Tiger on Phil flubbing the Open

Check out these juicy excerpts from Tiger Woods' pre-Western Open interview...

Q. Did you watch the end of the U.S. Open?

TIGER WOODS: You know, I watched both days. That was my punishment.

Q. Thoughts on Montgomerie and Mickelson?

TIGER WOODS: I thought in my opinion that it was Monty's tournament. In the fairway on 18 with -- not only in the fairway, he was on the right side, on the flat spot with a perfect angle with his fade. It doesn't get any better than that. With Phil on the tee, anything can still happen. He could still make bogey on the last hole and lose the tournament. I thought it was Monty's tournament, put the ball on the green and it's over. Obviously that didn't happen, and then Phil had his mistakes. It was a very interesting finish, one that none of us who are involved in the game of golf probably ever would have predicted we would have seen happening.

Q. Will Phil be able to brush off what happened to him at Winged Foot?

TIGER WOODS: I don't know. (Translation: I hope not)
More than likely to stay competitive you have to, especially in our sport. In our sport we fail more times than we succeed. Failure is a part of our sport; that's just the way it is. You pick yourself up off the ground and you have the next week to play. If we had a percentage very similar to baseball, if you put a .300 in your winning percentage, you'd have one hell of a career. But that's normally not the case. Your winning percentage is a lot lower than that, and you have to deal with losses quite a bit. It's nothing new to him, nothing new to any of us. You pick yourself up, dust yourself off, come back out the next week and play.

Q. What did you not playing on the weekend?

TIGER WOODS: I went spear fishing and came back and have been working on my game ever since.

Q. How frustrating was the U.S. Open?

TIGER WOODS: You know, it's something I don't normally do, missing the weekend at a major championship. Missing a weekend means that you have no opportunity to win the tournament. With the way I was playing, I felt if I could just get into the weekend and play two good rounds, I figured the guys would come back. I never even gave myself that opportunity to even fight for the championship.

Q. After Phil won The Masters there was a lot of talk about a rivalry between you and Phil. Your sense of the history and the Ernie and Jack legend, would you look forward to that rivalry blossoming?

TIGER WOODS: Well, all my career I've had rivals with Ernie, for a stretch with Vijay, with Duval, and I've had it with Phil. Just as long as I'm part of each conversation over the rest of my career (laughter), it's never a bad thing. (Translation: Don't mistake these pikers for No. 1 me).

Q. Were you ready to play the U.S. Open?

TIGER WOODS: I was rusty. I didn't execute properly, there's no doubt about that. There's no excuses for it. I had the same opportunities as everybody else to hit shots and I didn't do it.

It was very disappointing because I had good practice sessions, I felt I was prepared, and come game time I did not hit the proper shots. I didn't putt well on top of that, and it was just bad from tee to green.

Q. Can you speak about Sean O'Hair?

TIGER WOODS: Sean is good. I'll tell you, he's got just an enormous amount of talent, and on top of that, he is a nice guy. He really is fun to be around, and I think that he's got the proper mental attitude and approach to be successful, and not only be successful but be successful for a long period of time out here.

Q. Did you get a text message from Annika after she won on Monday?

TIGER WOODS: Yeah, she texted me (laughter). We're all square now. That's fine, we do that all the time to each other. It's fun having a friend who's competitive just like I am. She's one of the greatest that's ever played this sport. To see her go out there and how she prepares, it's pretty phenomenal to watch, not only from the golf standpoint but from the physicality standpoint of the effort level she puts into it. There's really no surprise why she's that successful if you watch how she prepares.

Q. Thoughts on Michelle Wie playing the John Deere Classic next week?

TIGER WOODS: I'll tell you what, she's playing great from what I've seen in the highlights, the way she's hitting it, it's been phenomenal. She's missed a couple of putts here and there, but overall she's hitting it great.

I think at the John Deere, that golf course is a little bit more wide open, where she can go ahead and let it go like she did last year and get it out there. There really is not that much trouble. I think she can go ahead and free-wheel it and let it go and hopefully she can make the cut.

Q. Has time helped since your father passed away?

TIGER WOODS: I'm sure it gets easier, but it's something you'll never, ever forget. I don't think it's ever something you ever really want to forget or ever really want to truly put behind you because having a parent that is so loving in your life and that you love so much, you never, ever forget that. Life lessons always come about, each and every day. I've talked to a bunch of my friends who have gone through it before, and they think about their lost parent every day. It happens.
That's something I've done and I will continue to do probably for the rest of my life.

Q. White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said he would bet he could make a par on the PGA TOUR before you could get a hit in a major league game.

TIGER WOODS: I'd make a bet on that.

Mickelson's interview...

Here are exerpts from Phil Mickelson's pre-tournament interview at the Western Open.

PHIL MICKELSON: I'm looking forward to getting back and playing here. I haven't been to the Western Open in a few years. Already we're off to a fun night. We got here last night and there were fireworks all over the city that the kids saw. Another fun night tonight, we're going to take in a ballgame later this week, so it's been a fun week that we have scheduled for our family.

I have no idea what you might ask (laughter).

Q. Let's just get it out of the way. Nice to get back playing after a tough Open?

PHIL: It is. I think the biggest thing about that is that I don't want the one hole to affect my play in the next couple of majors, and so I've already been over to Hoylake, spent a few days there already doing most of the major prep work because if I can get that out of the way, I can focus more on getting my golf game ready for the tournament if I'm not doing all the preparation work.

I felt like I didn't execute the way I wanted to at the Open, and heading into the British, I want to make sure I have all the preparation work done, that I am able to focus on the shots that I need to hit and see if I can get execution to be sharp in the upcoming major.

Q. How long did it take for you to get it out of your system, and is it out of your system?

PHIL: Well, I'm not ever going to forget it, that's obvious. But what I'm not going to do is let it affect negatively my performance in upcoming majors. I've got two more this year. I'm playing too well, and I've got a system of preparation that has been helping me play some of my best golf, and right now I'm excited about the chances at Hoylake.

(Dave) Pelz and I have been mapping out our game plan over there. We've got the shots we want to hit. We're working on them this week. I've got Rick (Smith) here this week helping me to get those shots tight, and I'll be heading over right after this tournament to get ready for the British. I just don't want that one bad hole, again, to negatively affect the way I perform in the upcoming majors.

Q. Have you replayed, or at what point did you quit replaying that hole in your mind, and when you replayed it, if you did, would you have done anything different in retrospect?

PHIL: Well, I would have parred it (laughter).

Q. Club selection? You know what I mean.

PHIL: I know what you're saying. Fortunately what I have found has helped me play well or have that type of performances these past years in the majors is that I've done the prep work beforehand and I know what club selection I'm going to hit off each tee, given weather conditions, whether it's raining, whether it's hot or not. I already know and have known for weeks in advance what clubs I'm got to hit off each tee, so it's helped me approach the tee box with confidence knowing what club I'm going to hit.

It helped me when I hit the driver on 18 at Baltusrol on the last hole and ended up making a birdie. It helped me at The Masters knowing what club and what driver I was going to hit off each tee, and it helped me at the U.S. Open. Unfortunately I didn't execute the way I wanted to.

But it has erased a lot of the doubt as to the decision-making, what club am I going to hit, what club should I hit. I already know weeks in advance, and it helps me hit those shots and visualize those shots in practice before I ever show up the week of The Open.


Q. How about 18? Did you have an option there?

PHIL: Not for me, no. I couldn't get an iron or a wood past the turn of the dogleg. It set up perfect for a cut driver.

The difficulty that I had was I couldn't miss it left. I missed it left earlier in the week and fought to make bogey. Missed it left on Sunday and made double.

The second hole at the U.S. Open, I said, "Do not go right, stay left," because from left you have an angle up the green, you could run a shot up, get close, but from the right the trees cut you out. I missed it right four days in a row. My execution just wasn't what I wanted that week, and yet I fought and hung in there, and unfortunately I just needed to hang in there one more hole and wasn't able to do it.

Q. You beat yourself up pretty bad in the post-tournament comments after the Open. How long did you continue to beat yourself up over that?

PHIL: Well, again, that night it was decided that I'm not going to let one hole or one bad hole affect my upcoming tournaments. Sure, it's disappointing not to win the Open. I told you how much I wanted to win it. But I've got two more majors coming up, I'm playing too well to let one bad hole affect it, and I've got a pretty good game plan for the British.

Q. Not to harp on this, you said the decision was made that night not to let one hole affect the rest of your play. But what did you do? Once you left the course, once you got out from in front of all of us, did you go home, let the kids hug you? Did you fly back, put the clubs down for a couple days?

The trip home, the kids...

PHIL: We flew home Monday. I took my oldest daughter Amanda, who didn't have school - our other two did on Tuesday - to a club pool there, and we swam for six, seven hours that day. We went to Disneyland on Wednesday to celebrate her birthday. We had a great week, had a fun week. It could have been really fun (laughter), but it was just fun.

Q. How did you explain what happened at Winged Foot to your children? Is Amanda the only one old enough to really understand what happened?

PHIL: It basically went, "Did you win, Daddy?" "No." "I'm sorry. Do you want pizza?" Something like that.

Amy, am I close?

AMY MICKELSON: A little bit of "Second is so good, Daddy."

Q. When you won it at Augusta, it started a whole sort of fever about "Tiger and Phil." Do you let yourself daydream about what that would be like if the two of you were in the last group here or at a major?

PHIL: Not really. I mean, I would love to -- I love playing against him head-to-head. My record against him, again, is less than stellar. But I love having the chance to compete against the best players in the world, and he certainly is the best. There are a number of other guys, too, that are up there that I love playing against that are fun. Whether you win or lose, it makes for a fun day, a fun experience.

Nix the USGA's 18-hole play-off format

I'm with the AP's Doug Ferguson on the issue of the the USGA's 18-hole Monday play-off format being antiquated and punishing on the players, fans, tournament volunteers and everybody else.

For further proof, all you had to do was watch -- or endure -- Monday's dragged-out finish to the U.S. Women's Open, won by Annika Sorenstam.

For Fergy's Fringe column, click here.

No tears, no fears: Mickelson is back in action

Three weeks after he blew the U.S. Open, Phil Mickelson is back in action at this week's Western Open in Chicago. As Melanie Hauser notes in her story for pgatour.com, that Sunday night after the Open there were no tears, no fetal position for Mickelson. There was no time to wallow in self-pity, swapped as he was by his wife and three young kids.

For more on Lefty's chat with the media, click here.
And here's the AP's version of Mickelson's return.

Like fathers, like sons in Philly Boys' Junior

The final match of GAP's Philadelphia Boys' Junior Championship has come down to the sons from two prominent golf families: Matt Raudenbush of Pine Valley, son of Pine Valley head pro Charley Raudenbush and Michael Kania of Overbrook GC, son of top amateur Jim Kania.

For the details of the Junior and how Raudenbush and Kania reached the finals, click here to read the GAP coverage.

On vacation...

I'm outtahere for a week.

Paddy backs Lefty

Padraig Harrington, who had his own troubles at the U.S. Open, finishing with a string to three straight bogeys to fall to 5th place, thinks Phil Mickelson was right to hit driver on the fateful 18th.

But Paddy doesn't feel all that much sympathy for Mickelson or Colin Montgomerie, another victim of a sad meltdown. Here's excerpts from Harrington's pre-tournament interview at this week's Booz Allen Classic.

Q. As badly as you feel, what you think Monty and Phil must be thinking at this point.

PADRAIG HARRINGTON: I don't take any comfort from anybody else's pain. I've got my own pain to worry about. I'm not going to worry about them. Phil Mickelson has won the last two majors before that. I wouldn't second guess anything he did. Actually, if I was going to comment on that, I would say he hit the right club off the tee on 18.

Q. Tell me why.

PADRAIG HARRINGTON: Well, the bunker is perfect. Not perfect, but it's not far off perfect. Once you hit it in the bunker or the first cut of rough on either side of the fairway, you can advance it up to the green. It was a pretty easy pin position on 18. You know, driver, get it down there, even if he misses the fairway, would mean he should get it around the green, on the green. I definitely think he played the right club for him. I don't think he carried the 3 wood. I would have hit 3 wood, but that would have been the right club for me. Looking back, I think he made the right choice in terms of his club selection offer the tee. I don't know what the second shot was like. He did win the last two majors before that. I wouldn't be judging him, let's say.

Q. How about Monty?

PADRAIG HARRINGTON: He probably got a little bit caught like me, that he wanted to make probably trying to make birdie down the last. When he missed the green, thinking that he needed to make at least four, running the putt by, you know, it's strange how often in a major you think you got to do things at the end. To be honest, sometimes you do. This is the problem. Nobody is a soothsayer or can tell what the winner's score is going to be. If Monty turned around at the last, he chipped it by 30 feet by the hole, he was a bit unlucky it didn't come back down, say he left it short and 2 putted, Phil finished four over, he would have been sick about it. You just can't tell what's going to happen. So many times, it does happen that guys like myself, Monty, Phil, make mistakes at the end. At other times, somebody does good things like Geoff Ogilvy chips in. You have to play every shot you think you need to play at the time. I'm sure Monty did that.

Paddy on the set-up at Winged Foot...

Q. Was last week the toughest setup that you faced in your career?

PADRAIG HARRINGTON: I actually thought last week was as straightforward a golf course as I've ever, ever played. That's one of the reasons why I feel so gutted. I think that's why so many of the Europeans did well. Like everything was in front of you. There wasn't a golf shot on that golf course that couldn't be hit, that couldn't be played. Maybe besides the pin on the back left of 18 and the pin on the front left of 18 were typical U.S. Open pins that I've seen in many years, you're looking at it saying, How am I going to get there? Certainly the front left pin in 18. You're playing I'm hitting my third shot in there Saturday. I'm trying to hit it to 60 feet away from the hole as my good shot. That's a tough mental thing to do, to try to hit a shot to 60 feet, and that's being your good shot. I pulled it toward the flag. I'm trying to hit a good shot that's going nowhere near it. That's usually what happens at the U.S. Open. This time everything was very straightforward, very fair. I've got to say, it was I say it was easy in terms of how the course played. Hit the fairway, hit the middle of the green. There was no shot there. I think, as well, with all the greens sloping back to front, I hit the ball low. There was no issue with me flying a ball in, trying to stop or hit it high. Most of the time there was plenty of room, you could hit it in and it would stop because of the slope of the green or you wanted to release up the green. Haven't come across a U.S. Open golf course that suited me as much as last week's course did.

Mickelson's misery

Days after blowing the Open, Phil Mickelson is still beating himself up. "It was how and when it happened," Mickelson's swing coach, Rick Smith, told Tommy Bonk of the LA Times.

For more on Mick's misery, click here.

My Round at Winged Foot

A day after Phil Mickelson and Colin Montgomerie gagged at the U.S. Open, I did a little gagging of my own at Winged Foot.

As it does most years, the USGA held a lottery for the media for a Monday morning round, and this year I was among the lucky. I played with Peter Kessler, formerly of the Golf Channel, now of XM Radio. It was 90 degrees and I was exhausted from the week of 12-14 hour days at the Open, which came on the heels of a long previous week at the McDonald's LPGA Championship.

This, of course, is my way of explaining just how badly I stunk, starting with the snowman on the the first hole. The new graduated rough at the Open was universially hailed, but let me tell you, when you got into the deep stuff, there was no gettin' out.

I hooked my opening tee shot into the grizzly green gnarl. Before I found it, I walked past my ball, over my ball and around the ball about three times. Even with a sand wedge, it was all I could do to hack it 30 feet not-so-forward -- into more of the deep stuff.

I do agree with Tiger Woods that the greens were a bit slow by Open standards. I'd guess they were running at about 10 on the Stimpmeter, which is slow. But I didn't think the greens were as bumpy as I expected after all the complaining by players.

Bottom line: It is an awesome course, easily one of my favorite Open venues.

Mulligan's Laws, Part 5

More truisms from the book Mulligan's Laws: A Lifetime of Golfing Wisdom from the Genius Who Invented the Do-Over:

It is surprisingly easy to hole a 50-foot putt when you lie 10.

Never leave your opponent with the sole responsibility for thinking of all the things that might go wrong with his shot.

The more often your opponent quotes the rules, the greater the certainty that he cheats.

Top 10

U.S. Open winner Geoff Ogilvy on Letterman

Top Ten Things That Went Through Geoff Ogilvy's Mind After Winning The U.S. Open

10. "This is one of those things you never forget like seeing John Daly in the locker room naked"

9. "I wish I hand't put all my money on Phil Mickelson"

8. "Even I've never heard of me"

7. "Now I can take a vacation from the grind of playing golf all day"

6. "Crap - - I'm gonna have to go on Letterman"

5. "After all these years, I can finally use my 'World's Greatest Golfer' mug"

4. "I can quit my day job at Outback Steakhouse"

3. "What would Reteif Goosen do?"

2. "I hope this victory isn't overshadowed by America's world cup excitment"

1. "Thank you, Balco!"

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.

Mickelson at the Open: OUCH!

Share Phil's pain. Read excerpts from his Open-ending interview:

Q. Talk about the disappointment that you must be feeling.
PHIL MICKELSON: Well, I still am in shock that I did that. I just can't believe that I did that. I am such an idiot. I just couldn't hit a fairway all day.

I tried to go to my bread and butter shot, a baby carve slice on 18 and just get it in the fairway, and I missed it left. I just can't believe I couldn't par the last hole. It really stings.

As a kid I dreamt of winning this tournament. I came out here and worked hard all four days, haven't made a bogey all week and then bogeyed the last hole. Even a bogey would have gotten me into a playoff. I just can't believe I did that.

Q. How is it different with this loss than the last two times when you finished second at the Open considering the success and the work you've made and the confidence and maturity in your game or have you had time to think about it?

PHIL MICKELSON: This one hurts more than any tournament because I had it won. I came out here a week or two ago in the evenings, just spending the evenings on the last four holes thinking that I would just need to make four pars, that there's a good chance if I can just make four pars on Sunday, I could do it. I made a good par on 15, bogeyed 16 and doubled 18.
So it hurts because I had it in my grasp and just let it go. As opposed to somebody making a long putt or what have you.

Q. What happened on the second shot? What was your lie like?
PHIL MICKELSON: I had a good lie. I had to hit a big carving slice around the tree and over cut it, just like I over cut the tee shot and some of the other shots. Obviously, in hindsight, if I hit it in the gallery and it doesn't cut, I am fine. I can still make bogey, even par. I ended up hitting the tree.

Q. You were trying to go around the tree, not over it?
PHIL MICKELSON: Around, yeah.

Q. When it didn't clear, what ran through your mind when you didn't do that?
PHIL MICKELSON: Again, I just couldn't believe it.

Q. Was there something that was right in your eye?
PHIL MICKELSON: I was far enough back where I could move it around and get it up on the green, or certainly by it. I had a nice lie and just over cut it, just cut too quick right in the tree.

Q. Were you playing for par on that second shot or bogey?
PHIL MICKELSON: Well, I was playing for a par. If I would make par, I'd win the tournament. I just thought, "I can slice this." I had 185 front, 201, I think, to the hole. I thought I'd just put the 3 iron on the green, or if not on it, around it, and get up and down.

Q. (Inaudible).
PHIL MICKELSON: No, I didn't have a 3 wood. I carried only a 4 wood. I felt like if I hit 4 wood and missed the fairway, I'd be too far back to do any good, to be able to chase one down there. I just tried to go to that little bread and butter carve slice, like I used at 13 at Augusta and some other holes, and over cut that, too.

Q. What were your options on the second shot at 18? Was one to hit it into the bleacher?
PHIL MICKELSON: I didn't think that was an option. I had it cutting around the tree, but just too early.

Q. It was hard to stop, I imagine?
PHIL MICKELSON: It was buried. It plugged in the lip on 16, plugged in its divot on 18. I don't know what happened in those bunkers. I've never seen so much sand all week. Where those balls were, I just had very difficult shots.

Q. (Inaudible) what did you see there and what were you trying
PHIL MICKELSON: On 5? Well, I hit that shot better or can get it better out of the rough than a sand wedge, and I couldn't get a sand wedge back to the fairway it was sitting down so much. I kind of figured that might happen, but I didn't really have another shot at it.

Q. The second shot on 18, how close was that to being a perfect shot, maybe a foot or two?
PHIL MICKELSON: No, it wasn't that close. It over cut quite a bit. It had to go through it. Instead it hit a branch and went right back at me.

Q. How do you think you'll bounce back, Phil?
PHIL MICKELSON: Well, I'll head over to the British and try to get ready for that tournament. This one is going to take a little while to get over. This one is pretty disappointing.

Q. You mentioned that after a major gets over you spend three days in bed. Is that what's on the menu?

PHIL MICKELSON: Oh, yeah.

Mulligan's Laws, Part. 4

The less skilled the player, the more likely he is to share his ideas about the golf swing.

When your shot has to carry over a water hazard, you can either hit one more club or two more balls.

Golfers who claim they never cheat also lie.

Tiger's Open digs

Tiger Woods is gone from the U.S. Open, but not before bringing out gawkers who wanted to have a look at his yacht, Privacy, which he docked five minutes from the course.

One morning, when he emerged from below deck to head for the course, he was met by a photographer from the New York Post. Tiger had a few choice words for him.

For more, check out this story in the New York Times.

Ferrie Facts

If you don't know diddly about Kenneth Ferrie, the Englishman who shares the lead of the U.S. Open with Phil Mickelson, you're not alone. Not even the European golf writers know too much him.

Since Saturday night, I've spoken to three of my writer friends from London and Dublin and they all shake their heads. "I don't know where this is coming from," said one of them.

In his post-round interviews, Ferrie seems like a nice enough guy.

Here's Ferrie's player profile from the Open media guide:

KENNETH FERRIE
Birthdate: September 28, 1978
Birthplace: Ashington, England
Age: 27 Ht: 6'4" Wt: 245
Home: Ashington, England
Turned Professional: 1999
Joined European Tour: 2001
European Tour Playoff record: 1-0
European Tour Wins: 2, - 2003 Canarias Open De Espana, 2005 Smurfit European Open

Player Notes: Claimed his maiden European Tour title when he beat Peter Hedblom and Peter Lawrie at the second playoff hole at the 2003 Canarias Open de España. The 2002 winner had been Sergio Garcia which was appropriate for it was not the first time the pair's names had been placed side by side on a trophy, the first one being the British Boys Championship which Ferrie won in 1996 and Garcia won in 1997…Secured his card for the European Tour for the first time at the Qualifying School Finals in 2000. Won the Tessali Open del Sud on the Challenge Tour that year and finished joint runner-up the following week, but was unable to claim one of the precious 15 cards available through that route. Finished 193rd on the Volvo Order of Merit in 2001 but went to the Qualifying School Finals that year and took the 16th card. Narrowly avoided a return in 2002 when he finished 112th on the Volvo Order of Merit, his best finish being a share of third place in the Novotel Perrier Open de France. Coached by John Harrison. Brother, Iain, has also played on the Challenge Tour.

Claimed the biggest title of his career in July 2005 when he stood firm as others faltered at The K Club in Ireland to win the Smurfit European Open. Nearly followed that up with another victory in the Dunhill Links Championship in October but was overhauled by Colin Montgomerie in a thrilling last-round duel on the Old Course at St Andrews. Biggest disappointment of the year was narrowly losing out to Nick Dougherty for the final automatic place in the Great Britain and Ireland team for the Seve Trophy in his native northeast of England but took considerable consolation from the fact that he finished the year 11th on the Order of Merit, by far his best season on Tour.

2001 PGA European Tour Summary: Tournaments entered - 20; in money - 7; top-10 finishes - 0; stroke average 73.44 (ranked 197th); money _30,330 & £18,585 (ranked 193rd); best finish, T12th, North West of Ireland Open.
2002 PGA European Tour Summary: Tournaments entered - 20; in money - 7; top-10 finishes - 3; stroke average 72.71 (ranked 149th); money _182,625 & £116,444 (ranked 112th); best finish, T3rd, Novotel Perrier Open de France.

2003 PGA European Tour Summary: Tournaments entered - 30; in money - 16; top-10 finishes - 3; stroke average 71.87 (ranked 103rd); money _628,539 & £438,223 (ranked 34th); winner Canarias Open de Espana.

2004 PGA European Tour Summary: Tournaments entered - 26; in money - 16; top-10 finishes - 2; stroke average 72.01 (ranked 103rd); money _281,200 & £194,457 (ranked 72nd); best finish 9th, Linde German Masters.

2005 PGA European Tour Summary: Tournaments entered - 28; in money - 19; top-10 finishes - 5; stroke average 71.93 (ranked 108th); money _1,410,636 & £953,448 (ranked 11th); Winner, Sumrfit European Open.

Mulligan's Laws, Part. 3

More pearls of wisdom from Mulligan's Laws: A Lifetime of Golfing Wisdom from the Genius Who Invented the Do-Over.

Don't play with anyone who would question a 7.

No matter how badly you are playing, it is always possible to play worse.

Never try to keep more than 300 separate thoughts in your mind during your swing.

David Duval at the podium

Q. You had fun with the crowd, didn't you, today?
DAVID DUVAL: They really seemed behind me. You know, I've always enjoyed playing up in this area. I've only missed the Westchester event when I've had to miss it. You know, I think they get to see me a lot, and they know I'm coming back and playing well, and they're pulling for me.

Q. (Inaudible).
DAVID DUVAL: I know, I've never led anybody to believe otherwise. If it's not my favorite, it's tied for my favorite event of the year with the Open Championship. I think especially in the last couple years, the golf courses have been set up just how they should be and have been fair and just, extremely hard.

Q. There was a nine stroke discrepancy between yesterday and today. What was working for you today and didn't work yesterday?
DAVID DUVAL: You know, I made some putts and hit the ball just a little bit better.

Here he gets testy, the Duval of old...
Q. The state of your game, even though the scores aren't always there, have you been feeling the last few months or several months
DAVID DUVAL: I guess you haven't been listening. I've been saying that for I don't know how long and nobody wants to seem to listen. I'm playing well. I'll say it again, I'm playing very well. I made some putts today a couple times when I needed to to keep my round going. I did it, and the little things added up a little bit better today than they have the past six months of this year so far.

Q. You're pretty confident over the ball, and after you stroked it on the par putts on 4, 5 and 9, are you feeling a lot better on the greens?
DAVID DUVAL: Yeah, I felt better today than yesterday. I struggled getting comfortable yesterday. Today I felt a lot more comfortable over the ball. I felt like I was aiming the ball a lot better than I did yesterday.

Q. Talk about the 6th hole.
DAVID DUVAL: My third shot?

Q. Yeah.
DAVID DUVAL: I didn't have an out. I felt like I had to play right of the hole and try to get it on the green over there. If I'm aiming at the flag area or even left and it grabs the hosel, go right over the green in the hazard and I'd really have a problem. The mistake there wasn't any of the shots I played, any of the six shots I played. Well, I guess it was the first shot was the mistake I made, and it wasn't so much because it was a bad shot; you have those. It was not even close to the right club. I'm hitting the ball on a string and there's no reason I shouldn't hit it right on the front of the green or in the left bunker or something. It's only 300 yards, 310 yards to the front. Anywhere up around there I can get it on the green.

...more testiness...
Q. Just your thoughts on making the cut in a major and being here on the weekend.
DAVID DUVAL: I guess that's the difference between you and me; I don't think that way. I'm not thinking along those lines of whether I've done it recently or not. It's a matter of confidence and how I'm playing and my results haven't been nearly what I thought they should be this year up to this point, and I just look forward to a really good second half of the year.

Q. Is your confidence growing month by month or week by week or even day by day?
DAVID DUVAL: All those. I felt like I played pretty well at Augusta overall. I had a big test ahead of me for the last 16 holes of that tournament, I guess holes 20 through 36 for me. I guess that's where some of the hardships of how I've played the last few years, that's where the importance of little things like that come into play. I know I'm playing well and I certainly am not going to pack it in, but at that point I've got no chance of making the cut.
But I'm not going to quit. I'm going to keep playing and building on it.

Q. How does it feel to be in contention again?
DAVID DUVAL: Well, you know what, it feels wonderful. Simple things like last week, I'm scratching my head. I felt like after two days I should be in contention and I don't even get to play on the weekend. I hit the ball well enough to be doing that, but the little things, unless you're out following and seeing an entire round of golf. You see the scores when you get done and you don't know what happened. It's those little things that need to add up in a round of golf that haven't for me.

Like I said, I felt great last week, hit the ball well. I could have hit a few more greens, but I really struggled with those real soft poa annua greens with the amount I spin the ball. It was hard to get to the flags. I felt great coming here. I was prepared and ready to play.

Tiger at the Open: The exit interview

Q. Tiger, just trouble again with the greens?
TIGER WOODS: I didn't execute properly today. I didn't drive the ball all that great, didn't hit my irons well and didn't have the speed again, so not a good combo.

Q. Tell us what your emotional state is right now.
TIGER WOODS: Pissed. That pretty much sums it up right there. I thought I was playing well enough to shoot an under par round today, and I didn't do that.

Q. Was it rust?
TIGER WOODS: No, not rust. Unfortunately I just didn't put it together at the right time. I just didn't execute properly, and consequently, I shot 6 over.

Q. Was there a moment today where (inaudible).
TIGER WOODS: No.

Q. You thought as you kept grinding, you still thought you were going to turn it around?
TIGER WOODS: You've always got to feel that way. I felt like if I just kept going, kept plodding along, I could have turned it around any time with one putt or one shot. And I made two good saves there on 18 and 1 and thought that that would be pretty good. Then made a good par there on 3. All in all, I thought I could have turned it around there.

Q. This is kind of a tough tournament and a tough venue to come back. Talk about that.
TIGER WOODS: It is. It's playing really hard. The golf course is very difficult. The wind is up now, just like it was yesterday afternoon. Marginal shots are just going to get killed here; it's just the nature of this golf course. Any U.S. Open, but more so on this golf course, but any U.S. Open venue that we play, any marginal shot here just gets penalized more so than any other Open.

Q. You've never missed a cut in a major. Can you talk about that?
TIGER WOODS: It's not something you want to have happen. I've gone, I guess, a while without missing one. Unfortunately I missed this one, and hopefully I can win the British.

Q. (Inaudible).
TIGER WOODS: Yeah, I knew if I made one birdie coming in and a couple pars, the ten shot rule would get me in.

Q. 20/20 hindsight, would you have (inaudible).
TIGER WOODS: No, I was not ready to play golf.

Q. What's next?
TIGER WOODS: Practice.

Q. Will you play before the British?
TIGER WOODS: Probably the Western.

Q. You said coming into this you felt really good about where your game was. How shocking is this to you?
TIGER WOODS: More frustrating than anything else because I was hitting the ball really well. I struggled all week with getting the speed of these things because they were slower the mindset of a U.S. Open is really slick greens, and these aren't. I struggled all week trying to hit the putts hard enough, and then yesterday it bit me right at the start.

Once I adjusted, as I said yesterday, it was too late. Then today they were nice; they were a little bit faster but still on the slow side. Uphill putts are really slow, and downhill putts just don't quite run out. You have to make the adjustment, and I didn't do that.

Q. Considering what you've had to deal with off the golf course, did it help you to maybe deal with disappointment in tournament play in a major when things don't work out? Is there any way that you've changed or matured with respect to your game and your results?
TIGER WOODS: When you don't execute, you're not going to be happy either way. What's transpired off the golf course, I don't know if it gives you a different type of perspective. But I don't care if you had what transpired in my life of recent or not, but poor execution is never going to feel very good.

Merion in '13 -- The Announcement

And let's go straight to the video ta -- er, ah, excerpts of the transcript of the press conference with USGA president Walter Driver, championship committee chairman Jim Hyler and executive director David Fay:

This is Driver talking...

The second announcement I want to make is that the 2013 US Open will be conducted at Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, Pennsylvania. We're really excited about this. It's a great golf course, a great club, wonderful connections with the USGA for years and years. We had the U.S. Amateur there last year, they're going to host the Walker Cup, and now the 2013 U.S. Open.

This, in my experience, is a remarkable example of cooperation among the people at the club, the Haverford Township, Haverford College, all of the local authorities in that area, even the people who live around the golf course are pitching in to make more room available for all the fans who will come out and make sure that we can conduct a wonderful U.S. Open at Merion.

Important stuff here...

We think that the U.S. Open at Merion will be approximately the size of the U.S. Open here at Winged Foot, maybe slightly smaller, but it will be -- a lot of people will get a chance to come to the U.S. Open in Philadelphia and appreciate both Merion and all the elements of a U.S. Open.
I want to thank the people from Merion. We have a big group from Merion here today. Stand up, folks. They're very happy to be here. Thank you very much.

(Applause).

Q. Question about Merion. How many fans are you expecting at Winged Foot? What capacity do you expect at Merion? And at what point were you certain that Merion was capable of hosting a U.S. Open since there has been so much talk about it?

WALTER DRIVER: We've sold 35,000 tickets here at Winged Foot. We think we can come close to that at Merion. Maybe not quite, but close to it.

This has been a great process where we have worked with the people at Merion, as I said, Ardmore and Haverford Townships and Haverford College, to deal with issues such as parking, security, access. We'll have more grandstands at Merion than we've had in the past.
There's no single answer. It's all of those things come together in being able to conduct a really top quality U.S. Open at Merion.

Q. Quick follow-up, this came up a couple years ago. I was under the impression that the gallery limit might be about 20,000 and it would be okay to take a hit for one year. Where did you come up with the extra space?

WALTER DRIVER: We can do that by a variety of ways. People along Golf House Road have offered to let the club and the U.S. Open use their property. The Haverford College has helped with the parking so that we can park people at Haverford and let people walk across the train tracks where we'll build a bridge. There are a lot of creative solutions to that issue that all the people involved have come up with.

Q. For David, there's been a lot of pros and cons with Merion, the course and the length of it. I'm wondering about your thoughts about what went into the process. I know you've done a lot of studies there and whatever, how do you feel the course will hold up?

DAVID FAY: Well, we put a lot of thought into this, and again, hats off to the leadership of Merion. I think I can use this automobile because it no longer exists, but there was once a commercial "It's not your father's Oldsmobile," in some ways I'd say it's the same for Merion.

They've always had great holes, a number of great layup holes where you weren't using driver off the tee. But they've been able to make their long, stout holes, the ones that have been known throughout history. They've made them really long. So I think they have adapted so well to the changing nature of the game.

There was a question before about the gallery. I think you were there, but if you noticed, a lot of trees have been removed, and that also adds the gallery component. We have not been to Philadelphia since 1981. It is a great course; it's rich in history. We used the Amateur as sort of a testing ground where you had the finest players in the world, the finest amateur players in the world, for whom hitting the ball a long way is not an issue.

So in all respects, and I think, hats off, again, to the leadership of Merion and to our operations people who truly investigated all of the pros and cons of this in a very detailed way, as Walter and Jim have said, we feel very comfortable going back to Merion in 2013.

Q. Regarding Merion, based on your analysis of player performance at the Amateur, are there any specific tweaks or major changes to the golf course itself you anticipate making?

WALTER DRIVER: We'll move a putting green to have more room for crowd movement around the clubhouse, and that's the only major change. They'll move the 14th tee in the same general area, but other than that, we contemplate no major changes in the golf course.

It's official: Merion gets the '13 Open

After months of rumors, the USGA finally announced Wednesday that Merion Golf Club in Ardmore will host the 2013 U.S. Open.

To read the formal press release, click here.

Miller re-ups with NBC

With all the uncertainty in the booth after the new TV contract between the networks and the PGA Tour, fans of Johnny Miller will be happy to know he is still da man at NBC.

Here are highlights from the network's press release:

NEW YORK -- June 13, 2006 -- Johnny Miller, who USA Today called "the best color analyst in golf, if not all sports TV," has signed a long-term extension as NBC Sports' lead golf analyst.

"My goal in announcing is to speak just like I'm in the living room with you and we're having pizza and I'm just letting go," said Miller.

"Whatever I think comes out. I'm going to do the best job with the most honesty inside me to say, 'here's what I just think just happened.' The announcing is a little bit like teaching. I address a player's mistakes and sort of give a lesson on TV. When I played, I didn't play down the middle and I don't announce down the middle. That would be boring."

Mulligan's Laws, Part 2

More truisms and pearls of wisdom from the book Mulligan's Laws: A Lifetime of Golfing Wisdom from the Genius Who Invented the Do-Over:

Since bad shots come in groups of three, a fourth bad shot is actually the beginning of a next group of three.

When you look up and cause and awful shot, you will always look down again at exactly the moment when you ought to start watching the ball if you ever want to see it again.

The only sure way to find a drive sliced deep into the woods is to hit a provisional ball 260 yards down the middle.

Nike's Father's Day commercial

If you want a sneak peek at the Nike's new 30-second Father's Day TV commerial featuring endearing old clips of Tiger and Earl Woods, click here.

It's up on Nike's website today. It airs Thursday through Monday.

U.S. Open

If you've ever wondered what the inside of the media center looks like at a U.S. Open, it looks like this.

It's early, only Tuesday, so media folks are still arriving and the big scoreboard is still empty.

By tomorrow, this place will be teeming.

Mulligan's Laws

Looking over my considerable collection of golf books, I came across a slim volume I'd forgotten entitled "Mulligans Laws: A Lifetime of Golfing Wisdom from the Genuis Who Invented the Do-Over."

I thought I'd share a little of that wisdom over the coming days:

If your driver is hot, your putter will be ice-cold; if you can hit your irons, you will top your woods; if you are keeping your right elbow tucked in, your head will come up.

It's as easy to lower your handicap as it is to reduce your hat size.

If you really want to get better at golf, go back and take it up at a much earlier age.

U.S. Open fact sheet

If you want to go to the U.S. Open but haven't bought tickets yet, forgetaboutit. For the 20th straight year, the Open at Winged Foot was a sell-out long ago.

But if you dig plumbing the fine print for rich details and minutiae, there's some good reading in the USGA's official Open fact sheet.

U.S. Open tee times

Phil Mickelson tees off at 7:55 a.m. Thursday and 1:25 p.m. Friday, paired with Tim Clark of South Africa and Thomas Bjorn of Denmark.

Tiger Woods' tee times are the opposite, 1:25 p.m. Thursday and 7:25 a.m. Friday, paired with U.S. Amateur champion Edoardo Molinari of Italy and defending champion Michael Campbell of New Zealand.

Homeboy Sean O'Hair goes out at 1:36 p.m. on Thursday, 8:06 a.m. on Friday.

For all the tee times, click here.

Golf's unofficial artist

If golf has an unofficial artist, it's Linda Hartough. You've no doubt seen her work, whether or not you realized it was hers. If you own one, lucky you, because they sell from $50,000 to $225,000.

The New York Times serves up an interesting portrait of the 60-year-old South Carolina painter it calls the "Rembrandt of the back nine." For more, click here.

Karrie Webb's side of the penalty story

Here's Karrie's side of the Sorenstam penalty story.

Q. Tell us what happened on 2.
KARRIE WEBB: With Annika?

Q. Yeah.
KARRIE WEBB: Well, I saw her remove part of a divot next to a filled, like a replaced divot. It was a little bit. And I wasn't going to say anything. And then I hit my lay up and I looked over again and she removed the rest of it. And I just know you can't do that. And I, I was either going to feel bad for calling it on her or feel bad if she won by one and whoever finished second and I didn't say something. So that's why I said something.

Q. She moved both pieces? I only saw the second. She said I think the ball was to the right?
KARRIE WEBB: I think the second piece was up against the ball, from what she said to Angus (MacKenzie, rules official).

Q. Was there any question about the penalty?
KARRIE WEBB: No, I don't think so. I don't know if she was aware of the ruling or what.

Q. Did that rattle you at all?
KARRIE WEBB: Yeah, a little bit, because I don't like to have to do that. It's not any fun.

Annika on the 2-stroke penalty

Annika Sorenstam was dinged with a 2-stroke penalty during the third round of the McDonald's LPGA Championship for moving a loose divot. Here's her explanation of what happened.

Q. Talk about the ruling.
ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Well, it was a mistake I made. I was next to a divot and the divot was in two pieces and it was totally replaced in a really horrible way. So I moved the divot and that's against the rules. It's a mistake of mine.

Q. Did you know it was against the rules? When did you realize it was against the rules?
ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Well, Karrie told me I couldn't do it. And I said, well, it looked like somebody grabbed some turf and just stuck it anywhere. I mean it was loose, it was totally I didn't know. I knew it was a divot. Like I say, it was my fault, but I just, I was in I mean, the ball didn't move or anything, it was just totally sloppy done. And I didn't think more of it.

Q. Did you try and replace it?
ANNIKA SORENSTAM: No, I was demonstrating to Karrie what it was. So I mean, but it was too late because that had nothing to do with it.

Q. How much did that affect you?
ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Well, it's a mistake I made. I mean that's just the way it is. I mean, it wasn't that I hit some horrible shots today. I'm not getting any breaks whatsoever and mixed with that, it makes it very, very tough.

Q. You still in this?
ANNIKA SORENSTAM: Well, I got to give it all tomorrow. I mean, to avoid penalty strokes. I mean, I have four shots and two pins, you know, in four holes. I mean, that's right there is six shots. I could be tied for the lead. And that's still with really horrible shots. So it's never too late but things got to change.

Deibert to defend at Philly Am

Amateur preview from GAP...

The Amateur Championship, the crown jewel of the Golf Association of Philadelphia’s tournament season, is set to add another chapter to its rich history. Beginning on June 13 at Torresdale-Frankford CC/Huntingdon Valley CC (qualifying only), a field of 132 players will compete in the 106th Amateur and the right to have their name engraved on the J. Wood Platt Championship trophy.

For GAP's full preview of the Amateur, click here.

Overbrook's Thompson medallist at Sr.Open qualifer

From GAP...

DOYLESTOWN, Pa.–Andy Thompson of Newtown Square, Pa. carded an even-par 72 at Doylestown CC (par 72, 6,514 yards) on Friday to earn medallist honors in a Qualifier for the U.S. Senior Open Championship. George Forster of Villanova, Pa. would be the second qualifier earning a spot after surviving a six-hole, four-man playoff.

For the full story, click here.

More execs exit LPGA

Behind the smiles of the players on the LPGA, all is not well back at the home office. Check this out from Golfweek.

3 top executives exit LPGA

By JAY A. COFFIN

Senior Writer

The LPGA continues to lose top-level executives at an alarming rate.

Liz Ausman, chief strategic officer; Deb Richard, senior vice president of golf; and Julie Tyson, vice president of partnerships, turned in their resignations June 7, a day before the start of the McDonald's LPGA Championship, the tour's second major championship.

Ausman and Richard have left the tour immediately. Tyson will stay with the LPGA for two more weeks.

The announcement means seven of the LPGA's highest-ranking officers have left since Carolyn Bivens took over as commissioner in September.

Kathy Milthorpe, executive vice president and chief financial officer, left the LPGA in September after 17 years to take an executive position with the International Speedway Corp. Barb Trammell, senior vice president of tournament operations, abruptly resigned in October after 20 years with the LPGA and Rob Neal, vice president of tournament business affairs, left in December to take over as executive director of Tournament Golf Foundation Inc. Karen Durkin, the tour's executive vice president and chief marketing officer, left in February after 11 years to assume a role with the National Hockey League as executive vice president of communications and brand strategy.

The latest news is strange because Ausman and Richard were hired by Bivens. Richard began her post in November and was a replacement for Trammell. Ausman was hired in February.

Richard, Ausman and Turner could not be reached immediately for comment.

Huh?

A tour-released statement by Bivens had little to do with the staff changes: "Given the LPGA's incredible mix of talent, diversity and personalities, now is the time to take this organization to new heights. While we change the business model in order to better monatize our success, fans can continue to expect the very best in women's professional golf. We're committed to collaborating with all of our key constituents to create a stronger LPGA.

"As women's golf continues to grow and the popularity of the LPGA skyrockets, our organization will continue to evolve. We wish Liz, Deb and Julie success in their future endeavors."
LPGA officials said Bivens would not comment further. The LPGA said no replacements would be immediately announced and did not know the future job status of the three.

15-year-old Hawaiian teen in Open

This just in from the AP...

HONOLULU — A teenager from Hawaii made it to the U.S. Open, just not Michelle Wie.

Tadd Fujikawa, a 15-year-old who just completed his freshman year at Moanalua High School, beat out nine other players in the smallest U.S. Open sectional qualifier to earn a trip to Winged Foot next week.

Fujikawa missed by year becoming the youngest player to qualify for the U.S. Open. Tyrell Garth was 14 when he qualified to play in 1941.

And the final qualifiers for the U.S. Open are...

Former U.S. Amatuer champion Matt Kutchar grabbed one of the final nine spots at Winged Foot next week. Former U.S. Amateur champion and U.S. Golf Association president Fred Ridley did not.

For details, click here. For scores, click here.

Who did qualify for the U.S. Open?

Michelle Wie didn't make it, but who did?

Here's the USGA wrap-up on qualifiers from around the country...

QUIGLEY HEADS U.S. OPEN QUALIFIERS IN N.J., WIE UNSUCCESSFUL

Far Hills, N.J. – Brett Quigley fired rounds of 68-63 for an 11-under-par total of 131 to head up a group of 18 qualifiers from 36-hole U.S. Open sectional qualifying in Summit, N.J., where 16-year-old Michelle Wie’s bid was unsuccessful. The 2006 Open will be played June 15-18 at Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck, N.Y.

A total of 73 qualifying spots in the U.S. Open field of 156 players were available prior to the beginning of sectional qualifying at 14 sites today and Tuesday. Three spots had previously been earned May 29 in Japan.

At Canoe Brook Country Club in Summit, N.J., Wie of Honolulu, Hawaii, was vying to become the first woman to play in a U.S. Open. She played admirably, firing a 2-under-par 68 on the South Course in the morning and holding that position through 30 holes before scoring bogeys at her 31st, 32nd and 33rd holes. (see accompanying story on www.usopen.com)

Quigley, who won the 1987 U.S. Junior Amateur, will be competing in his fourth Open. Michael Harris, Kent Jones, Greg Kraft and Kevin Stadler also won Canoe Brook spots at 8-under-par 134. Mark Brooks, the 1996 PGA champion and the runner-up at the 2001 U.S. Open, J.J. Henry, who grew up nearby in Connecticut, and Rob Johnson, logged in at 135.

Andrew Svoboda, who holds a membership at Winged Foot and was a quarterfinalist at the U.S. Amateur there in 2004, earned a spot by shooting 72-65-137. Another local product, Chris Nallen, who grew up in Hackettstown, N.J., shot 69-68—137 to advance to the Open. A five-player for one spot playoff gave Brad Fritsch of Canada the last of 18 places.
Prominent players who did not qualify were Billy Andrade (73-66—139) and Mark O’Meara (74-68—142).

Canadian Tour player Benjamin Hayes (67-64) and European Ryder Cup player Ian Poulter (65-66) shared medalist honors at the Columbus, Ohio site at Brookside Country Club and The Lakes Golf and Country Club at 13-under-par 131 to head the largest field of the day with 21 qualifying spots.

Also among the qualifiers at this Columbus site were Camilo Villegas (67-69-136), J.B. Holmes (70-66-136), Jeff Sluman (65-71-136) and 52-year-old Jay Haas (69-70—139), who just won the Senior PGA Championship on May 28. Among those not advancing to Winged Foot were Jeff Maggert (140), Aaron Baddeley, Jesper Parnevik, and Jason Gore (141), Bob Tway (147), and Ryan Moore (151).

At the Emerald Valley Golf Club in Creswell, Ore., two members of the newly crowned 2006 NCAA Champion Oklahoma State team, who happen to be roommates, battled in a playoff for the one available slot. Freshman Jonathan Moore of Vancouver, Wash., who won NCAA individual honors at Sunriver Resort in Bend, Ore. over the weekend, and senior Pablo Martin of Spain, who finished 5th, each shot 70-67-137, 5-under-par and went just one hole when Moore prevailed with a birdie for the trip to Winged Foot.

International qualifying was staged for the second time this year and at Walton Heath Golf Club in Surrey, England, Maarten Lafeber of the Netherlands shot rounds of 64-66 for 14-under-par total of 130 to head a group of eight qualifiers. Lafeber, who will be playing in his second Open, made 16 birdies and two bogeys in his trips around Walton Heath’s OId and New Courses.

Tommy Armour III (68-67-135), Joey Sindelar (70-66-136), David Berganio (70-67-137) and Chad Collins 69-68-137) were the four place-winners from the Woodmont Country Club in Rockville, Md.

With two berths at stake at St. Charles (Ill.) Country Club near Chicago, Steve Stricker earned his 11th Open appearance by shooting 15-under-par 129 (65-64). Stricker was joined by Jason Allred, who shot 71 and a course-record 63 for 134. Allred, the 1997 U.S. Junior Amateur champion who plays on the Nationwide Tour, birdied four of his last five holes for the 9-under 63.

At the second Columbus, Ohio site at Double Eagle Golf Club, Madalitso Muthiya of Zambia, who played college golf at New Mexico, shot 65-69-134 to earn the first of two spots. He was joined by Stephen Woodard of Charlotte, N.C., who shot 70-68—138.

A pair of amateurs, Ryan Baca of Richmond, Texas (67-69) and Ryan Posey of Dallas, Texas (65-71) each shot 136 to win berths from Lakeside Country Club in Houston, Texas. Baca, 23, just finished his eligibility at Baylor and Posey, 22, is a senior at Oklahoma State.

Dustin White of Pueblo West, Colo., earned the only berth among 25 players at Columbine Country Club near Denver, by shooting 67-68 for a 9-under-par total of 135.

Fifteen-year-old amateur Tadd Fujikawa of Honolulu earned the only spot at Poipu Bay Golf Club in Koloa, Hawaii by shooting 71-70--141.

At Lake Merced Golf Club near San Francisco, Calif., Michael Derminio of Scottsdale, Ariz., earned the qualifying medal with scores of 70-68—138. The other three qualifiers at Lake Merced were amateur Taylor Wood of Laguna Niguel, Calif., (64-75—139) Alex Coe of La Quinta, Calif. (69-71—140) and Patrick Nagle of Pacifica, Calif. (73-67—140). Coe and Nagle earned their berths in a playoff.

Canoe Brook qualifiers...

Canoe Brook Country Club, Summit, N.J. – 153 players for 18 spots
Brett Quigley, Jupiter, Fla., 68-63--131
Gregory Kraft, Largo, Fla., 67-67--134
Kent Jones, Albuquerque, N.M., 66-68--134
Kevin Stadler, Scottsdale, Ariz., 66-68--134
Michael Harris, Shorewood, Wis., 68-66--134
J J Henry, Fort Worth, Texas, 70-65--135
Mark Brooks, Fort Worth, Texas, 68-67--135
Rob Johnson, Orlando, Fla., 66-69--135
Andy Bare, Jacksonville, Fla., 70-66--136
John Mallinger, Reston, Va., 68-68--136
Nicholas Thompson, Coral Springs, Fla., 69-67--136
Tom Pernice Jr, Murrieta, Calif., 68-68--136
Andrew Svoboda, Larchmont, N.Y., 72-65--137
Chris Nallen, Scottsdale, Ariz., 69-68--137
David Oh, Cerritos, Calif., 67-70--137
Phil Tataurangi, Flower Mound, Texas, 71-66--137
Scott Hend, Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., 68-69--137
Brad Fritsch, Canada, 72-66--138

U.S. Open qualifying story lines

As compelling as the Michelle Wie saga is, she's not the only interesting story in sectional qualifying for the U.S. Open.

Here are a few from the USGA:

June 5
Littleton, Colo. (Columbine C.C.): 25 golfers for 1 spot
Steve Irwin of Golden, Colo., the son of three-time U.S. Open champion Hale Irwin, is in the field. The younger Irwin has never competed in an Open, while his father has 34 appearances, the second-most in history.

St. Charles, Ill. (St. Charles Country Club): 33 golfers for 2 spots

Joel Kribel of Edmond, Okla., was the runner-up at the 1997 U.S. Amateur and a member of the ’97 USA Walker Cup team. Just to qualify, he flew from his Nationwide Tour event in Virginia on May 21 to Phoenix, Ariz., where he drove to Tucson at midnight to play at Tucson C.C. Kribel competed at the 1997, ’98 and 2001 U.S. Opens, but has yet to make a cut.

Summit, N.J. (Canoe Brook C.C.): 153 golfers for 18 spots

Several New York-area residents will be trying to make it a special week at Winged Foot.

George Zahringer of New York is the oldest winner of the U.S. Mid-Amateur. He was 48 when he won in 2002 at his home course, The Stanwich Club in Greenwich, Conn.
USA Walker Cupper Nicholas Thompson of Coral Springs, Fla., will be trying to advance to his first U.S. Open. He advanced from a Weston, Fla., qualifier. Thompson now plays on the PGA Tour.

Michelle Wie, 16, of Honolulu, Hawaii is attempting to become the first female to ever play in a U.S. Open. Wie was medalist (shot even par 72) at her qualifier at Turtle Bay Resort in Oahu, Hawaii. Wie won the 2003 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links Championship as a 13-year-old, becoming the youngest winner of an “adult” USGA championship.

Former major winners Mark O’Meara (1998 Masters and British Open) and Mark Brooks (1996 PGA) are in the field.

Hunter Mahan of Plano, Texas, won the 1999 U.S. Junior title and was the runner-up at the 2002 U.S. Amateur. He has competed in one U.S. Open (2003).

Ricky Barnes of Stockton, Calif., was the 2002 U.S. Amateur champion. He competed in three U.S. Opens as an amateur, but has yet to qualify since turning pro in 2003.

Former Walker Cupper (1995) Kris Cox of Dallas, Texas, will look to draw on his good memories of Canoe Brook, where he shot a course-record 64 on the South Course to help him qualify for the Open in 2004.

Ben “Bubba” Dickerson of Plano, Texas, won the 2001 U.S. Amateur, but turned pro after the Masters and thus forfeited his exemption into the ’02 Open. He is hoping to qualify for his first Open.

Austin Eaton III of North Sutton, N.H., won the 2004 U.S. Mid-Amateur and was a semifinalist last summer at the U.S. Amateur.

David Gossett of Germantown, Tenn., won the 1999 U.S. Amateur and made the cut at the 2000 Masters. He is paired with Michelle Wie in this qualifier.

John Nieporte of Boca Raton, Fla., would like to have a special Father’s Day at Winged Foot. His father, Tom, is Winged Foot’s longtime head professional.

Allan Small, at age 54, is one of the oldest players to qualify from the local field. The Florham Park, N.J., resident was the New Jersey State Golf Association Amateur of the Year in 2004.

Columbus, Ohio (Brookside Golf & C.C./Lakes Golf & C.C.): 144 golfers for 21 spots

Sam Saunders, Arnold Palmer's grandson, survived a six-man playoff to grab one of the final three berths available from his qualifier at Orlando’s MetroWest Golf Club. An 18-year-old amateur, he was the stroke-play medalist at the 2005 U.S. Junior, where he recorded a hole-in-one. Palmer has played in 32 U.S. Opens, while Saunders will look to play in his first.

Jason Gore of Valencia, Calif., who was the ‘Prince of Pinehurst’ in 2005, went on to win three Nationwide Tour events and the PGA Tour’s 84 Lumber Classic. Gore played in the final pairing last June, only to shoot an 84 on Sunday.

Two-time major winner John Daly (1991 PGA and ’95 British Open) hopes to make it to his 14th U.S. Open, where his best finish is a T-27 in 1996.

J.B. Holmes of Campbellsville, Ky., competed on the 2005 USA Walker Cup squad and then captured his first PGA Tour event as a rookie this past January at the FBR Open in Phoenix

Trip Kuehne of Dallas, Texas, is a two-time USA Walker Cupper and the runner-up to Tiger Woods at the 1994 U.S. Amateur. He also was low amateur at the 2003 U.S. Open.

Ryan Moore of Puyallup, Wash., would like to get back to the venue where he won the 2004 U.S. Amateur. Moore also won the 2002 and ’04 APL titles and competed on the 2003 USA Walker Cup team.

Jeff Sluman of Hinsdale, Ill., captured the 1988 PGA Championship and competed in 17 U.S. Opens.

Camilo Villegas of Colombia was the 1999 U.S. Junior runner-up and one of the top rookies on the PGA Tour. The 2004 U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills was his professional debut.

Columbus, Ohio #2 (Double Eagle Golf Club): 37 golfers for 2 spots

Matt Weibring of Dallas is the son of Champions Tour player D.A. Weibring, who was the runner-up at the 2005 U.S. Senior Open and a 14-time U.S. Open participant. Matt is hoping to play in his first U.S. Open.

Bill Haas of Greenville, S.C., and the son of 2006 USGA Bobby Jones Award winner Jay Haas, hopes to have another father-son week at the U.S. Open. The two both made the cut at the 2004 Open at Shinnecock Hills. Jay has played in 26 Opens, while Bill has competed in two. Jay will also compete in Columbus at the Brookside/Lakeside courses.

Houston, Texas (Lakeside Country Club): 32 golfers for 2 spots

Tom Kite of Austin, Texas, the 1992 U.S. Open champion, will be loo

king to compete in his 34th Open. Only Hale Irwin (34) and Jack Nicklaus (44) have competed in more U.S. Opens.

Kevin Tway of Edmond, Okla., won the 2005 U.S. Junior title on his 17th birthday. He is the son of 1986 PGA Championship winner Bob Tway, who will try to qualify in Columbus, Ohio.

Addison Awe, 20, a Rice University golf team member, shared the top spot with four other players in his local qualifying round in Grand Prairie, Texas.

June 6
Tampa, Fla. (Old Memorial Golf Club): 59 golfers for 3 spots

Robert Floyd, the son of 1986 Open champion Raymond Floyd, turned in a 68 to lead four qualifiers at Bear Lakes Country Club in West Palm Beach, Fla.. This is the fifth time in the last six years Floyd has advanced to sectionals, but he has yet to qualify for an Open.

Josh McCumber is the son of former PGA Tour pro Mark McCumber, who competed in 13 U.S. Opens, including a tie for second in 1989 at Oak Hill. Josh qualified for the 2005 Open at Pinehurst, but missed the cut.

Fred Ridley of Tampa, Fla., won the 1974 U.S. Amateur and just completed his two-year term as USGA President. The 53-year-old will try to qualify at his home club.

O'Hair clubhouse leader at the Memorial

Sean O'Hair from West Chester fired a 5-under par 67 at the Memorial Tournament on Thursday, making him the leader in the clubhouse by a shot over Steve Flesch when first-round play was called.

Here are a few excerpts from his post-round press conference:

Q: Sean, a great start actually, a double bogey on the third hole and from there on it was cruise control. But a great start overall for you.

SEAN O'HAIR: Yeah, it's great. It's been a while since I had a good start to an event, so it's nice to just feel positive about what happened today instead of fighting, trying to make the cut.

Q: I know you were unhappy with the way you began the season, but you've shown signs in the last month. Anything in particular that you...

SEAN O'HAIR: You know, the whole West Coast was kind of a tough, tough deal for me, because I was working with an instructor who was... we were working on a few things. And I don't think they fit me. And finally I made an instructor change at Doral, to a guy I used to work with Gary Gilchrist, that I used to work with as a junior at the Leadbetter Academy. He looks at it from a player's perspective. And he kind of clarifies things for me, and he keeps it simple for me. And he's worked with my swing instead of trying to rebuild a swing. I think my swing is pretty good. It won a lot of money last year. And I'm just kind of getting back to that and working on shaping shots and stuff like that. And I've been working with (Bob) Rotella a little bit on trying to clear my head out there. There's been a lot of negative thoughts going on.

Q. As much I think I've heard you say this but as much stability that Steve (Lucas) brought to you at that time in your life, was it difficult, awkward, making the switch?

SEAN O'HAIR: You know, it was a mutual thing. It wasn't like "Well, Steve, I've got to tell you some bad news, I'm firing you." It wasn't like that at all. For some reason, we started talking about it at dinner one night. And I said, "Hey, maybe we need to think about making a change." And we did. And we felt like now was the best time, instead of waiting at the end of the year and doing it, or waiting until next year. It's pretty easy. It's hard to see him go, because I miss him being out here. It's nice to have him out here and enjoy some things with him. But I think it's good for both him and I, to be honest with you, in the long run.

Q: Is he going to be at the U.S. Open, that would be weird?

SEAN O'HAIR: No, I think he's going to enjoy it a little bit more. He'll be able to enjoy it rather than working. And plus, it's going to be brutally hot, so he'll have a beer or two at the turn.

DL-3 on Tiger and Phil

Interesting comments from Davis Love III during a conference call with writers last week...

Q. I guess just to totally change course, you mentioned Phil and Tiger. Do you think Phil has closed the gap, and do you think in general the field has closed the gap on Tiger?

DAVIS LOVE III: They've closed the gap. If you go back and read what we were saying around 2000, around that period, we were saying, this ain't going to happen forever; this is the best golf that's ever been played. All those things we said about Tiger, but he played -- for his whole career he's played better than anybody has probably ever played, but for that one period, like the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, nobody has ever played golf like that. He's had a two-, maybe three-year period where we said, look, the standard is now being set. You're seeing it being set. Nobody will ever approach this.

You can watch Barry Bonds catch Hank Aaron that we thought was never going to happen, and he's saying, look behind me, look at this Pujols guy; he's on a much better pace than me. You never know. We never thought Jack's records would be approached, but Tiger is the one to have a chance.

That period was so good. I think Phil is playing up to his potential. If Tiger plays to his potential and Phil plays to his potential and Vijay plays to his potential and Davis plays to his potential, they're going to win big golf tournaments. I just think that Tiger obviously is just a little bit more special than everybody else, maybe like Jack was. If everybody played to their potential, Jack was still going to win probably more majors and golf tournaments than the rest of them.

Raven's Claw media day

Despite a withering barrage of 300-yard bombs off the tee and dead-on approach shots, the Raven's Claw course record shockingly remained intact after Tuesday's media day outing at the Pottstown course.

Course architect Ed Shearon's vision for the par 3 14th (above) was a sort of reverse image of the 12th at Augusta National.

Co-owner Bob Davis (below) overpowers the devilish dogleg 9th.

For a fuller look at the course, click here.

Tiger's in the Open, for sure

At his first public appearance since his dad's death on May 3rd, Tiger Woods told a bunch of youngsters in Arkansas Tuesday he'll definitely be back in action for the U.S. Open at Winged Foot in two weeks..

"Am I definitely going to play? Yeah," Woods said, according to Bloomberg News.

For more, click here.

For the Memorial, Nix Nicklaus

You know Jack Nicklaus' golf career is winding down when he demurs from playing in his own tournament, this week's Memorial. Sad to say, but that's the reality. It's time, and Nicklaus knows it

"Have you seen me play lately?" he asked writers. "...It will be a pleasure not to play."

For more, click here.

Tiger @ Winged Foot

Almost a month after the death of his dad, Tiger Woods still has returned to the PGA Tour. (He's skipping this week's Memorial). But he is practicing again. On Saturday, he turned up at Winged Foot, site of the U.S. Open in two weeks, along with his swing coach, Hank Haney.

For details, click here.

Lange defends in Mid-Am

Chris Lange from Overbrook Golf Club, one of the elder statemen of the Golf Assocication of Philadelphia at 51, shot 77 Wednesday at Commonwealth National Golf Club, just enough to defend his title as Mid-Am champion.

Chip Lutz from LedgeRock shot 73 to finish within a stroke of Lange, with a two-round total of 7-over par.

For full details and scores, click here.

Lange leads Mid-Am

Chris Lange from Overbrook Golf Club is off to a strong start in his effort to become the first player ever to repeat as Mid-Am champion for the Golf Association of Philadelphia.

Lange, 51, shot even par 71 yesterday in the first of two rounds at Commonwealth National Golf Club in Horsham.

Mike Danner from Lu Lu Country Club is one shot back after a 72.

For full details and first round scores, click here.

Reading CC

If you saw the course review in the Sunday Inquirer, it's no secret I gave high praise to Reading Country Club, a venerable old private club that's now a muni.

Judging from the emails, my take on the place is no different from most everyone else who has played Reading CC since they threw open the doors on April 1. Whether you agree or beg to differ, you can throw in your 2-cents worth in the "comment" below.

Philly Mid-Am

On the PGA Tour, it's the Masters, the major of the year, that officially signals the arrival of another golf season. At the Golf Association of Philadelphia, it's the Mid-Am.

Beginning tomorrow, 132 of the top middle-amateurs from the area will descend on Commonwealth National Golf Club in Horsham for the annual 36-hole battle royale among golfers 25 and older.

The defending champion is Chris Lange, who won by four shots last year, kick-starting another stellar year for he 51-year-old.

For a fuller preview of the Mid-Am, click here.

For a Mid-Am fact sheet, click here.

Whatever happened to...?

Matt Kuchar, the 1997 U.S. Amateur champion, won this past week's Nationwide Tour stop in Richmond, Va., his first victory since the 2002 Honda Classic.

Annika Chronicles

If you missed it, Annika Sorenstam, who is going through and uncharacterisic rough patch in her career, was at 3-under par and in contention in Sunday's final round of the Sybase Classic when she was suddenly visited by calamity.

At the 9th hole, playing into an elevated green, Sorenstam's approach shot spun off the green and down a hill three times, before she finally got one to hold. The resulting triple-bogey was all the opening Larena Ochao needed to nab victory. Sorenstam shot 74 and finished tied for 6th.

“I hit a lot of good shots. I really did,” said Sorenstam. “It's a tough green. I hit a 9‑iron in the first time and I thought it was a great shot. I actually took one more club to hit it soft to make sure it wouldn't spin. And then I hit a sand wedge. I don't know what to say other than that. I made seven good shots.”