The 108th U.S. Open Championship

[orange+white=heaven]

It's early to start this thread, but the USGA made headlines yesterday by announcing first and second round groupings have been set according to ranking numbers. Woods, Phil, Scott, all in one group.... The crowd on that group may just tilt Torrey into the sea...

Congrats to Love III on getting in..

I understand BPV's sentiments about the 'tricking up' of our nation's championship. Still, I absolutely love this tournament.

 

[BigPapaVol]

I love it as well, but think the setups give us some fluky champions.

 

[orange+white=heaven]

I'm not old school, so I really don't get USGA's notion that the course should play to par, almost without regard to the steps needed to make that occur. Still, lessons were learned at the site where Retief won(??), when those greens became unplayable.

The tweaks to Torrey, while course altering, shouldn't reach joke proportions. Although I did see a new tee box during the Buick that sets one tee shot on a 4par completely over a gully... scary.

 

[BigPapaVol]

I'm really talking about the sliver fairways and unplayable rough. Takes an enormous part of the game away altogether.

 

[orange+white=heaven]

Speaking of Love getting in, this is a pretty amazing list of failed to qualify's, damn shame Freddy won't be there...


"Notable players who failed to qualify were: Fred Couples; Chris DiMarco; father and son Bill and Jay Haas; J.J. Henry; Tom Lehman; Ryan Moore; Nick O'Hern; and Kevin Stadler...."

 

[jakez4ut]

that is a farily impressive list to not get in, and i love the groupings.....good stuff.

you are also correct on the Retief open where the puts were "like putting down a windsheild and trying to stop it on the hood ornament" to quote one of the announcers that year.....they did learn their lesson.

i don't think it will be THAT bad this year either.....should be a good tourney.......

what do we think about Tiger coming back after 6-7 weeks off, this being his first competitive golf since the surgery? something he may not make the cut......i'd be shocked if that happened.

 

[volinbham]

I've been to Torrey - it's an awesome setting.

 

[BigPapaVol]

that is a farily impressive list to not get in, and i love the groupings.....good stuff.

you are also correct on the Retief open where the puts were "like putting down a windsheild and trying to stop it on the hood ornament" to quote one of the announcers that year.....they did learn their lesson.

i don't think it will be THAT bad this year either.....should be a good tourney.......

what do we think about Tiger coming back after 6-7 weeks off, this being his first competitive golf since the surgery? something he may not make the cut......i'd be shocked if that happened.

the list of non-qualifiers is not shockingly littered with putting woes.

 

[vol_in_ar]

I'm looking forward to Sunday, prior to the final round. They are televising a foursome of amateur's that will try and break 100 on a US Open course, and playing from the tips...

There are 3 celebrities:
Tony Romo- he actually tried to qualify for the event
Justin Timberlake
Matt Lauer
John Atkinson

The 4th, is a guy from Nebraska that won a chance to play through Golf Digest...


They've already played and Romo and Justin break 100..but I think it will be interesting to watch

 

[orange+white=heaven]

– The course at Torrey Pines Golf Course will be set up at 7,643 yards and will play to a par of 35-36--71. This layout is 379 yards longer than any previous U.S. Open course layout, but it is playing to a par 71, not a par 70 as has been the case in all but a few years over the past several decades. The third, 11th and 16th holes, all par 3s, will vary daily in length by 17 to 53 yards. The shortest yardages bring the total yardage to 7,541 yards. The USGA may also shorten hole 14 one of the days.

COURSE LAYOUT – The fairways will range in width from roughly 24 to 33 yards. On either side of the fairways, a 6-foot wide swath of intermediate rough running the length of each hole will be set to 1¾ inches. Next, a 15-foot band of primary rough will be grown to approximately 2¼ inches. The second cut of deepest rough left and right of the landing areas will be 3½ inches. Some spectator ropes again will be moved back to allow for this plan, where the “penalty fits the crime.” The further off line a drive is, the tougher the recovery shot will be. (This is the third year of this USGA setup).
The greens will be set to run at 13 to 13½ feet on the Stimpmeter for the duration of the championship. The primary rough for 12 feet around the putting greens will be maintained at 3 inches. Outside of that, the rough will be grown to 4 inches (in contrast to the 2¼ -inch rough running alongside the fairways).



Groupings and Tee times






– Among the benefits enjoyed by the Open winner are:
1) an Open exemption for the next 10 years
2) an invitation to the next five Masters Tournaments
3) an invitation to the next five British Open Championships
4) an invitation to the next five Players Championships
5) an invitation to the next five PGA Championships
6) exempt status on the PGA Tour for five years

QUALIFYING FOR THE OTHER MAJORS –
· The top 15 finishers (and ties) are exempt for next year’s (2009) U.S. Open
· The top eight finishers (and ties) are invited to next year’s (2009) Masters Tournament
· The winner qualifies for this year’s (2008) British Open
· The winner qualifies for this year’s (2008) PGA Championship



TELEVISION COVERAGE – The U.S. Open will enjoy at least 30 hours of live network coverage, with 16 of those hours on NBC. Dan Hicks is scheduled to be at the helm of the NBC broadcast team. ESPN will air at least 14 hours over the first two days of play.



Date Network Broadcast Hours
June 12 ESPN 1-3 p.m.
NBC 3-5 p.m.
ESPN 5-10 p.m.
June 13 ESPN 1-3 p.m.
NBC 3-5 p.m.
ESPN 5-10 p.m.
June 14 NBC 4-10 p.m.
June 15 NBC 3-9 p.m

If needed, an 18-hole playoff for the 2008 U.S. Open championship would be played Monday, June 16, starting at 12 noon local time (3 p.m. EDT). ESPN would broadcast the first two hours of the playoff. NBC would begin coverage at 2 p.m. locally (5 p.m. EDT).

 

[BigPapaVol]

The rough actually sounds bearable, depending upon the thickness of the grass.

I suspect that some of the leniency on rough has something to do with their anticipating ocean winds, similar to Pebble in 2000 when Woods caught all the quiet times (fortunate tee times) and absolutely murdered the field.

I suspect the greens are absurdly hard so that anything from the thinnest of rough or longer than a 9 iron will scoot through the back of the green.

 

[orange+white=heaven]

13.5 does sound wicked, but you don't have the undulation of an Augusta. Look forward to Golf channel media room interviews so we can hear how this sucker is playing...

 

[BigPapaVol]

13.5 does sound wicked, but you don't have the undulation of an Augusta. Look forward to Golf channel media room interviews so we can hear how this sucker is playing...

Actually, Faldo was talking about Muirfield running at 15 for the Memorial a couple weeks ago.

Augusta doesn't allow for publicized Stimpmeter readings, but people have long speculated that they run at 15+.

13.5 is quick, but better putters like the much faster because it helps separate the field. Guys like Tiger, with nearly impeccable speed control, just eat them up because there is never a lot of "hit" in a putt.

 

[orange+white=heaven]

Harrington leads the tour in scrambling and putting, and is 9th in top ten finishes. T2 in scoring average, but a whopping 134 in driving accuracy... Is it Paddy's time?

Allenby and Leonard lead greens in regulation, but are 65 and 162 in driving distance...

Phil leads scoring average, but is 155 in driving accuracy..

My point?... toss away Eldrick Woods, and I don't know where you look for a favorite.

 

[BigPapaVol]

Harrington leads the tour in scrambling and putting, and is 9th in top ten finishes. T2 in scoring average, but a whopping 134 in driving accuracy... Is it Paddy's time?

Allenby and Leonard lead greens in regulation, but are 65 and 162 in driving distance...

Phil leads scoring average, but is 155 in driving accuracy..

My point?... toss away Eldrick Woods, and I don't know where you look for a favorite.

if Garcia can putt it at all, he's got the best game for a long tight course.

 

[peaygolf89]

if Garcia can putt it at all, he's got the best game for a long tight course.

I FOUND YOU!!!!!

This is crazy!!!! Sergio is great, but the worst putter on the Tour! NO CHANCE TO WIN THE OPEN! If he putts like a demon.......OK! I doubt his chances!

When it comes to golf......you can not touch me!!!!!

15+ at Augusta????? Please?? You are crazy. Not a course on the planet would do that. Down hill, down grain, maybe????? Get a clue....Tiger is not the best...Nicklaus is as of now! Tiger will be later, but not now!!!!

 

[orange+white=heaven]

I FOUND YOU!!!!!

This is crazy!!!! Sergio is great, but the worst putter on the Tour! NO CHANCE TO WIN THE OPEN! If he putts like a demon.......OK! I doubt his chances!

When it comes to golf......you can not touch me!!!!!

Honestly, if not for the Sunday yips, Sergio likely is a British and US Open champion. Chances get better for him all the time...

 

[BigPapaVol]

I FOUND YOU!!!!!

This is crazy!!!! Sergio is great, but the worst putter on the Tour! NO CHANCE TO WIN THE OPEN! If he putts like a demon.......OK! I doubt his chances!

When it comes to golf......you can not touch me!!!!!

you might be surprised.

You wanna explain Sergio's victory at a very tight, very long and very quick TPC Sawgrass?

You might beat me playing golf, but you ain't gonna outthink me at golf, especially if you're like the typical club pro.

 

[BigPapaVol]

I FOUND YOU!!!!!

This is crazy!!!! Sergio is great, but the worst putter on the Tour! NO CHANCE TO WIN THE OPEN! If he putts like a demon.......OK! I doubt his chances!

When it comes to golf......you can not touch me!!!!!

15+ at Augusta????? Please?? You are crazy. Not a course on the planet would do that. Down hill, down grain, maybe????? Get a clue....Tiger is not the best...Nicklaus is as of now! Tiger will be later, but not now!!!!

look at any ratio of wins to tourneys played, including Majors, and Nicklaus isn't even close. I mean, it's not even close. I will grant you that there were more true greats of golf in Nicklaus' day, but the depth of the fields was absolutely anemic compared to today.

Make all the arguments you'd like, but you might consider sticking to playing golf rather than talking about it.

Yes, 15 at Augusta. 15 at Muirfield. Buddy of mine just finished the Nationwide event in Raleigh and said those were 15 on Friday and Saturday.

 

[orange+white=heaven]

look at any ratio of wins to tourneys played, including Majors, and Nicklaus isn't even close. I mean, it's not even close. I will grant you that there were more true greats of golf in Nicklaus' day, but the depth of the fields was absolutely anemic compared to today..

Jack himself said, paraphrasing, "I think I might have been a little better driver of the golf ball, but in the other aspects, Tiger is the best..."

 

[doozer]

Forgive my ignorance, but I an not familar with what a Stimpmeter does.

 

[BigPapaVol]

Forgive my ignorance, but I an not familar with what a Stimpmeter does.

it's basically a ramp of particular length and slope that is set up on a flat portion of green. The ball is rolled down the ramp and the distance it travels, in feet, is the Stimpmeter reading on that course. If the ball travels 12 feet when rolled down the ramp, reading is a 12, which is what the pros typically play. Those would be very quick on a typical golf course.

 

[BigPapaVol]

Jack himself said, paraphrasing, "I think I might have been a little better driver of the golf ball, but in the other aspects, Tiger is the best..."

FWIW, Jack was a much better driver of the golf ball, save a couple year run for Tiger around 1999 and 2000.

Jack was also a very good long iron player, even to the point of rivaling Tiger, but Jack was only a decent wedge player and was a very streaky putter (although he could freaking 2 putt from anywhere on any surface).

Tiger is the best long iron player ever, he's the best from the rough, he has at least one of the best wedge games ever, and is a monster around the greens. For my money, he's the best putter in the history of the game and in the clutch, it's just no contest.

 

[doozer]

it's basically a ramp of particular length and slope that is set up on a flat portion of green. The ball is rolled down the ramp and the distance it travels, in feet, is the Stimpmeter reading on that course. If the ball travels 12 feet when rolled down the ramp, reading is a 12, which is what the pros typically play. Those would be very quick on a typical golf course.

i googled it too. interesting.

 

[orange+white=heaven]

A couple of questions and answers from an interview with golf writer Ian O'Connor...

I’ve always felt Nicklaus’ runner-up finishes in majors was impressive, which adds a little more ammunition on his side for greatest golfer ever. Agreed or who is your choice for greatest golfer ever?
I used to think Tiger Woods had to win a 19th major title to be declared the greatest of all time. I no longer believe that’s the case. If Tiger retired tomorrow, I think he goes down as the greatest ever. I know I’ve already said that Nicklaus had tougher rivals to overcome, but Woods’ domination of a deeper-than-yesteryear tour has been so staggering that I don’t think Jack could’ve quite matched it under the same circumstances.

O'Connor wrote a book titled Arnie&Jack..

Do you have a favorite Palmer and Nicklaus moment?
I’ve gotten the most feedback from readers on one tender moment in the book. Winnie Palmer died of cancer in November of ’99, and when Arnie called Jack to deliver the devastating news, Jack was down at the Q-school tournament with his son, Gary, who was trying to earn his tour card after eight failed attempts. Arnie knew Jack cared far more about his children than he did about any of his 18 major victories, so he told him to stay with his son and not to worry about attending the funeral. Of course Jack would have none of that. He flew with Barbara to Latrobe, Pa., attended the service and then the reception at the Latrobe Country Club. At the reception, Arnie walked over to Jack and told him to turn on the TV to see if his son Gary had finally earned his card. Jack didn’t think it was the right time and place, but Arnie insisted. So they turned on the TV and watched as Gary Nicklaus finished off a seven-under 63 to become a member of a tour his father helped make. Arnie and Jack turned to each other and fell into each other’s arms and started crying. I think that scene shows there was some love and affection beneath the thick layers of competitive tension between these men.

Complete interview... USGAwebsite