Ogilvy post Open

Most weeks out on the golf circuit, the players and the media don't stay in the same hotel. But we are this week at the U.S. Open.

In the halls and the lobby at the Crowne Plaza in White Plains this week, I have bumped into all manner of pros, from Jose Maria to Adam Scott. Not 10 minutes ago, I returned from grabbing a post-Open beer and burger in the lounge downstairs, where not 20 feet from me the new Open champion, Geoff Ogilvy, was celebrating with friends and well-wishers. Changed into jeans and a tee shirt, he and his wife were surrounded by about 30 fans, as they drank champagne from the Open cup. He posed for photos and signed anything anybody put in front of him.

Ogilvy is a quality player, and he will be heard from again. But in a way, I felt for him, because the 2006 U.S. Open will go down not as the one Ogilvy won but as the one Phil Mickelson blew.