months, so Scott chose to take the charter flight Monday provided by the Travelers Championship in Connecticut.
That led to the next question: Why is Scott playing in Hartford?
"I'm playing well," he said with a shrug. "And with my record, you never know."
He was referring to his tendency to play well in tournaments where he is making his debut, and it is a remarkable record. Scott won the Deutsche Bank Championship in 2003 on a sponsor's exemption. A year later, he felt he was playing well despite missing the cut in the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills, so he entered the old Booz Allen Classic and won.
Scott finished in the middle of the pack at The Players Championship, felt he was close, and decided this year to play the Texas Open for the first time. He wound up winning.
The 29-year-old Australian, who continues to play an international schedule, already has played 37 different events on the PGA Tour, including six that no longer exist. The PGA Tour is contemplating a policy that requires top players to add one tournament to their schedule from a group of designated events.
"I should be exempt from that one," Scott said with a laugh.
GOLFING VACATIONS: Ernie Els spent the week before the U.S. Open playing some of the best courses in the north, from Shinnecock Hills to Pine Valley. It was his way of getting ready for a major.
But there are other players who never travel to play golf except for a tournament or corporate outing. Tiger Woods has yet to play Pine Valley or even Seminole in south Florida.
Steve Stricker said the best course he played outside of a golf tournament was in Chicago. It made such an impression he couldn't remember the name of it except that it had "Lakes" in the name (and it wasn't Kemper Lakes).
"We just play so much out here," Jim Furyk said, who said his best courses were Cypress Point and Shinnecock Hills, both of which he played during weeks of PGA Tour events.
But he will travel overseas for golf, having taken one trip to play Royal County Down, Royal Portrush and Ballybunion in Ireland.
"The guy trips are for football," said Furyk, mainly the Pittsburgh Steelers and Ohio State.
EUROPEAN SUPREMACY: The PGA Tour has 20 active members from Europe this year, and they sure seem to be winning a lot of tournaments lately.
Justin Rose of England won his first PGA Tour event at the Memorial, and Lee Westwood won the following week in Memphis. Graeme McDowell of Northern Ireland, who had not taken up membership this year, won the U.S. Open.
It was the first time since the PGA Tour broke away from the PGA of America in 1969 that Europeans have won three weeks in a row.
International players have won seven of the last eight tournaments on the PGA Tour, a streak that began with Rory McIlroy winning the Quail Hollow Championship.
DIVOTS: Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson are the only players who have finished in the top 10 at both majors this year. ... Paula Creamer's gutsy return from a thumb injury won't include the CVS Charity Classic next week. She withdrew from the charity event run by Brad Faxon and Billy Andrade, saying it might be too much to play four straight weeks, including a pair of LPGA Tour majors. Creamer was replaced by Ricky Barnes. ... Ryan Moore wasn't a big fan of the way the course was set up at Pebble Beach, saying this to The Tacoma (Wash.) New-Tribune, "In their minds, this is a great golf tournament. This is how golf should be. It should be torture, apparently." ... Ten years after a winning at Pebble Beach with a record 12-under par, Tiger Woods was under par for one of 72 holes — the 18th on Saturday — at this U.S. Open.
STAT OF THE WEEK: In the last three U.S. Opens, the winner shot his highest score in the final round.
FINAL WORD: "I'm always trying to learn from somebody that does something better than me." — Tom Watson.
PGA
Weir wins $270,000 in Telus Skins
VICTORIA, British Columbia (AP) — Mike Weir has won $270,000 in the Telus Skins Game on Tuesday at the Bear Mountain Resort.
Weir’s win came down to a 125-yard pitch-off on the final hole after the five professional golfers went skinless over nine holes.
The prize money grew to include 12 skins, nine Tuesday and three left over from Monday’s nine holes.
South African Retief Goosen won $75,000 on Monday with five skins, but was skinless Tuesday.
Englishman Ian Poulter won one skin and $15,000 Monday, but failed to win a skin Tuesday.
Colombian Camilo Villegas and crowd favorite Fred Couples of the United States were skinless over the two days.
“It was tough to make birdies out there,” said Weir, noting the five golfers only made seven birdies Tuesday and 15 birdies Monday. “It was just that kind of a day. It was kind of tough to separate yourself. We had to go to extra holes.”
The golfer from Ontario credited his win to hitting the right shot at the right time.
“That’s what skins is.”
Weir narrowly missed winning a $245,000 skin on the par-4 17th, but his putt hit the edge of the hole and lipped out.
Weir said he didn’t know he won the pitch-off until a tournament official said his shot was about 1½ feet ahead of the next closest by Villegas.
Weir said he plans to take some time off before playing in the British Open next month at St. Andrews in Scotland.
Amateur
14-year-old is tops at Women’s Public Links
SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — Fourteen-year-old Ariya Jutanugarn shot a 67 to finish with a 7-under 135 and win medalist honors in stroke-play qualifying at the Women’s Amateur Public Links Championship on Tuesday.
Jutanugarn, from Thailand, finished two strokes ahead of Argentina’s Martina Gavier, who shot a 68 in round two at the University of Notre Dame’s Warren Golf Course.
Lizette Salas, of Azusa, Calif., finished third with a 4-under 138. Two other players, Brittany Altomare (3-under 139) and Emily Tubert (1-under 141), broke par.
Kimberly Kim led after Monday’s first round with a 66, but shot 78 Tuesday. She still qualified for match play, which includes the top 64 players from stroke-play. The first-round of match play begins Wednesday.
Tim Fisher grabs lead at W.Va. Amateur
WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. (AP) — Two-time defending champion Tim Fisher shot a 4-under-par 66 Tuesday for a one-stroke lead midway through the West Virginia Amateur.
Fisher posted the low round of the day and one of three under-par rounds on the Old White course, which was renovated for next month's PGA Tour Greenbrier Classic.
Fisher is at 4 under for the tournament.
Marshall golfer Bosten Miller birdied three of the final seven holes to shoot a 1-under 69 and move into second place at 3 under. Lewisburg's Jonathan Barlett is in third place at 1 under after an even-par round Tuesday.
First-round leader Carson Schambach shot 4 over and fell to fourth place at even par.
Anthony Reale, the 2007 champion, also shot 4 over and is in a five-way tie for ninth place, eight strokes behind Fisher.
Am champ says PGA chance big for W.Va.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — Two-time defending West Virginia Amateur champion Tim Fisher says the chance to earn an exemption into next month's Greenbrier Classic is exciting. But that's not his focus right now.
Greenbrier owner Jim Justice is giving the winner of this week's Amateur a chance-of-a-lifetime spot in the PGA Tour event at the resort in White Sulphur Springs. Justice himself played in the state Amateur several times.
Fisher compares the possibility of playing in a PGA event to state native Jason Williams playing in the NBA finals or Randy Moss heading to the Super Bowl.
Fisher says he needs to concentrate on getting there first. Fisher was four shots behind the leader entering second-round play at the Amateur on Tuesday at The Greenbrier.
-- John Raby
Golf Glance
LPGA TOUR
LPGA Championship
Site: Pittsford, N.Y.
Schedule: Thursday-Sunday.
Course: Locust Hill Country Club (6,506 yards, par 72).
Purse: $2.25 million. Winner's share: $337,500.
Television: Golf Channel (Thursday, 11:30-1:30 p.m.; Friday, 11-1 a.m., 11:30-1:30 p.m.; Saturday, 1-3 a.m., 3-6 p.m., 8:30-10:30 p.m.; Sunday, 3-6 p.m., 8:30-10:30 p.m.).
Last year: Sweden's Anna Nordqvist won the major championship for her first LPGA Tour title, beating Lindsey Wright by four strokes at Bulle Rock in Havre de Grace, Md.
Last week: Ai Miyazato took the top spot in the world ranking, winning the ShopRite LPGA Classic for her fourth victory of the season. The Japanese star closed with a 7-under 64 to beat M.J. Hur by two strokes in the Atlantic City event.
Notes: Last year at Locust Hill in the Wegmans LPGA, Jiyai Shin won by seven strokes, finishing at 17-under 271. The second-ranked Shin is returning to play after withdrawing from the State Farm Classic because of appendicitis. ... Yani Tseng won the first major of the season, the Kraft Nabisco in early April. Tseng won the 2008 event at Bulle Rock. ... The Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic is next week in Sylvania, Ohio, followed by the U.S. Women's Open at Oakmont.
Online: http://www.lpga.com
PGA TOUR
Travelers Championship
Site: Cromwell, Conn.
Schedule: Thursday-Sunday.
Course: TPC River Highlands (6,841 yards, par 70).
Purse: $6 million. Winner's share: $1.08 million.
Television: Golf Channel (Thursday-Friday, 2-5 p.m., 7:30-10:30 p.m.) and CBX (Saturday-Sunday, 2-5 p.m.).
Last year: Kenny Perry won the second of his two 2009 PGA Tour titles, shooting 61-68-66-63 for a tournament-record 258 total. Paul Goydos and David Toms tied for second, three strokes back.
Last week: Northern Ireland's Graeme McDowell become the first European in 40 years to win the U.S. Open, beating France's Gregory Havret by a stroke at Pebble Beach. McDowell finished with a 3-over 74 for an even-par 284 total.
Notes: The 49-year-old Perry tied for 33rd in the U.S. Open. ... J.J. Henry won in 2006 to become the first Connecticut winner in tournament history. ... In 2005, Rhode Island native Brad Faxon matched the course record with a closing 61 and beat Tjaart van der Walt with a birdie on the first hole of a playoff. ... The AT&T National is next week at Aronimink in Newtown Square, Pa.
Online: http://www.pgatour.com
CHAMPIONS TOUR
Dick's Sporting Goods Open
Site: Endicott, N.Y.
Schedule: Friday-Sunday.
Course: En-Joie Golf Course (6,974 yards, par 72).
Purse: $1.7 million. Winner's share: $255,000.
Television: Golf Channel (Friday, 5:30-7:30 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday, 11-1 a.m., Noon-3 p.m.; Monday, 11-1 a.m.).
Last year: Lonnie Nielson won his second Champions Tour title, finishing with a 9-under 63 for a three-stroke victory over Fred Funk and Ronnie Black.
Last event: Nick Price won the Principal Charity Classic on June 6 at Glen Oaks in Iowa, shooting a 4-under 67 to beat Tommy Armour III by four strokes. Price has two Champions Tour victories this year and three overall.
Notes: En-Joie was the site of the PGA Tour's now-defunct B.C. Open from 1971-2005. Craig Stadler, in the field this week, won the 2003 B.C. Open to become the first player to win a PGA Tour event while a member of the Champions Tour. He closed with a 63 to overcome an eight-stroke deficit and win by a stroke. ... Joey Sindelar (1985 and 1987), Jeff Sluman (2001), Wayne Levi (1984) and Mike Hulbert (1989) also are B.C. Open winners. All four grew up in upstate New York. ... The Montreal Championship is next week at Fontainebleu.
Online: http://www.pgatour.com
PGA EUROPEAN TOUR
BMW International Open
Site: Nord-Eichenried, Germany.
Schedule: Thursday-Sunday.
Course: Munich Nord-Eichenried Golf Club (7,025 yards, par 72).
Purse: $2.46 million. Winner's share: $409,850.
Television: Golf Channel (Thursday-Saturday, 8:30 a.m.- 11:30 a.m.; Sunday, 5-9 a.m.).
Last year: England's Nick Dougherty closed with an 8-under 64 to hold off Argentina's Rafa Echenique by a stroke. Echenique holed out from 243 yards on the par-5 18th for a double-eagle 2 and a 60.
Last week: Northern Ireland's Graeme McDowell become the first European in 40 years to win the U.S. Open, beating France's Gregory Havret by a stroke at Pebble Beach. McDowell finished with a 3-over 74 for an even-par 284 total. ... Austria's Martin Wiegele won the Saint-Omer Open in France for his first European tour title.
Notes: Ernie Els, third last week at Pebble Beach, is in the field along with Havret, Paul Casey, Nick Faldo and German stars Martin Kaymer, Bernhard Langer and Alex Cejka. In 2008, Kaymer became the first German winner in event history, birdieing the first hole of a playoff with Denmark's Anders Hansen after blowing a six-stroke lead in the final round. ... The French Open is next week at Le Golf National, followed by the Scottish Open at Loch Lomond and British Open at St. Andrews.
Online: http://www.europeantour.com
NATIONWIDE TOUR
Mexico Open Bicentenary
Site: Leon, Mexico.
Schedule: Thursday-Sunday.
Course: El Bosque Country Club (6,810 yards, par 70).
Purse: $600,000. Winner's share: $108,000.
Television: None.
Last year: Troy Merritt won the event in September for his first Nationwide Tour victory, beating Australia's Adam Bland with a birdie on the first hole of a playoff.
Last week: Chris Kirk won the Fort Smith Classic in Arkansas for his first Nationwide title, finishing with a 6-under 64 to hold off Kyle Thompson by a stroke. Kirk earned $94,500 to take the stop spot on the money list with $262,382.
Notes: Tommy Gainey is second on the money list with $199,253, followed by Kevin Chappell ($197,921), Bobby Gates ($186,383) and Martin Piller ($167,186). The final top 25 will earn 2011 PGA Tour cards. ... The tour is off next week. Play will resume July 8-11 with the Ford Wayne Gretzky Classic in Clarksburg, Ontario.
Online: http://www.pgatour.com
OTHER TOURNAMENTS
Men
PGA OF AMERICA: PGA Professional National Championship, Sunday-Wednesday, French Lick Resort, The Pete Dye Course, The Donald Ross Course, French Lick, Ind. Television: Golf Channel (Sunday, 6:30-8:30 p.m.; Monday, 1-3 a.m., 2:30-5 p.m.; Tuesday-Wednesday, 2-4 a.m., 2:30-5 p.m.; Thursday, July 1, 3- 4 a.m.). Online: http://www.pga.com
JAPAN GOLF TOUR: Mizuno Open, Thursday-Sunday, Yomiuri Country Club, Hyogo, Japan. Online: http://www.jgto.org
PGA EUROPEAN SENIORS TOUR: PGA Seniors Championship, Thursday-Sunday, De Vere Slaley Hall, Hunting Course, Hexham, England. Online: http://www.europeantour.com
PGA EUROPEAN CHALLENGE TOUR: Fred Olsen Challenge of Spain, Thursday-Sunday, Tecina Golf, La Gomera, Canary Islands. Online: http://www.europeantour.com
Women
U.S. GOLF ASSOCIATION: U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links, through Saturday, Warren Golf Course at Notre Dame, South Bend, Ind. Online: http://www.usga.org
DURAMED FUTURES TOUR: City of Hammond Classic, Friday-Sunday, Lost Marsh Golf Course, Hammond, Ind. Online: http://www.duramedfuturestour.com
LADIES EUROPEAN TOUR: Portuguese Ladies Open, Friday-Sunday, Campo Real Golf, Turcifal, Portugal. Online: http://www.ladieseuropeantour.com
