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Fitzy’s major moment, The Country Club shines and a little-known player perk: 18 US Open parting thoughts

Matt Smith — Tue, 21 Jun 2022 04:00:41 +0000

By Dan Rapaport
Matt Fitzpatrick is a major champion, winning the US Open with a legendary ball-striking performance — and doing it at The Country Club, where it all started. There is so, so much to discuss. Here are 18 parting thoughts from Brookline.

1: We start, as always, with the winner. This was the second consecutive major championship that Matt Fitzpatrick found himself in the final pairing on Sunday. His first tee shots in each help illustrate the different mindsets he was in.

When Fitzpatrick gets nervous, his tempo gets even quicker than it normally is, and his miss is a low pull. When he hit that shot on the first tee on Sunday at Southern Hills, you knew it was going to be a long day. He fought it all afternoon and had to play defensively the entire day. His first tee shot at The Country Club on Sunday was a tight draw down the centre. He had a different look about him the entire day. At the PGA, it seemed as if he was hoping to play well, and when he didn’t early, he spiraled. At the US Open, he expected to play well, and even when he wavered in the middle of the round — a missed five-footer for par at 10, and a three-putt from 20 feet at 11 — he steadied himself, buoyed by the belief that he was swinging the club as well as he ever has, and that two hiccups on the green wouldn’t change that fact. Hitting 17 of 18 greens in regulation in the final round of the US Open, at a course with famously small greens, well, that’s among the best ball-striking rounds in major championship history. And the shot that sealed the deal, a sky-high cut from the fairway bunker that had to get up quickly to clear the lip … well, just let Will Zalatoris provide the context.

“I thought even going for it was going to be ballsy,” Zalatoris said. “It’s probably 1 in 20 … at best … to pull it off.” Fitzpatrick never considered laying up. Experience in high-leverage moments is invaluable, as is belief.

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2: This one hit Will Zalatoris hard. When it’s your first chance at winning a major and you don’t, you chalk it up as a learning experience. He had that at the 2021 Masters. When you get beat by a guy playing perfect golf, as he did in the playoff to Justin Thomas at last month’s PGA Championship, you can rest easy at night. This one? There’s no easy way to get over it … except, and it’s a big except, for the way he putted on Sunday. Zalatoris’ stroke has been an easy target; at times, on the short ones, it downright difficult to watch. But he putted beautifully throughout the week, and he is genuinely one of the better mid-range putters on the PGA Tour. How solid he looked on the shorties on Sunday should go a long way towards his confidence moving forward, for if he continues that work with the flatstick, he is a top-five player in the world. He now has seven top-eight finishes in nine major starts as a professional. He has major championships in his future. Multiple.

Matt Fitzpatrick with Will Zalatoris. Warren Little

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3: It’s amazing Billy Foster had managed not to be on the bag for a major championship given the list of guy’s he’s looped for full-time: Seve Ballesteros, Darren Clarke, Thomas Bjorn and Lee Westwood. Early in the week he told The Caddie Network that if Fitzpatrick had putted for Westwood, he might’ve won six or seven majors. Clearly, the near-misses stayed with him — none more so than the 2003 Open Championship, when Bjorn held a one-shot lead heading into 16 on Sunday before leaving two shots in a bunker and throwing it away. Foster can hardly tell that story without breaking into tears. Now, more than 30 years after he began his caddieing journey, he fills the lone hole in his resume. He was more emotional than his boss on the 18th green.

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4: Golf needed a week like this. The last fortnight has been dominated by rumours, drama and existential crises. This was the perfect chaser for all the conjecture, and all the discussion of “growing the game.” The US Open is the purist golf tournament in the world, with nearly half the field earning their place through World Ranking qualifiers. This week’s field featured a high school senior, college kids, a mid-amateur, mini-tour players, Korn Ferry Tour players, PGA Tour superstars, legends of days past and a 57-year-old journeyman.

The best players gravitated toward the top of the leaderboard throughout the course of 72 holes — funny how that happened — and Sunday was positively buzzy … until Mexican television reminded us that the rumours, drama and existential crises aren’t going anywhere. They reported that Abraham Ancer would be the next to make the jump to LIV. The news dropped just as the leaders were making the turn at the US Open.

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Collin Morikawa. Patrick Smith

5: Collin Morikawa will be thinking about that third-round 77 for a long time. Despite not having his patented cut to rely on — he said he played a draw all week for the first time since his freshman year of college — Morikawa shot three rounds in the 60s, including a final-round 66, at the US Open. His stuff was good enough to win, and he wasn’t far off notching the third leg of the career Grand Slam … at 25 years old.

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6: In non-Masters major championship golf, coverage complaints are a rinse, repeat situation. The consensus: too many commercials, not enough golf shots. This week, however, the outrage reached an all–time high — so much so that Mike Whan, CEO of the USGA, responded on Twitter to assure fans that his organisation is listening and working with broadcast partners to address the problem.

That response was significant for a few reasons. The first: Whan is a new type of leader for an organisation that, historically, has been a caricature of golf’s stuffiness. He is not a golf lifer or purist, he is a new-age executive who knows the value of positive PR. It’s hard, maybe impossible, to imagine Mike Davis or any of his predecessors responding to public criticism. It also struck a note given recent happenings in the golf world. The whole LIV situation has shined a light on the professional game’s shortcomings, and the emergence of a worthy competitor to the PGA Tour has certainly heated the seats of the sport’s decision-makers. Yes, this was not a PGA Tour event, but the ever-shifting landscape is forcing all executives off their metaphorical high-horse to re-examine their product and find ways to improve it. If nothing else, let’s hope that’ll lead to some lasting positives.

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7: Gripes about non-Masters major championship apps are also a rinse, repeat situation. The USGA’s offering functioned better than the PGA of America’s, for sure, and was just a hair behind the PGA Tour’s in terms of performance. The Masters? That’s in a different category. You know it, and so does the USGA. One USGA official offered this, early in the week: “The Masters app just ruins it for all of us.” They’re trying; they’re just a bit outgunned resources-wise.

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8: This could well be the last time we see Stewart Hagestad in a major championship. The 31-year-old was playing in his fourth US Open and sixth major overall by way of his second US Mid-Amateur title last summer. He’s been the lone mid-am on three straight US Walker Cup teams. He lives a charmed life, bouncing around finance jobs over the last half-decade while also having time to keep his game in good enough shape to compete with the college kids all summer long. He’s an easy target for criticism, given the financial safety net that provides scheduling flexibility. But before you send a mean tweet in his direction, ask yourself: If given the opportunity, and if you had the game, would you not do the exact same thing?

Stewart Hagestad. Patrick Smith

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I don't understand how both these men are 25 years old. pic.twitter.com/tZISSGvcnO

— Dan Rapaport (@Daniel_Rapaport) June 18, 2022

9: It is legitimately astounding that Scottie Scheffler and Collin Morikawa are both 25 years old. You show these two pictures to a non-golf fan and they’d swear these men must be at least 15 years apart.

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10: Consider this an official motion to give The Country Club a place in the US Open rotation, which currently includes Pebble Beach, Oakmont, Pinehurst and Shinnecock Hills. TCC matches up to each of those as a pure golf course — Will Zalatoris called it the hardest he’s ever played, and the general consensus among players was that it offered a varied test and forced players to plot their way around more than US Opens of recent vintage. Length is always an advantage, of course, but it was a prerequisite at Winged Foot and Torrey Pines; this week, guys like Adam Hadwin and Joel Dahmen were able to hang. Add in the history attached to this place and the tremendous Boston sports fans and you’ve got a recipe for one hell of a major championship. It’d be a damn shame if we have to wait another 34 years to come back here.

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11: There are moments in every major that remind us of one golf’s chief charms: that you, watching at home, can relate to the emotions that they, the best players in the world, are feeling.

The best example from this week came on Friday, when Collin Morikawa was playing the driveable par-4 fifth. His tee shot found a bunker short and right of the green, and the pin was cut just a few paces over a false front. Morikawa caught his bunker shot a tad heavy, and the ball rolled to the top of the ridge and, mercifully, stopped. Morikawa leapt out of the bunker and knocked the sand off his feet as he jogged to mark his ball, terrified that the slightest breeze would send it tumbling down the slope. He got there in the time, the crowd loved it, and he thanked the crowd for appreciating his stunning display of athleticism. All of us have been in that situation before. It was hard not to smile.

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12: I always like to pass along the funniest (family-friendly) line I heard from every major. This week, there was a runaway champ. During Thursday’s first round, Dustin Johnson was sauntering up to a tee box when a fan asked him a LIV-inspired question: “Hey, DJ! How big is your bank account?!”

His response, without missing a beat, dripping in swagger and in a Southern drawl: “Bigger’n yours.”

Not much else to say, is there?

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13: A drivable par 4 is a welcome change-of-pace every week, but especially so at a US Open. It throws the guys a bone of sorts, a lone birdie opportunity interspersed between 500-yard, hold-on-for-dear-life beasts. Why, then, did the fifth at The Country Club fail to scratch that itch?

The great drivable par 4s have greens surrounded by vortexes of trouble. This presents the player with options: lay up with an iron to the fairway and give yourself a flip wedge into the green … or take on the trouble for a chance at glory. Thread the needle and an eagle becomes a distinct possibility; hit a foul ball and you could leave with 6. The hole should make you question yourself. It serves as a litmus test for a guy’s confidence level.

The fifth did none of that. Almost no one laid up off the tee, even when the wind was blowing into them during Sunday’s final round. And that’s fine. That alone doesn’t make it a terrible hole — almost no one lays up on the par-4 10th at Riviera, for example — but the reason for it does: there was just no trouble up by the green. Miss left and you were in some trampled down rough with a green that slopes back to front, so even mis-hit shots from the rough stopped on the fringe. Miss to the right and you had a great angle to the middle of the green and a little runway of fairway before the green to run the ball up. The Country Club charmed players, fans and media alike all week. But the fifth stood out as the lone weak hole.

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14: Conversely, the short par-3 11th was just a delight all week. The hole is part of the Primrose nine at TCC and hadn’t been used in championship play since Francis Ouimet’s victory in the 1913 US Open. It must be a part of any The Country Club layout moving forward. A short, treacherous par 3 that demands precise distance and spin control weeds out those who cannot control their nerves.

Will Zalatoris. Patrick Smith

It played a pivotal role on Sunday. Will Zalatoris played first in the final group on Sunday and hit a wedge that dug into the centre of the green and spun back to pin high. Matt Fitzpatrick followed with a much lower-flighted shot that plopped down and stuck just inside Zalatoris’ ball. Zalatoris would be giving Fitzpatrick a read. Advantage, Fitzpatrick … until Zalatoris poured his birdie putt right in the centre, his fourth in his last six holes. Fitzpatrick, surely eager to answer with a birdie of his own, gunned his five feet past the green and yanked the comebacker. Length is not necessary to challenge the best.

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15: Perhaps you noticed that a bunch of the guys were sporting fresh cuts this week. Like, really fresh. Turns out there is an “Official US Open Barber” who, it would seem, provided haircuts free of charge for any participant. Perks, man. Perks. I managed to snap a photo of this guy, and some pointed out the irony of a bald guy giving haircuts. I’m going to give him the benefit of the doubt and assume he’s not bald, he’s just got a higher and tighter haircut than 99 per cent of humans on this planet.

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16: Brooks Koepka and Joel Dahmen couldn’t be more different — in their games, their CVs, their bank accounts and the way they carry themselves. Koepka gives off textbook alpha-male energy: I’m cooler than you, and I don’t care what you think. “I mean, I’m pretty confident,” Koepka said on Friday, “but I feel like everybody should be confident in themselves, and if you’re not — people hate confidence. That’s why people aren’t a big fan of me.”

Dahmen, on the other hand, has said numerous times that he doesn’t think he’ll ever win a major. He debated not even trying to qualify for the US Open because, he told The Athletic, “If I qualify, I’m just signing up to get my ass kicked.” Back in November, he told me: “Look, I’m not selling a single ticket. Maybe to a couple buddies, but I probably gave them free tickets anyway. I’m not bringing anyone here. I’m not adding a ton of value outside of maybe some Twitter stuff.” You get the sense both men lean into their personas a bit, that the way they truly feel is probably a bit less extreme than they let on. Still, it’s fascinating the wide range of attitudes across professional sports. Golf is no different.

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17: It’s not the most glamorous part of the gig, but part of being a golf journalist is trying to eavesdrop on conversations between famous golfers. As such, during a practice round on Monday, I noticed Jon Rahm and Rory McIlroy having an animated exchange, and I did my best to hustle over and see if I might be able to catch the drift. Turns out they were discussing a new special-edition watch that surely costs half my yearly salary. The Morikawa anecdote stood out for its relatability; this one, then, was a reminder that while we share a passion for golf, their toys are a bit shinier than ours.

I did not know this was a thing. pic.twitter.com/rDXKBvmFUv

— Dan Rapaport (@Daniel_Rapaport) June 17, 2022

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18: The NIL era has officially hit golf. In years past, the amateurs always stick out on the driving range, their stand bags and logo-less (or college-issued) shirts contrasting the pros’ staff bags and NASCAR driver-like shirts that serve as mobile billboards. This week? Not so noticeable. Michael Thorbjornsen of Stanford and Charlie Reiter of the University of San Diego were both head-to-toe in TaylorMade, including the same staff bag that Rory McIlroy and Collin Morikawa had. Keita Nakajima, the World No. 1 amateur from Japan, had four different logos on his shirt. Nick Dunlap, the reigning US Junior Amateur champion, had a logo on his right sleeve and a different one on the right side of his hat. We’re all for people making money, but the line between amateur and professional continues to grow more faint.

Next up in this triple-crown like major cadence: St. Andrews. It’ll be here before we know it.

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US Open 2022: Phil Mickelson laments poor play, early exit: ‘I thought I was more prepared than I was’

Golf Digest Middle East — Sat, 18 Jun 2022 07:00:15 +0000

By Ryan Herrington
Friday wasn’t as bad as Thursday at The Country Club for Phil Mickelson, but it also wasn’t good. A three-over 73 included two birdies, one more than he posted a day earlier en route to a 78, but more struggles on the greens did little to turn the story of his week at the US Open into anything close to inspiring.

“I thought I was more prepared than I was,” Mickelson told Golfweek in the player parking lot as he prepared to leave the course on Friday. “The US Open is the ultimate test. And you don’t really know where your game is until you get tested, and I thought I was little bit closer than I was.”

Of 78 players who finished in the morning on Friday, Mickelson beat just eight with his 11-over total, two of them amateurs. There was no facet that seemed to be clicking, no matter how many thumbs up he flashed to a mostly positive crowd after playing in just his second event since a four-month break from the game.

“I really struggled with putting,” said Mickelson, who will miss the cut for the fifth time in 31 US Open starts. “I’m struggling with the putter, last week and this week”

Mickelson did just celebrate his 52nd birthday on Thursday, and few that age find themselves regularly in contention in events outside the PGA Tour Champions. And even before his self-imposed exile, he hadn’t finished better than T-17 in 12 PGA Tour starts since his 2021 PGA Championship victory.

It’s hard to get rid of competitive rust when you’re not playing that much. He’ll have the benefit of having gotten through the extremely awkward initial press conferences from the past two weeks, which no doubt were a distraction for his play.

Phil Mickelson. Rob Carr

What’s next for Mickelson? Of course, he won’t play any PGA Tour events any time soon, given the suspension he received for competing in the inaugural LIV Golf Invitational outside of London, Presumably he’ll play in the next LIV event at Pumpkin Ridge outside of Portland, Ore., in two weeks, followed by a start in the 150th Open at St Andrews.

“I feel I’m certainly playing better than I’m scoring,” Mickelson said, “and I look forward to working on it.”

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US Open 2022: Co-leader Collin Morikawa is not to be trusted

Golf Digest Middle East — Sat, 18 Jun 2022 06:46:27 +0000

Collin Morikawa. David Cannon

By Joel Beall
Collin Morikawa is a nice guy. Polite guy. Thoughtful, observant, humble. So it pains us to say the following: The man is not to be trusted.

That is not an aspersion made lightly, for earlier in the week Morikawa told anyone who would listen that his game was in an uncomfortable spot. His go-to cut was not cutting and he had no appetite for the draw. He understood what was happening — the face was closed at impact — but for the life of him he’s been unable to correct it.

“As of two weeks ago, probably pretty bad,” Morikawa said when assessing his game on Tuesday. “This entire year has been weird. I’ve been known for my irons and known to hit cuts. That shot just hasn’t been there.”

Turns out that alleged confession was a deception, because it is Friday night and Morikawa, he of little faith, is tied for the lead at the US Open.

“I think it was a continuation of yesterday,” Morikawa said, turning in a second-round 66 to complement his opening-day 69, atop the board with Joel Dahmen at five-under. “I just didn’t let off steam on the back nine. It was stalling a little bit throughout the back nine. Got a fortunate break and a shot on 8, and unfortunately, missed the putt, but that kind of kept the round going.”

Perhaps we should have known better. After all, Morikawa said last July that links golf threw him for a loop at the Scottish Open, only to proceed to win the Open Championship the following week. He is either a quick, quick learner or a cunning little rascal.

Collin Morikawa reacts on the ninth green during the second round. Patrick Smith

In Morikawa’s defence, at least here in Brookline, he was not fibbing: The cut remains absent, and Morikawa’s indignation that it has not returned is real. But turns out the draw can be lethal, too. Entering the week ranked fifth in SG/approach, Morikawa gained over two-and-a-half strokes on the field in this category on Friday afternoon.

After his round Morikawa said the draw has not only grown on him, but ultimately could unlock his potential.

“I think what it proves is just you can play this game with many shots,” Morikawa said. “I remember the first time I played with Tiger, and he hit every shot that called for it. Pin is on the right; you hit a little cut. Pin is on the left; you hit a little draw. I think this is just going to hopefully make my iron play and make my game a little bit more well-rounded rather than just hitting a cut. But this week we’re just going to work with what we have, and right now it’s a little baby draw.”

His day was not without its blemishes. No US Open card is. He bogeyed the fourth and parred the fifth, and though par is usually your friend at the national championship the fifth is a driveable par-4 that played as the second-easiest hole on Friday. He hit his second shot at the par-5 eighth from 208 yards to four feet, yet could not convert the eagle, staring at his putter as though if it betrayed him.

Of course, we are nitpicking the player who has bettered 154 others and is tied with another through 36 holes, and that putter — one that has often been Morikawa’s foe — has been his friend in Boston, gaining over three strokes against his competitors on the dance floors. Anytime he has been average on the greens in his nascent career he has been a tough out. When the flat stick has been a weapon … good night, doctor.

Yes, it’s only 36 holes, and yes, this leaderboard has the likes of Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm, and Scottie Scheffler, a frisky Aaron Wise and better-than-he’ll-let-you-believe Dahmen, and a whole bunch of other formidable guys more than worthy of taking this crown. Conversely, Morikawa has a habit of bringing his best to the best events. He owns the Wanamaker Trophy and Claret Jug, but also a T-8 at the 2021 PGA, a T-4 at the 2021 US Open and a fifth-place finish at this year’s Masters. Should he win this week, it would be his third major championship in just his 11th major appearance, and if that sounds ridiculous, you are right: No player in the Masters era has won three majors in fewer starts.

Morikawa did not want to discuss what could be, instead focusing on what he needs to do to get to that point. “Yeah, it’s a major championship. It’s the US Open. No one has taken it deep so far and kind of run away, but you know what, right now my game feels really good,” Morikawa said. “The last few days is a huge confidence booster for me heading into this weekend, and hopefully we can kind of make some separation somehow.”

Confidence. That is a prerequisite at the national open. Through two days, Morikawa seems like a confident man. Wait. Confidence … man … con man. Figures. Like we said, Collin Morikawa is not to be trusted.

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US Open 2022: All your second round tee times and pairings

Matt Smith — Fri, 17 Jun 2022 11:28:17 +0000

By Matt Smith
With the first round safely completed and surprise leader Adam Hadwin one ahead of the likes of Rory McIlroy, here are all your tee times and pairings for Friday’s second round at The Country Club in Brookline for the 2022 US Open.

1st hole

6.45am – Jed Morgan, Australia; Taylor Montgomery, US; Sean Crocker, US
6.56am – (a) Maxwell Moldovan, US; Yannik Paul, Germany; MJ Daffue, South Africa
7.07am – Talor Gooch, US; Adri Arnaus, Spain; Tom Hoge, US
7.18am – Kevin Na, US; Sergio Garcia, Spain; Tyrrell Hatton, England
7.29am – Sam Burns, US; Patton Kizzire. US; Thomas Pieters, Belgium
7.40am – Brooks Koepka, US; Cameron Smith, Australia; Scottie Scheffler, US
7.51am – Luke List, US; (a) Austin Greaser, US; Corey Conners, Canada
8.02am – Gary Woodland, US; Justin Rose, England; Bryson DeChambeau, US
8.13am – KH Lee, South Korea; Tommy Fleetwood, England; Patrick Reed, US
8.24am – Jason Kokrak, US; Harris English, US; Lucas Herbert, Australia
8.35am – Sam Stevens, US; (a) Ben Lorenz, US; Davis Shore, US
8.46am – Daijiro Izumida, Japan; (a) Adrien Dumont de Chassart, Belgium; Sebastian Söderberg, Sweden
8.57am – Ryan Gerard, US; Brady Calkins, US; Jesse Mueller, US
12.30pm – Fran Quinn, US; Callum Tarren, England; Hayden Buckley, US
12.41pm – Kurt Kitayama, US; Denny McCarthy, US; (a) Sam Bennett, US
12.52pm – Wyndham Clark, US; Brandon Matthews, US; Wil Besseling, Netherlands
1.03pm – David Lingmerth, Sweden; Sepp Straka, Austria; Si Woo Kim, Soth Korea
1.14pm – Scott Stallings, US; Davis Riley, US; Victor Perez, France
1.25pm – Rory McIlroy, Northern Ireland; Hideki Matsuyama, Japan; Xander Schauffele, US
1.36pm – Kevin Kisner, US; Russell Henley, US; Brian Harman, US
1.47pm – Keegan Bradley, US; Marc Leishman, Australia; Aaron Wise, US
1.58pm – Francesco Molinari, Italy; (a) Laird Shepherd, England; Stewart Cink, US
2.09pm – Marcel Schneider, Germany; Chan Kim, US; Joseph Bramlett, US
2.20pm – Lanto Griffin, US; Joel Dahmen, US; Jinichiro Kozuma, Japan
2.31pm – Chris Gotterup, US; (a) Fred Biondi, Brazil; Harry Hall, England
2.42pm – Chris Naegel, US; Andrew Beckler, US; Luke Gannon, US

MORE: US Open Day 1 wrap

10th hole

6.45am – Kevin Chappell, US; Chase Seiffert, US; Andrew Novak, US
6.56am – Thorbjørn Olesen, Denmark; Brian Stuard, US; Nick Hardy, US
7.07am – Sam Horsfield, England; Cameron Tringale, US; Shaun Norris, South Africa
7.18am – Sungjae Im, Soth Korea; Mito Pereira, Chile; Erik van Rooyen, South Africa
7.29am – Justin Thomas, US; Viktor Hovland, Norway; Tony Finau, US
7.40am – Joohyung Kim, South Korea; Séamus Power, Republic of Ireland; Min Woo Lee, Australia
7.51am – Matt Fitzpatrick, England; Webb Simpson, US; Dustin Johnson, US
8.02am – Phil Mickelson, US; Shane Lowry, Republic of Ireland; Louis Oosthuizen, South Africa
8.13am – Danny Lee, New Zealand; (a) Keita Nakajima, Japan; Nick Taylor, Canada
8.24am – Jim Furyk, US; (a) Nick Dunlap, US; Adam Hadwin, Canada
8.35am – Richard Bland, England; Rikuya Hoshino, Japan; Ryan Fox, New Zealand
8.46am – Jonas Blixt, Sweden; Bo Hoag, US; Todd Sinnott, Australia
8.57am – Isaiah Salinda, US; Sean Jacklin, Scotland; (a) Charles Reiter, US
12.30pm – (a) Michael Thorbjornsen, US; Erik Barnes, US; Matt McCarty, US
12.41pm – Matthew NeSmith, US; Patrick Rodgers, US; (a) Travis Vick, US
12.52pm – Troy Merritt, US; (a) William Mouw, US; Andrew Putnam, US
1.03pm – Collin Morikawa, US; James Piot, US; Jon Rahm, Spain
1.14pm – Jordan Spieth, US; Adam Scott, Australia; Max Homa, US
1.25pm – Billy Horschel, US; Patrick Cantlay, US; Daniel Berger, US
1.36pm – Harold Varner III, US; Sebastián Muñoz, Colombia; Alex Norén, Sweden
1.47pm – Joaquin Niemann, Chile; Cameron Young, US; Will Zalatoris, US
1.58pm – Adam Schenk, US; (a) Stewart Hagestad, US; Grayson Murray, US
2.09pm – Guido Migliozzi, Italy; Branden Grace, South Africa; Mackenzie Hughes, Canada
2.20pm – Beau Hossler, US; Kalle Samooja, Finland; Satoshi Kodaira, Japan

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US Open 2022: Think your airline losing your clubs during a major week is rough? Try having it happen twice

Golf Digest Middle East — Fri, 17 Jun 2022 10:13:37 +0000

Callum Tarren waves on the ninth green during Round 1 of the 122nd US Open. Warren Little

By Ryan Herrington
PGA Tour rookie Callum Tarren would like to make playing in the US Open a habit. Same with appearing on the leaderboard, which the 31-year-old from England did on Thursday after teeing it up in the first group off the 10th hole in the opening round and shooting a three-under 67 for a share of the morning lead.

What Tarren would like not to repeat again is losing his golf clubs during the US Open. Unfortunately, he’s gone 2-for-2 in that department.

Tarren played last week at the RBC Canadian Open but missed the cut, so he flew on Saturday from Toronto to Boston. Fearing a difficult check-in process for the international flight, he got to the airport four hours ahead but cruised through. Too quickly perhaps.

Sure enough, when Tarren landed, his clubs were nowhere to be found. “There was five other players on my flight,” he said. “They all got golf clubs.”

MORE: US Open Day 1 wrap

Tarren came out to The Country Club on Sunday and walked with a wedge in hand. Thankfully that afternoon he got a call that his clubs had found their way to Boston.

“Luckily, there was somebody in Canada who went to the airport and gave the airport staff a little kick,” he said. “This time I got them a little bit faster than last. I didn’t actually get them until Wednesday in Pebble Beach a few years ago, so that was a nightmare.”

Indeed, in his first US Open appearance in 2019 at Pebble Beach, Tarren flew from Atlanta to San Francisco and was then supposed to go to Monterey, but the last leg got cancelled due to a bizarre mechanical failure (the cabin door broke when it was closed with a phone charger in the doorway). Tarren paid $450 to take a taxi from San Francisco to Pebble and was told his clubs would be there the next day. But they didn’t make it, the clubs somehow were rerouted to New Orleans and on to Denver.

It led to a few days of panic as Tarren attempted to prepare for the first major championship of his career while practising with borrowed clubs. Not surprisingly, he ended up missing the cut.

With clubs in hand in Brookline, Tarren seemed to get off to a so-so start on Thursday, sitting one-over through his opening nine holes. He then went four-under over his final nine, including a chip-in eagle on the par-5 eighth, his second to last hole.

“I’m kind of pinching myself … I didn’t realize it was on the top of the leaderboard until I pulled that final put on the ninth hole,” Tarren said.

To say Tarren’s spot on the leaderboard is a suprise is an understatement. After earning his tour card by graduating from the Korn Ferry Tour last fall, Tarren missed the cut in seven of his first eight starts. And in the other, he was disqualified. He’s subsequently earned enough FedEx Cup points to sit 107th on the points list entering the week while ranking 444th in the world.

“Just excited with my start, and let’s see what the next few days holds,” he said.

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US Open 2022: Tantrums aside, Rory McIlroy produces the strong start he needed

Golf Digest Middle East — Fri, 17 Jun 2022 04:56:25 +0000

By John Huggan
More than half a century has passed since Lee Trevino completed a remarkable sequence of play and claimed what quickly became known as golf’s ‘Triple Crown’.

Over the course of just 30 days during June/July 1971, the then 31-year old ball-striking genius won three national championships in succession: the Canadian Open, the US Open and the Open Championship.

No one has repeated that extraordinary feat since. But it could happen this year. Following his successful defence of the Canadian Open at St. George’s last weekend, Rory McIlroy kicked off his 14th US Open campaign with a rather nifty 67 at The Country Club. It is just the sort of solid platform that could see the Northern Irishman heading to St Andrews for next month’s 150th Open with Trevino and triple on his mind.

More immediately, McIlroy’s three-under-par total represents further evidence that he is finally cresting a hill of his own making. At least for the moment — and just as he was at Southern Hills in last month’s PGA Championship — he is more clear-headed “morning person” than fuzzy-headed and slow to rise from his slumbers. This four-birdie, one-bogey performance immediately places the four-time major champion front and centre on the leaderboard. Perhaps more importantly, he will also be occupying a similarly prominent place in the hearts and minds of his fellow competitors.

All alone at the top ? @McIlroyRory is making everything @USOpenGolf. pic.twitter.com/KFiY2GmAAG

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 16, 2022

Still, for all that the end result was so obviously pleasing — even with that lone bogey on the ninth, McIlroy’s final hole — it wasn’t all straightforward. In many ways, in fact, this was a typical US Open round. McIlroy hit only 57 per cent of the fairways he aimed at and missed five greens in regulation. But he used his putter only 28 times.

Indeed, as has been the case so often in the recent past, the four-time major champion appeared ill at ease between tee and green over his opening holes. Fairways were being missed, as were putting surfaces. The difference here was that his early putts — the eight-to-10-footers for struggling pars — disappeared into cups rather than sliding disappointingly by. This was McIlroy scoring, not squandering. More of the same over the next couple days will spare us the familiar rampage through the field in tepid weekend pursuit of yet another relatively meaningless “back door top-10”.

All in all, then, McIlroy was happy, even if he was quick to express a lingering frustration over the seemingly straightforward approach he pushed right of the ninth green. “I missed it where you can’t miss it,” was his rueful verdict. Overall, though, he was “pleased”.

“It’s a great start to the tournament,” he confirmed. “You’d take 67 around this golf course any day. I felt like I did most things well. I certainly putted well. And I hit the ball in the right spots. I hit a lot of greens and gave myself plenty of chances. Just basically did everything that you need to do at a US Open. That’s now two majors in a row that I’ve started well. Hopefully I can just keep going from here.”

Significantly, when asked for the highlights of his round, McIlroy pointed directly at the par saves he pulled off at the second and fifth holes. On the former he contrived an unlikely up-and-down from long grass well right of the putting surface. And on the latter -— all while displaying a full range of emotion — the 2011 US Open champion made a 13-footer for a par on the drivable par-4.

Which demands an explanation. McIlroy’s pushed tee shot found an ugly spot in long grass on the edge of a bunker, maybe 70 yards from the flag. If the lie was awkward, his stance was even more so, the ball above his feet. Forced to hold his club on the shaft rather than the grip, McIlroy could only prod the ball into another bunker no more than 15 yards ahead. That depressing outcome provoked a minor tantrum, McIlroy pounding the sand in a manner more usually associated with an irate Sergio Garcia.

“You’re going to encounter things at a US Open that you don’t really encounter any other week,” said McIlroy. “It’s hard not to get frustrated because I’m walking up there going like, ‘just come back into the bunker.’ The thickest rough is around the edges of the bunkers. So I was cursing the USGA going up to the ball. The margins are just so fine in this tournament, and I think you can sort of see that out there with some of the reactions. But you just have to accept it. I gave the sand a couple of whacks because I’d already messed it up. It wasn’t like it was much more work for [caddie] Harry [Diamond]. Then I reset and played a decent bunker shot. It was really nice to hole that putt.”

And shoot a 67 that clearly left him more than satisfied. This was the start McIlroy was looking for, no matter the brief moments of madness — there was also a club toss on the 9th — along the way. More than perhaps anyone else in the field, he had a pressing need for at least a solid beginning. Already there have been too many “over by Friday morning” majors in his career.

“I feel like I’m right in the tournament, which is nice,” he said. “I’m going into tomorrow with the mindset of ‘let’s keep it going,’ rather than ‘where is the cut line?’ If you don’t get off to a great start those thoughts start to creep in. It’s certainly a different mindset when you get off to a good start. I’ve just got to keep it going.”

For only seven more rounds.

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US Open 2022: Why The Country Club’s 14th hole is unlike any other modern par 5

Golf Digest Middle East — Thu, 16 Jun 2022 08:04:52 +0000

The dramatic approach to the 14th green is unlike any other par 5 in the modern game.

By Stephen Hennessey
Consider what you believe a par 5 to be. For tour pros, it’s an automatic birdie opportunity. Make a par, and you’re probably losing strokes to the field.

This week at The Country Club, however, we’ll be treated to course design features not often seen on tour. Blind shots, reverse cambered fairways. And yes, challenging par 5s.

On the eve of the US Open, USGA chief championships officer John Bodenheimer, who oversees the course set-up, and architect Gil Hanse, whose team has led the renovation efforts at The Country Club over the past decade, were talking about the 14th — listed at 619 yards — potentially playing as the toughest hole in the US Open.

That truly challenges everything we’ve been led to believe about how a par 5 plays these days, which is what just one thing that makes The Country Club so intriguing.

“The thing that’s really interesting to me, is that you can’t really make a hard par 5 for the modern player anymore,” Hanse said. “But that’s going to be the case here. And for a par 5 to potentially be the toughest hole out here in this day and age, that’s quite the statement.”

Mind you, regular tour events are not often hosted at pre-Golden Age golf designs, where par 5s sit on topography that rises more than 30 feet in elevation from the fairway to a raised top section — separated by Roxbury puddingstone outcroppings — that were quite literally formed by glaciers.

Here’s what players will face: The fairway is protected by a tree on the left side, promoting players to hit a draw to a fairway protected by heavy US Open rough. Miss the fairway, and players will likely be forced to lay up — as carrying the natural landform will require a mammoth carry upwards of 200 yards up the hill (above). In his practice round, Sam Burns attempted to hit his shot from the rough to the sliver of fairway up the hill and came up about 20 yards short in the high fescue, leaving playing partners Scottie Scheffler and Justin Thomas stunned.

So expect to see a number of layups this week to the edge of the fairway, it’s still 175 yards up to a heavily guarded green that’s shorter than most par 5s on tour.

“When we played this in 1988, it was a darned tough par 4,” said Curtis Strange, the 1988 US Open champion here at Brookline. “If you missed the fairway, you were hacking it out and laying up on a par 4.”

That’s the kind of treat we’re in store for this week. Word is that Rory McIlroy reached the green in two in an early week practice round. Not many others will be able to boast the same.

Watch our drone flyover of the 14th hole here:

It was fascinating to eavesdrop on fans watching practice on the 14th on Wednesday:
“Where’s the green?”
“Is that fairway?”
“Where are they hitting it?”

We’d venture to guess that same chatter has been going on at Brookline for the nearly 100 years that this hole has been in existence. A glorious testament to its design merits.

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US Open 2022: Good breaks brought Sean Jacklin to Brookline, where he’ll put lessons from his Hall of Fame father to the test

Golf Digest Middle East — Thu, 16 Jun 2022 06:27:25 +0000

By John Huggan
He speaks with a mid-Atlantic accent that echoes long-time residence in Florida, despite the fact his famous father is as English as roast beef and Yorkshire pudding. And his mum hails originally from Norway. Despite all this Sean Jacklin, 30-year-old son of 1970 US Open champion Tony, tees it up this week at The Country Club in the 122nd playing of America’s national championship with a Scottish flag fluttering beside his name. It sounds complicated, but the explanation is simple. Jacklin the younger — named after 007 himself, Sean Connery — was born in Scotland during the family’s four-year sojourn in the early 1990s.

When he was two, Sean and family moved to the US — hence his own strong American twang. And his journey to Brookline, while not as lengthy in terms of distance, is quite the saga. All the way through two stages of qualifying, Jacklin, a Florida mini-tour player, has beaten the odds.

“When you are playing on mini-tours all the time, you start wondering if you are ever going to get that break and get out there,” he said. “You question things as time goes on. Things like this make all the down times worth it, and I’m just really grateful.”

During local qualifying at Sara Bay Country Club in Sarasota, Jacklin, who regularly plays with his father’s near-neighbour, 1993 PGA champion Paul Azinger, was bumped into a playoff for an alternate spot by a fellow competitor in the last group of the day. He won that spot, which put him first in line should someone withdraw from Final Qualifying at The Club at Admiral’s Cove in Jupiter. Taking a chance, he drove there the night before. And, when a few players competing on the Latinoamerica Tour couldn’t get there in time, he was in. But only just. Jacklin’s place on the first tee was confirmed only 20 minutes before he drove off.

“I had never played the course, so I went out with one mission: make birdies,” he said of the 137 aggregate (66-71) that saw him claim co-medalist honours. “And I did that. At the end it was like, ‘what just happened?’ I wasn’t even in the sectionals and now I was in the US Open as co-medalist. I was fortunate and lucky to have driven over. I could easily have thought I probably wasn’t going to get in and not bothered. I’m glad I did. And now I’m here. Happy days.”

Even that wasn’t straightforward though. With two holes to play, a weather delay sent Jacklin back to the clubhouse. Pain in his legs wasn’t helping either.

“It was a tough second round as I was cramping up all the time and I was just getting a bit sloppy,” he said. “It was the end of a long day, and I was caddieing for myself and it was just a grind to finish. I was literally worried about not being able to physically finish due to the cramping being so bad that it was keeping me away from thinking about the outcome and I think that might have helped. Anyway, I knew what I had to do the last three holes and I holed a nice four-and-a-half footer for a par on the last.”

Which brings us up to date.

Warren Little

“It’s exciting to be here,” Jacklin said. “The course is in great shape. You can tell the USGA has perfect control over it. I’m just trying to familiarise myself with the place. It’s a demanding test. But if you can keep the ball on the short grass you can give yourself a chance to score. I’m learning where you can go and where you shouldn’t. I’m looking forward to it.

“I’ve been an apprentice of the game for 30 years now. I’ve been privileged to grow up following my dad around on the Champions Tour. I constantly tried to absorb as much wisdom as I can. This week is a new experience though. I’ve never played on a stage like this. As much as I want to play well, I want to be my own best friend and enjoy the week.”

He will have company in that endeavour. On Wednesday, his father Tony — the only European to claim the US Open title between 1926 and 2009 — is scheduled to be at The Country Club and will join his daughter-in-law, Paige, and granddaughter, Margot, on site in support of Sean.

“Obviously, with the history of my dad in the event, I’ve always wanted to follow in his footsteps,” he said. “I know that I’ve always been capable of putting myself in a position like this and now I’ve got to try to not let the moment overtake my ability. It’s my first major, it’s going to be a family affair and it’s something I am looking forward to.

“My dad always says winning the US Open was his greatest achievement,” he continued. “He’s a Hall of Fame golfer, and you always try to follow in the footsteps of your dad. He’s my idol. So this opportunity is very special. I’m going to take it all in and enjoy it as a family. Hopefully, we can start making this more of a routine. I look forward to accepting the challenge.”

Perhaps the only thing is for sure. Jacklin will certainly be, whatever he shoots, the low Scot in the 156-man field.

“There are enough American flags on the leader board,” he said. “I was born in Scotland. And I’m proud of that. I don’t see anything wrong with showcasing that fact and being the lone Scot in the field. It feels good and it’s another unique little titbit about the week.”

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USGA sets US Open purse at a record high for men’s majors

Golf Digest Middle East — Thu, 16 Jun 2022 05:47:31 +0000

Sean M. Haffey

By Ryan Herrington
They’re playing for history at the US Open this week, a major championship title being something everyone in the 156-player field aspires to win. But they’ll be playing for a historic amount of money, too.

On Wednesday, USGA CEO Mike Whan announced that the overall purse for the US Open has been bumped up to $17.5 million, a $5 million increase from 2021. In turn, the winner at The Country Club on Sunday will receive $3.15 million, up from the $2.25 million Jon Rahm took home a year ago at Torrey Pines.

The announcement elevates the US Open into the most lucrative of the four men’s majors, a title previously shared by the PGA Championship and the Masters. Both of those championships raised their purses earlier this year to $15 million.

It’s not so coincidental that the majors would make such substantial moves with their prize money payouts. Much has been made of late about how much is being made by professional golfers. Massive prize money payouts have fuelled interest in the LIV Golf Invitational series, which paid Charl Schwartzel $4 million for his individual victory at last week’s debut event with $20 million given out to the 48 competitors.

On the PGA Tour, the overall prize money payouts in the 2021-22 season have jumped to $427 million, up from $367 million the previous year. And the Players Championship still has a bigger prize money payout ($20 million) than any of the four majors.

The USGA’s increase for the US Open comes after nearly doubling the purse this year for the US Women’s Open, handling out $10 million to the field.

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US Open 2022: Has the major become too one-dimensional?

Golf Digest Middle East — Thu, 16 Jun 2022 05:32:33 +0000

Warren Little

By Joel Beall
Historically, the US Open is not so much a tournament as it is a test. It is both the championship’s aspiration as well as its aura, and at times its Achilles heel, yet there is no doubt that the player who is left standing had earned a respect for passing golf’s most thorough examination. Yet tests themselves warrant scrutiny, and a view of the recent past casts suspicion that the examination is as thorough as believed. Or if there’s now a singular answer that is correct no matter what is asked.

That answer is distance, and its unequivocal importance to winning begs an uncomfortable question: Has the US Open become too one-dimensional?

Make no mistake, the US Open continues to call for conviction, audacity and calculation. But throughout its lifetime it has been known for testing all aspects of the game. Accuracy and power off the tee, approaches that knew when to attack, when to play safe and above all else avoid disaster. Scrambling was not an asset but a prerequisite, and if your putter wasn’t on, neither was your name on the leaderboard.

Those abilities are still needed. How much they are needed, though, has arguably been diminished by power.

Take a glance at the US Open’s recent roll call of winners. Its last six championships have been won by Jon Rahm, Bryson DeChambeau, Gary Woodland, Brooks Koepka (twice) and Dustin Johnson. That’s a lot of farm-boy strength. Ostensibly the last player not known for prodigious length to come out on top was Jordan Spieth at the 2015 US Open at Chambers Bay, yet that’s a bit of a misnomer, too; Spieth finished that season 15th in strokes gained/off-the-tee, above big hitters like Koepka, Jason Kokrak and Tony Finau.

In fact, the last seven winners all finished their seasons in their respective winning years in the top 20 in SG/off-the-tee, with Rahm, DeChambeau and Johnson finishing first or second in the category. Technically SG/approach has a stronger correlation to success at the US Open with five of the last six winners finishing T-6 or better in the stat, and the aberration — Johnson at Oakmont — wasn’t too shabby, either (T-11). However, the case can be made that it’s their power that puts them closer to the hole, leaving a shorter iron in hand and thus an easier second shot. And that said muscle allows them to keep driver in the bag for a 3-wood or long iron to find the fairway, knowing that it can compensate for whatever length is left in the bag. Or that, when they do find the rough, they have the muscle that others do not to give a go at the green rather than resigning to a safe pitch back into the fairway like some of their counterparts.

Bryson DeChambeau rode a bomb-and-gouge approach to win the 2020 US Open. Jamie Squire

It’s that last sentiment that permits a second look and how it pertains to the USGA and setup. For the first two rewards of power hitters — shorter irons in, the latitude to keep the big stick out — are advantages that the governing body can’t do too much about, nor should it: That is a reward that has been earned.

“I think distance has always provided an advantage for people,” says John Bodenhamer, the USGA’s chief championship officer. “You go back, it’s kind of relative in some ways. Bob Jones, when he won, and Jack Nicklaus and Tiger certainly, it’s always been part of it. You should probably have an advantage if you’re a little bit longer.”

But the US Open is supposed to put a premium on accuracy, not just in finding the fairway but the proper angle to allow for the best approach. Miss the fairway entirely and you’re hoping to advance the ball enough to retain a chance at par. That is the ideal, at least.

Not only are power hitters getting away without retribution, the rest of the field is actually more penalised. One of the common complaints from players at Winged Foot in 2020 and to an extent Torrey Pines last summer was that the fairways were so narrow that no one could hit them. If you’re taking away the field’s answer to distance in accuracy, the disparity between the long and the rest is even wider. The stats back this up: Only Koepka finished his week inside the top 20 in accuracy off the tee, and even that deserves an asterisk, as it came at Erin Hills, whose runaways were five-lanes wide.

To be fair, it’s not that recent US Open winners are merely bomb-and-gougers; few in the sport own games as complete as the reigning champ, Rahm. Moreover this trend is not unique to the US Open. What transpires at this event mirrors what you see weekly on the PGA Tour, and the PGA Championship has likewise been dominated over the past decade by players who are far from short. The Masters hasn’t been quite as affected, a byproduct of Augusta National’s standing as perhaps the best second-shot course in this country, while the Open Championship has been the most immune to the debate, as the Claret Jug requires a game played on the ground rather than the sky.

Conversely, as stated above, the US Open has fused its DNA to presenting a challenge more exhaustive than its counterparts, where pars matter and “good bogey” isn’t said in jest. When that challenge appears watered down, it calls for a larger discussion.

J. Stuart Francis, USGA President; Mike Whan, CEO of the USGA and John Bodenhamer, Chief Championships Officer, speak to the media at The Country Club on June 15, 2022 in Brookline, Massachusetts. Rob Carr

One of the ongoing conversations over the past decade has been distance gains, and the USGA — which governs equipment regulations in the United States — recently dropped a few more logs into the fire. In a notice to manufacturers on June 8, the USGA and R&A expanded its “areas of interest” regarding potential rules changes that would serve to not merely curb current distance at all levels of the game but at the tour level likely roll it back to distance levels from the 1990s.

“We’ve got to be the group that thinks about 30 years from now,” USGA CEO Mike Whan said. “Is this golf course obsolete to a certain level of players, or are golf courses like this never going to be built close to a city again because of the footprint?

“So what we’re trying to do is address the slope of a curve long-term. I think when we make changes that we’re proposing right now in distance, if we go through that process, people are going to be longer six years from now than they are today because guys are going to get stronger, more athletic, and I said that to the Tour players. … But we also need to slow down the curve of that line, the pace of that line in whatever we’re trying to address just to make sure that the game doesn’t outpace itself, and we wake up 30 years from now where our kids enter a game that’s weaker than the game we entered as kids.”

It seems the USGA knows how things are going, and where they are heading, are not sustainable for how this tournament is played and where the game wants to go. But when that will change and how remain uncertain. On multiple occasions Wednesday, Whan called the process “deliberate”.

True, the early reviews from Brookline forecast a championship traditionalists will love. “You need everything,” Rahm said. “You need to drive well, hit your irons well, chip well, and putt well and be mentally sane for four days. You can’t hide, period. I think that your biggest asset is mental strength out here, and that’s what you need.”

Justin Thomas added: “You always know the US Open is a grind. That’s why I love it. I think that’s why a lot of guys love it. It’s one of the few times of the year you’re kind of playing more in relation to par, and par is a good score. Driving the ball is going to be very important this week. I think like any major, especially the US Open, scrambling and salvaging and making those putts for par can kind of be the momentum builders.”

And according to Bodenhamer the things that are supposed to matter at US Opens will matter at The Country Club.

“What we do in a US Open, we endeavor to have the players get every club in their bag dirty,” Bodenhamer said. “This will be a good old-fashioned US Open with rough, and we’ll see how they navigate that and what they use off the tee,” Bodenhamer says. “It is not our narrowest, but will provide narrowness. I am telling you with these small greens and the firmness, they’re going to need to be in the fairway.”

Of course, there’s a difference between practice round recon and tournament play. After years of presenting golf’s most difficult test, the players have figured out the answer key. The Country Club is the USGA’s chance to offer a response.

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