Cnotes U.S. Open Preview

U.S. Open Preview


June 14, 2015




The 2015 PGA Tour season may have officially started back in September but let’s be honest; was anyone really paying attention until football season was over? I didn’t think so. As far as I’m concerned the 2015 PGA Tour season doesn’t officially kickoff until the week following the Super Bowl. So here are my 18 guaranteed predictions for the “official” 2015 PGA Tour season:


18. Jim Furyk will blow at least one golf tournament this year. Actually…make that two. With zero wins. Ok, ok, so I copied and pasted that one from last year (and the year before that for that matter) but as the great Roy MacAvoy once said, “You ride her ‘til she bucks you…or don't ride at all.”


17. Bubba Watson took his douchebag level to an all-time high in the fall of 2014. First he announced to the world that “The Biebs” is his favorite singer, then he got his wife’s name tattooed on his ring finger before topping it off with some horrible “Bubba Claus” music video. But Bubba wasn’t done there. He tried to raise the bar in 2015 last week with his Brandi Chastain impression at a Putt-Putt of all places. Dude, you won two Green Jackets, act like you’ve been there. Yet somehow, someway Bubba will do something in 2015 that will surpass even those things on the d-bag scale. Oh, and he won’t contend in any majors and will probably win two mediocre Tour events. In case you can’t tell Bubba has officially come in at number one on my least likable athletes in all of sports.


16. Rickie Fowler will FINALLY win another tournament on tour this year, in fact, he will win a major this year. Why? Not because of his swing changes with Butch Harmon, or his incredible run with his putter; but because he will finally dress a little more normal, shave his porn-stache, turn his hat around the right way and most importantly publically break up with his BFF Bubba after the aforementioned incidents leave him no choice.


15. Dustin Johnson will get bored with his comeback attempt on the PGA Tour having to stay clean and sober and by April will retire from professional golf, move to Columbia with his wife Paulina and their kid and make money charging people to see Paulina’s Instagram pictures.


14. Contrary to popular belief, Rory McIllroy will not win the “Rory Slam”, the Grand Slam or pass Jack and Tiger in career majors in 2015 to become the greatest golfer that ever lived. In fact, despite having by far the best odds of anyone to win at least one major in 2015 (8/11), Rory will win exactly Zero majors in 2015. But he will continue to “date” incredibly hot women between the ages of 21-27 and will win three PGA tournaments this year…just not the ones that really matter.


13. Patrick Reed will finish the 2015 PGA tour season having STILL never cracked the top 5 World Rankings, yet will go all Rickie Henderson on us after winning some spare tournament like the Travelers Championship and drop the “Today I am the greatest of all time" line on David Feherty leaving David, and all 489 people watching The Travelers tournament speechless…And he will genuinely believe it.


12. Miguel Angel Jimenez will break every record ever set on the Senior PGA Tour this year and will actually be the greatest of all time. Both on and off the course.


11. Tiger Woods has gone from having arguable the greatest short game in the history of golf to arguably the worst. I’ve never seen anything like it actually. However he will figure it out sooner than later and once he does he will win a Major in 2015, get engaged to Lindsey Vonn, win three other non-majors, chase Dan Jenkins out of a press conference with a 9-iron, and keep a plastic surgeon on permanent retainer.


10. Henrick Stenson/Justin Rose/Jason Day/Matt Kuchar/Jimmy Walker/Martin Kaymer – Will all continue to be very good golfers that will combine to win seven tournaments this year (no majors) between them but do absolutely nothing exciting in the process on or off the course. I mean, unless you consider Matt Kuchar playing mixed doubles with his wife exciting?


9. Sergio Garcia will win the PLAYERS Championship and in a complete state of excitement accidentally admit to punching Tiger Woods in the face and thus the real reason Tiger lost his tooth back in January.


8. Adam Scott will file for divorce citing, ‘having sex with only one beautiful woman at a time is just not acceptable for me.’ He will then immediately pull out the Maxim top 100 issue and start checking them off two to three at a time.


7. FOX will absolutely destroy the US Open coverage. Greg Norman and Joe Buck will make all of you that hated on Johnny Miller beg for him back by Thursday afternoon.


6. Phil Mickelson will continue to be the greatest father and husband this country has ever seen. As a result of focusing ‘all of his time and energy on his family’ he will manage to barely make two of the four cuts in the majors, not finish a single tournament in the top 10 and drop out of the top 30 players in the world. But will continue to drink coffee every morning from his ‘World’s Greatest Dad’ mug.


5. Jordan Spieth will have his break out season by winning a Major, contending in two others and adding three other tournament wins to go with it and claim the Player of the Year award on the PGA Tour. However as an avid Cowboys fan he will get a favorable ruling one week to help him win only to get an equally bad ruling the next week that will cost him a tournament.


4. Masters – Rory will lead through 36 before having an epic Saturday afternoon meltdown and follow that up with a backdoor top-10 on Sunday. Bubba will not be invited to defend because the folks at ANGC don’t take kindly to shirtless men with tattoos on their fingers; and Mickelson’s arthritis will cause him to WD halfway through the second round well above the cut line.


Your winner? Jordan Spieth. With Bubba out of the way this year Jordan will finish what he started last year at Augusta.


3. US Open – Tiger will show signs of getting it together and will hang around but never really contend. Martin Kaymer will play the same golf course as everyone else this year and finish near the middle of the pack. Phil’s career grand slam chances will be an afterthought by Friday and Rory will be right there come Sunday but won’t be able to close it out.


Your winner at Chambers Bay this year? Rickie Fowler. Riding a hot putter and unbelievable iron play Rickie will finally get his second win and first major on the PGA Tour.


2. British Open – The last time the Open Championship was played at St. Andrews Tiger Woods was in the middle of sex therapy and withdrawals. This go around Tiger will be in the middle of his worst slump of his career. But even the great Jack Nicklaus had some pretty brutal stretches late in his career. With six months to get his short game together and returning to his favorite golf course on the planet Tiger will put it all together at least one more time for 72 holes and get major number 15. And if he doesn’t, and he can’t win at St. Andrew’s Tiger is officially done.


1. PGA Championship – Let’s just get right to it. Your winner? Dustin Johnson. Wait, what? Didn’t you just say he would retire from the PGA Tour and move to Columbia? As a matter of fact I did. HOWEVER…I have full faith that his father-in-law will send John Goodman down to clean him up and get him back on his feet just in time to win the PGA Championship at Whistling Straits and totally redeem himself from the screw job he got the last time he should have won a PGA there. At which point he will trump all previous winners by filling the Wannamaker to the brim with Blow and posting a picture of him and Paulina naked on a beach somewhere with the trophy between them and the Hashtag #Itsbeenrealbitches #Imout


19th Hole – Because quite frankly that’s where he is most comfortable…John Patrick Daly will win an official PGA Tour event in 2015. I’m going to get this right one year damnit!

US Open gets a new look for 115th edition


June 14, 2015


So much is brand new about America's oldest golf championship.

Not to worry. The U.S. Open hasn't lost its reputation as the toughest test in golf. And it's still the most democratic of the majors, with more than half the field - including a pair of two-time champions - having to go through qualifying.


Just about everything else at the 115th U.S. Open is breaking new ground, starting with where it is being played.


Chambers Bay, a public course perched along Puget Sound south of Seattle, for more than a century was a sand and gravel pit used for mining. Ten years ago, it was still being built. And now it's the first U.S. Open in the Pacific Northwest, and the first major in the area since Vijay Singh won the PGA Championship in 1998 at Sahalee. No other golf course has been awarded a U.S. Open so soon after it opened.


Also new this year: Fox Sports was awarded a 12-year contract that starts this year. Johnny Miller no longer will be calling the shots. That now falls to Greg Norman. And Fox will be making its debut in major championship golf with a course hardly anyone has seen.


It's more than location that makes it so different.


Instead of thick rough typical of a U.S. Open, Chambers Bay has fine fescue grass that allows the ball to bounce and roll, similar to a links course. There are no tree-lined fairways because there is only one tree on the golf course.


''It's everything like a British Open,'' Phil Mickelson said after playing the Robert Trent Jones Jr. design. ''I've never seen this type of fescue in the United States. I've never seen greens with fescue grass in the United States. The ball runs like the British. You're hitting the same shots as the British.''


Maybe that bodes well for Mickelson, who hasn't won a tournament since the 2013 British Open. This is his second shot at trying to become only the sixth player with the career Grand Slam. All he has from the U.S. Open, the only major he has never won, is a record six silver medals.


The par 70, but even that is different. The USGA plans to move the tees and alternate par between 4 and 5 on the first and 18th holes. And there's a par 3 (No. 9) that has two sets of tees - one that makes it play slightly uphill, the other has a 100-foot drop to the green.


Players already are suspicious, especially after USGA executive director Mike Davis said that anyone who plays only two practice rounds and has his caddie walk the course to get the yardage off the tee and to the green is ''done.''


It's not clear if the USGA is trying to identify the best player or the best student of architecture.


''There's going to be someone lifting the trophy at the end of the week,'' said Rory McIlroy, the world's No. 1 player. ''It's a bit of an unknown to most people, so you have to prepare. But you can fall into the trap of trying to over-prepare.''


He said that right before he missed consecutive cuts in Europe, his final competition before the second major of the year. Missing cuts is nothing new for McIlroy, but no less startling for the world's No. 1 player who has made mini-slumps in the summer two of the last three years.


Still, nothing is more surprising these days than Tiger Woods.


The last time the four-time champion played in the U.S. Open, at Merion in 2013, he was No. 1 in the world and in the midst of a five-win season. Now he is No. 181 and has gone nearly two years since his last victory. Woods took two months off early in the year when his game hit an all-time low - an 82 in the Phoenix Open - and then three tournaments into his return, he shot an 85 at the Memorial.


Woods also took a reconnaissance trip to Chambers Bay and was struck by how different it could play, with a variety of tees that could allow some par 4s to be reached off the tee, and other par 4s that required a fairway metal for the second shot.


''What combinations is Mike going to present us?'' Woods said. ''He could make it to where it's just brutal, or he can make it to where it's pretty easy and give us a combination of both, and then switch it up on every other hole. That's going to be the interesting part.''


McIlroy and Masters champion Jordan Spieth are the betting favorites, and the form is with Spieth. Only three times in his last 10 events has Spieth finished out of the top three, including a 65 at the Memorial in his final start. The 21-year-old Texan also has the advantage of being one of the few to have competed at Chambers Bay, although it may be a bad memory.


It hosted the 2010 U.S. Amateur, during which it played bone dry and was much more unpredictable than it is now. Spieth was among 11 players at the U.S. Amateur who are back at the U.S. Open.


Spieth shot 83 and failed to advance to match play, though he wasn't alone. Brooks Koepka shot 81. Russell Henley shot 82.


''I didn't really see much of it,'' Spieth said. ''Actually, I saw a lot of it - I didn't see much of the places I want to see.''


This is a mystery that the world's best will have four days to solve.

Spieth caddie's homecoming a great journey


June 12, 2015


Michael Greller thought he had the perfect summer job.


The sixth-grade math teacher signed up as a caddie in 2007 at Chambers Bay, a new golf course on the edge of Puget Sound, where he made between $60 and $100 a bag.


The previous summer, Greller got hooked on this hobby when he was watching the U.S. Amateur Public Links at Gold Mountain, his home course near Seattle, and he noticed a college kid who didn't have a caddie. Greller offered to work for free.


The payoff from the relationship he started that day and those that followed was more than he could have imagined.


One year into this summer job, Chambers Bay landed the 2015 U.S. Open and Greller began dreaming of walking the fairways with the world's best players. He had kept in touch with that college kid, Matt Savage, now the assistant golf coach at Florida State. He thought Savage might know of some young players who could use a caddie, or perhaps he could find a qualifier who needed local knowledge on a course unlike any other used for a U.S. Open.


Greller only wanted a chance to caddie in a U.S. Open. He knew it would be a long shot.


''And now it's my fourth U.S. Open,'' Greller said, shaking his head at this improbable turn of events. ''And I'm caddying for the Masters champion.''


His boss is Jordan Spieth, the No. 2 player in the world who joins Rory McIlroy as the top favorites when the U.S. Open starts on a course that Greller has walked more than any other.


''It will be a cool experience for us,'' Spieth said. ''And he's definitely going to come to the plate with more than the other guys can bring.''


Greller downplays the course knowledge for a couple of reasons. Chambers Bay has changed significantly from when it opened in 2007, and especially after the USGA saw how the course performed at the U.S. Amateur in 2010. He hasn't caddied there since 2011. Last month, he walked the course with a local caddie to get reacquainted.


''People think I'm some guru around there. I'm really not,'' Greller said. ''The biggest advantage is having my own bed and a familiar environment. I know it better than the average guy. But I work with the best caddies in the world. They're going to figure it out.''


Everywhere he turns will be a reminder of how far Greller has come.


A couple of his former students at Narrows View Intermediate have signed up as standard bearers. The principal at his old school is the head marshal on the 10th hole. One of his poker buddies is now a police officer and has been assigned to be part of Spieth's security detail.


''So many people in my life that I know are directly involved in the U.S. Open,'' Greller said. ''It's going to be fun to look around at all those faces.''


It's a shame Savage won't be there. He was the key figure in this odyssey.


Greller grew up in Michigan, played small college golf for Northwestern Iowa and moved to the Pacific Northwest to be near his sister. He earned his Masters' degree and found work outside Tacoma through a job fair.


School had just let out in 2006 when the U.S. Amateur Public Links came to town. Greller wanted to watch the best amateurs on his golf course, so he decided to walk with Clay Ogden, the defending champion. Ogden happened to be playing Savage, who had just completed his freshman year at Florida State.


''I think I was the only player walking around Gold Mountain carrying my own bag,'' Savage said. ''Michael followed my group. He and my dad talked the entire time and he sat down and had lunch with us and offered to caddie. He said, `I don't want to get paid anything, I just want to be part of the event. It's my home course.' After spending an hour or so with him, I could tell he was an awesome guy, really down to earth. I didn't think he'd get on my nerves like some random guy.''


Savage advanced to the quarterfinals before he was eliminated, and they kept in touch. Greller had so much fun that he transferred to a school near Chambers Bay so he could caddie during the summer when the course opened.


Four years later, Savage called Greller.


There was a 17-year-old at Savage's home club outside Louisville, Kentucky, named Justin Thomas - his father, Mike Thomas, was Savage's club pro at Harmony Landing - and the kid needed a caddie for the U.S. Amateur at Chambers Bay. Greller and Thomas hit it off and reached the second round.


What followed was an eventual fork in this amazing road.


Thomas and Spieth have been close friends since they were 14, so when Spieth went out to Seattle in 2011 for the U.S. Junior Amateur, Thomas pointed him in the direction of Greller. Spieth wound up winning his second U.S. Junior, and the next year, Spieth asked Greller to caddie for him at the U.S. Open. Spieth was low amateur at Olympic Club.


Spieth turned pro and asked Greller to come with him. Greller decided to take a one-year leave from teaching, knowing he could always return if it didn't work out.


It worked out.


Spieth had no status on any tour. By the end of the year, he won a PGA Tour event, was the youngest American (19) to play in the Presidents Cup and finished No. 10 on the money list at nearly $4 million. Two years later, Spieth became a Masters champion with Greller at his side.


All because of one selfless offer. All because of one chance meeting.

Chambers Bay ready for eyes of world to see unique layout


June 14, 2015


UNIVERSITY PLACE, Wash. (AP) - For the students at the nearby high school, it was simply known as the ''Sand Pit,'' the landmark two miles down the road where they would run as part of gym class.


For the passengers on the train between Seattle and Portland, Oregon, it was a moment to look out the other windows of the train car and take in the waters of Puget Sound. Looking the opposite direction meant staring into the teeth of the ugly old gravel and sand quarry hugging the shoreline.


A decade ago, that was the property now known as Chambers Bay. It was sand, and gravel and old concrete pilings. An eyesore. That's when the metamorphosis began, and it transformed from a sandy blemish into a swath of greenery cut through man-made mounds and dunes unique to American golf and, specifically, the Pacific Northwest.


Now the close-up for Chambers Bay has arrived: The 2015 U.S. Open, a rare occasion where the golf course is getting more attention than the players.


''It will be everything I know about the game being realized,'' course designer Robert Trent Jones Jr. said. ''These were dreams and very, very hard work to craft the great green stage upon which the dream will be fulfilled. That's the reality. It's no longer a dream.''


Chambers Bay is a reclamation project for the land on which it sits and for golf in the Pacific Northwest, a segment of the United States that is infrequently visited by championship golf.


Looking for green, lush, tree-lined fairways the width of a hallway with emerald foliage? Head up the road about an hour to Sahalee Country Club, the host of the 1998 PGA Championship. This is the antithesis of the stereotype for a golf course in this corner of the country.


Chambers Bay was built as the opposite of traditional, from the way it was constructed, to the funding behind the project, to the type of grass used on every fairway and green. The course was a risk of political and financial capital. It's about to have its biggest payoff, with a worldwide audience tuning in to see the fescue grass fairways and greens, the undulating, rolling putting surfaces and the brown-hued sand dunes all with the backdrop of Puget Sound water, the Olympic Mountains and bald eagles flying overhead.


When the first group tees off Thursday morning, Chambers Bay will become the youngest golf course to host the U.S. Open since Hazeltine - constructed by Jones' father - in 1970.


The creation of Chambers Bay was championed by then Pierce County Executive John Ladenburg, who decided the former gravel and sand quarry should be purchased by the county and use $21 million for its construction. From the beginning, Ladenburg demanded a golf course that was unique. Part of the reason Jones and his firm was chosen was their ambition, including the tag ''Chambers Creek, home of the 2030 U.S. Open,'' in their presentations to the county.


Thanks to Winged Foot withdrawing its bid to host the 2015 Open, that audacious goal was off by 15 years.


The golf course was built hand-in-hand with input from the USGA, which had on-site influence throughout construction. Put a path there for spectator movement. Flatten the tops of the dunes so tents and grandstands may be easily erected. Keep the concrete pilings along the 18th - someday they might be perfect for corporate suites.


The U.S. Open was always the goal. Even what seemed like minor decisions proved vital in having a winning bid. When more money could have been put into providing a clubhouse with grandeur overlooking the 930 acres of the golf course and neighboring public spaces, as an example, Ladenburg and county staff insisted the funds be used for features that mattered to course.


''Every time (Ladenburg) was given a choice between that and a better commercial result, meaning money, he made the right decision,'' Jones said.


Among the unique aspects of Chambers Bay is the lack of the trouble found on other American courses. There are no vertical hazards on the golf course, or trouble with water. The one tree, Lone Fir, sits stoically next to the 16th tee. Jones and his group put the defense of the course in the sandy waste areas and mounded, rolling green complexes that will likely cause grumbles.


''Right away it looks benign. It seems benign. So what we did is invest the defense of the course in and around the green complexes. That's the heart of the golf course,'' Jones said. ''The pulsing blood, flowing place where half the strokes in the game, in a par round, are expected to be made on the greens or on and around the greens. They're strongly contoured. They're lightning fast. You can't even tell where the fairway begins and the green starts.''


The course has changed through its brief history. The 2010 U.S. Amateur served as a laboratory to see how it would react to tournament conditions. Teeing grounds were added. Landing areas were softened. Greens were reconstructed to accept shots from longer clubs. The entire seventh green was lowered and moved forward after the amateur to be more forgiving. Jones and his team even went so far as to roll basketballs on the reconstructed green to make sure good shots were rewarded and not penalized.


Those changes and the versatility of the course will be on full display during the championship. Some will still remember their first impressions of the site when it was just a giant sandbox.


''Taking a look over this fence at the property, and at that point it was just piles of sand, remnants of this old gravel and sand mine,'' USGA executive director Mike Davis said. ''To think about where it is today, it's fun to look back at how it happened so quickly.''

US Open trivia quiz


June 12, 2015


How well do you know the U.S. Open? Try this trivia quiz:


FRONT NINE (5 points each)


1. Who holds the largest margin of victory at the U.S. Open?


a.) Rory McIlroy


b.) Tiger Woods


c.) Willie Smith


2. Where was the first U.S. Open played?


a.) Shinnecock Hills


b.) Chicago Golf Club


c.) Newport Country Club


3. Who was the last player to successfully defend his title in the U.S. Open?


a.) Ben Hogan


b.) Curtis Strange


c.) Andy North


4. Name the only player to complete the career Grand Slam at the U.S. Open.


a.) Jack Nicklaus


b.) Bobby Jones


c.) Gary Player


5. Who is the only player to lose three U.S. Open playoffs?


a.) Greg Norman


b.) Arnold Palmer


c.) Sam Snead


6. Which golf course has held the U.S. Open the most times?


a.) Oakmont


b.) Medinah


c.) Baltusrol


7. Four players have shot 63 in the U.S. Open. Who was the most recent?


a.) Steve Stricker


b.) Vijay Singh


c.) Jose Maria Olazabal


8. Name the only player to finish under par in three straight U.S. Opens.


a.) Tiger Woods


b.) Lee Janzen


c.) Curtis Strange


9. How many times has Phil Mickelson won the silver medal for finishing second in the U.S. Open?


a.) 6


b.) 5


c.) 4


BACK NINE (10 points each)


10. Who holds the record for lowest 72-hole score in the U.S. Open?


a.) Martin Kaymer


b.) Rory McIlroy


c.) Tiger Woods


11. Name the first American-born player to win the U.S. Open.


a.) John McDermott


b.) Walter Hagen


c.) Chick Evans


12. Which player lost the largest 54-hole lead in U.S. Open history?


a.) Mike Brady


b.) Greg Norman


c.) John Schlee


13. Who recorded the highest score on a single hole in the U.S. Open?


a.) John Daly


b.) Kevin Na


c.) Ray Ainsley


14. Billy Burke won the longest U.S. Open ever in 1931 by one shot at Inverness. How many holes did he play?


a.) 90


b.) 108


c.) 144


15. Name the oldest U.S. Open champion


a.) Julius Boros


b.) Hale Irwin


c.) Raymond Floyd


16. Who was the last player to win in his U.S. Open debut?


a.) Francis Ouimet


b.) Jack Fleck


c.) Jerry Pate


17. Since the world ranking began in 1986, which player had the worst ranking when he won the U.S. Open?


a.) Scott Simpson


b.) Steve Jones


c.) Hale Irwin


18. Name the last amateur to win the U.S. Open.


a.) Bobby Jones


b.) Johnny Goodman


c.) Olin Dutra


19th HOLE (25 points)


Who was the last player to make birdie on the 72nd hole to win the U.S. Open by one shot?


a.) Bobby Jones


b.) Arnold Palmer


c.) Payne Stewart


---


ANSWERS:


1. b


2. c


3. b


4. c


5. b


6. a


7. b


8. c


9. a


10. b


11. a


12. a


13. c


14. c


15. b


16. a


17. b


18. b


19. a

US Open hole by hole


June 12, 2015


UNIVERSITY PLACE, Wash. (AP) - A hole-by-hole look at Chambers Bay, site of the 115th U.S. Open to be played June 18-21:


No. 1, 496-598 yards, par 4-5: For the first time in U.S. Open history, a hole will have a different par depending on the round. As a par 5, the fairway is plenty generous off the tee and should be reachable in two depending on the wind strength and direction off Puget Sound. As a par 4, the landing area is much tighter and the green will be more difficult to hold with a mid-iron. The USGA expects the scoring average to be roughly similar regardless of par.


No. 2, 399 yards, par 4: Players likely will hit iron off the tee to avoid a knob in the landing area that could send shots left or right. A short iron will be left to a green that has a slope off the right, and a large sand area left of the green.


No. 3, 163-198 yards, par 3: A short or medium iron is likely to this Redan green that slopes from the front right to the rear left. The bunker complex on the left side of the hole is deep and dotted with deep fescue. The green features a small ridge, and with contours on the putting surface, players can get creative to try to get close to various pin positions.


No. 4, 495 yards, par 4: This starts the tough stretch on the front nine. It played as a par 5 for the U.S. Amateur. The landing area is generous. The safe shot is down the left, which makes the hole slightly longer. The right side requires the player to take on a massive bunker complex that stretches all the way to the green. The second shot is uphill and could require a long iron or metal. What helps is a natural backstop for shots that go long. The green has contours that move the ball from left to right.


No. 5, 488 yards, par 4: A magnificent view with an elevated tee and Puget Sound in the background. The fairway narrows just beyond 300 yards off the tee, and the landing area is framed by bunker complexes. The fairway slopes to the left, which could send tee shots into sand and leave a partially blind shot. A deep pot bunker guards the front of a green that slopes severely from back to front. For the U.S. Amateur, there was another green about 300 yards from the tee. That has been eliminated.


No. 6, 495 yards, par 4: The hole has been lengthened by some 100 yards. It features a partially blind tee shot to a landing zone with contours that send the ball in multiple directions. A shot down the left side leaves a longer approach, but a clear view of the green. The putting surface is framed by dunes and long bunkers down each side of the long, narrow green. The green slopes from back to front, and it will be important to keep the ball below the hole.


No. 7, 508 yards, par 4: This plays slightly uphill and bends slightly to the right. An aggressive play off the tee will move from left to right to take on the large bunker complex down the right side. The USGA has grown light rough in down the left side, which is safer, but leaves a tougher shot because of two large, rough-covered hillocks obstructing a clear view of the green. The elevated green slopes from back to front and has multiple tiers. It has been softened since the Amateur.


No. 8, 614 yards, par 5: The longest hole at Chambers Bay is the only one without a bunker. It is framed by a hillside on the left and a steep drop off to the right. With subtle contours, players likely will have uneven lies for their second and third shots. The hole gradually rises all the way to the green, which is long and narrow and has several ridges that will make it critical to have the right distance depending on the pin position.


No. 9, 217-224 yards, par 3: No other par 3 offers two distinct shots depending on the tee. The main tee features a 100-foot drop in elevation. The USGA created another tee that makes this hole slightly uphill. The angle of the lower tee provides a distinct backstop behind the green. A large bunker complex is short and to the right of one of the largest greens on the course. The green has contours that, if played properly, can funnel the ball toward the hole.


No. 10, 436-468 yards, par 4: Different tees made this drivable on some days at the U.S. Amateur. The landing area tightens as the fairway rises toward the green. The approach is set between dunes and sand and sits diagonally. The green slopes away from the dunes and back to front with multiple sets of contours.


No. 11, 500-537 yards, par 4: One of the toughest par 4s on the course, this elevated tee shot requires a right-to-left shape to avoid a large hillock that is situated in the middle of the fairway. The green is slightly elevated and generally moves right to left, but the contours are such that any misplayed shot will roll quickly off the green and could leave players some 40 yards away.


No. 12, 281-311 yards, par 4: This short, uphill hole allows for multiple options off the tee. The fairway is narrow and fairly easy to hit. Most players will be able to reach the green - the largest on the course - but there is a big bunker short and left of the green. The green is severely sloped from back to front and set in a punch bowl, so misplayed shots will repel away from the green. The green has distinct quadrants, and the right distance with shots into the green is critical.


No. 13, 534 yards, par 4: The fairway is nearly 115 yards wide - more than four times as wide as a typical U.S. Open fairway. The aggressive play is to the right side toward a bunker complex and will shorten the approach. Getting to the green is not a problem. It's holding the green. A deep bunker is front of the green, and a nob on the left repels shots. A slope on the right also sends golf balls away from the green.


No. 14, 521-546 yards, par 4: The longest par in U.S. Open history features an elevated tee some 200 feet above sea level. The tee shot drops at least 50 feet and must cover the largest bunker complex and native area at Chambers Bay. Adding to the difficulty is a bunker in the middle of the landing zone that must be avoided. The green features a pronounced ridge in the middle.


No. 15, 123-246 yards, par 3: This could be the longest or the shortest par 3 at Chambers Bay depending on the tee that is in use. The only tree on the course, a Douglas fir, is behind the green. The putting surface has two sections. The left side slopes from back to front and is easier to hold, presumably for the longer shot. The front side repels just about any shot that is not struck precisely.


No. 16, 423 yards, par 4: The rail and Puget Sound are to the right of this hole with a fairway that slopes from left to right and becomes more narrow just short of 300 yards. The green is small, framed by bunkers on both sides, and is pear-shaped. It's twice as wide at the front as it is in the back. The back sliver of the green has bunker on both sides. The tees could be moved forward to allow players to try to drive the green.


No. 17, 172-218 yards, par 3: The only par 3 at Chambers Bay that is neither uphill nor downhill. It's a long carry across a bunker complex and native area to a green that is divided into two sections. The more friendly side is to the left, which slopes from front to back. This will be used for the longer shot. The right side is elevated and framed on three sides by a bunker, with the ridge in the green on the left side of the section.


No. 18, 525-604 yards, par 4-5: This will be a par 4 or par 5, the opposite of whatever par is chosen for No. 1 so that Chambers Bay plays to a par 70 each round. As a par 5, players will try to carry as much of the bunker complex as possible on the right to allow a chance to reach the green in two. As a par 4, the goal is to avoid a deep cross bunker. The USGA added a bunker about 120 yards from the green that is some 10 feet deep. It probably won't come into play unless a player gets into trouble off the tee. The green is among the severely contoured on the golf course. The decision is whether to make this a par 4 or par 5 for the final round.

US Open at a glance


June 12, 2015


UNIVERSITY PLACE, Wash. (AP) - Facts and figures for the 115th U.S. Open golf championship:


Dates: June 18-21.


Site: Chambers Bay.


The course: Chambers Bay is a public course located south of Seattle along the Puget Sound on what used to be a sand and gravel pit that first was mined in the late 19th century. Once the mining stopped in 2001, the county decided to use the land for recreation, including a golf course built specifically to attract a U.S. Open. Robert Trent Jones Jr. designed the course, a majestic site played among dunes with severe elevation changes, a sandy base and fescue grass that requires less water and allows the ball to roll faster. The USGA plans to change par on two holes - Nos. 1 and 18 - which will play as either a par 4 or a par 5, though each round the course will play to a par 70.


Length: 7,648 yards (average). Course will play between 7,200 and 7,600 yards each day.


Par: 70 (36-34 or 35-35)


Cut: Top 60 and ties after 36 holes.


Playoff (if necessary): 18 holes on June 22.


Field: 156 players


Purse: TBA ($9 million in 2014).


Defending champion: Martin Kaymer.


Last year: Martin Kaymer of Germany became only the seventh wire-to-wire winner in U.S. Open history with an eight-shot victory at Pinehurst No. 2. Kaymer opened with 65-65 to set the 36-hole U.S. Open scoring record at 130. No one got closer than four shots to him over the final 48 holes. It was the first of a U.S. Open doubleheader. Pinehurst No. 2 hosted the U.S. Women's Open the following week.


Tiger Tales: Tiger Woods has never finished worse than a tie for 32nd over 72 holes in the U.S. Open.


Silver anniversary: Fifty years ago, Gary Player became the only player to complete the career Grand Slam at a U.S. Open. Phil Mickelson will try to become the sixth player with the career Grand Slam at Chambers Bay.


Noteworthy: This will be the first U.S. Open without Johnny Miller in the TV booth since 1994. Fox Sports takes over with Greg Norman as the chief analyst.


Quoteworthy: ''I don't know what to expect. I know it will be hard.'' - Geoff Ogilvy.


Key statistic: Europeans, who had gone 40 years without winning a U.S. Open, have won four of the last five.


Television: Thursday and Friday, noon to 8 p.m., FOX Sports 1; 8 p.m. to 11 p.m., FOX. Saturday, 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. FOX; Sunday, 2 p.m. to 10:30 p.m., FOX.

Prime-time viewing for Woods, Spieth


June 12, 2015


UNIVERSITY PLACE, Wash. (AP) - The opening round of Tiger Woods and Masters champion Jordan Spieth will be televised in prime time.


Spieth was placed in the same group as Jason Day and Justin Rose for the opening two rounds next week at Chambers Bay. They will tee off at 5:17 p.m. EDT as Fox Sports makes its debut in golf.


Woods is in the group right behind them with Rickie Fowler and Louis Oosthuizen.


Rory McIlroy, the world's No. 1 player, is with defending champion Martin Kaymer and U.S. Amateur champion Gunn Yang. They will tee off Thursday morning, which will be 11:28 a.m. EDT, and then most of their second round will be featured in prime time.


Phil Mickelson, with Angel Cabrera and Bubba Watson start at 10:33 a.m. EDT on Thursday.

Chambers Bay ready for center stage


June 12, 2015


UNIVERSITY PLACE, Wash. (AP) - For the students at the nearby high school, it was simply known as the ''Sand Pit,'' the landmark two miles down the road where they would run as part of gym class.


For the passengers on the train between Seattle and Portland, Oregon, it was a moment to look out the other windows of the train car and take in the waters of Puget Sound. Looking the opposite direction meant staring into the teeth of the ugly old gravel and sand quarry hugging the shoreline.


A decade ago, that was the property now known as Chambers Bay. It was sand, and gravel and old concrete pilings. An eyesore. That's when the metamorphosis began, and it transformed from a sandy blemish into a swath of greenery cut through man-made mounds and dunes unique to American golf and, specifically, the Pacific Northwest.


Now the close-up for Chambers Bay has arrived: The 2015 U.S. Open, a rare occasion where the golf course is getting more attention than the players.


''It will be everything I know about the game being realized,'' course designer Robert Trent Jones Jr. said. ''These were dreams and very, very hard work to craft the great green stage upon which the dream will be fulfilled. That's the reality. It's no longer a dream.''


Chambers Bay is a reclamation project for the land on which it sits and for golf in the Pacific Northwest, a segment of the United States that is infrequently visited by championship golf.


Looking for green, lush, tree-lined fairways the width of a hallway with emerald foliage? Head up the road about an hour to Sahalee Country Club, the host of the 1998 PGA Championship. This is the antithesis of the stereotype for a golf course in this corner of the country.


Chambers Bay was built as the opposite of traditional, from the way it was constructed, to the funding behind the project, to the type of grass used on every fairway and green. The course was a risk of political and financial capital. It's about to have its biggest payoff, with a worldwide audience tuning in to see the fescue grass fairways and greens, the undulating, rolling putting surfaces and the brown-hued sand dunes all with the backdrop of Puget Sound water, the Olympic Mountains and bald eagles flying overhead.


When the first group tees off Thursday morning, Chambers Bay will become the youngest golf course to host the U.S. Open since Hazeltine - constructed by Jones' father - in 1970.


The creation of Chambers Bay was championed by then Pierce County Executive John Ladenburg, who decided the former gravel and sand quarry should be purchased by the county and use $21 million for its construction. From the beginning, Ladenburg demanded a golf course that was unique. Part of the reason Jones and his firm was chosen was their ambition, including the tag ''Chambers Creek, home of the 2030 U.S. Open,'' in their presentations to the county.


Thanks to Winged Foot withdrawing its bid to host the 2015 Open, that audacious goal was off by 15 years.


The golf course was built hand-in-hand with input from the USGA, which had on-site influence throughout construction. Put a path there for spectator movement. Flatten the tops of the dunes so tents and grandstands may be easily erected. Keep the concrete pilings along the 18th - someday they might be perfect for corporate suites.


The U.S. Open was always the goal. Even what seemed like minor decisions proved vital in having a winning bid. When more money could have been put into providing a clubhouse with grandeur overlooking the 930 acres of the golf course and neighboring public spaces, as an example, Ladenburg and county staff insisted the funds be used for features that mattered to course.


''Every time (Ladenburg) was given a choice between that and a better commercial result, meaning money, he made the right decision,'' Jones said.


Among the unique aspects of Chambers Bay is the lack of the trouble found on other American courses. There are no vertical hazards on the golf course, or trouble with water. The one tree, Lone Fir, sits stoically next to the 16th tee. Jones and his group put the defense of the course in the sandy waste areas and mounded, rolling green complexes that will likely cause grumbles.


''Right away it looks benign. It seems benign. So what we did is invest the defense of the course in and around the green complexes. That's the heart of the golf course,'' Jones said. ''The pulsing blood, flowing place where half the strokes in the game, in a par round, are expected to be made on the greens or on and around the greens. They're strongly contoured. They're lightning fast. You can't even tell where the fairway begins and the green starts.''


The course has changed through its brief history. The 2010 U.S. Amateur served as a laboratory to see how it would react to tournament conditions. Teeing grounds were added. Landing areas were softened. Greens were reconstructed to accept shots from longer clubs. The entire seventh green was lowered and moved forward after the amateur to be more forgiving. Jones and his team even went so far as to roll basketballs on the reconstructed green to make sure good shots were rewarded and not penalized.


Those changes and the versatility of the course will be on full display during the championship. Some will still remember their first impressions of the site when it was just a giant sandbox.


''Taking a look over this fence at the property, and at that point it was just piles of sand, remnants of this old gravel and sand mine,'' USGA executive director Mike Davis said. ''To think about where it is today, it's fun to look back at how it happened so quickly.''


---


This story has been corrected to show the initial investment was $21 million and the presentation given to the county referred to hosting the 2030 U.S. Open, not 2025.

US Open player capsules


June 11, 2015


A capsule look at 15 top players in the U.S. Open, to be played June 18-21 at Chambers Bay (listed in predicted order of finish):


JIM FURYK


Age: 45


Country: United States.


World ranking: 3.


Worldwide wins: 20.


Majors: US Open (2003).


US Open memory: The good - winning at Olympia Fields, the perfect tribute on Father's Day to his only coach, father Mike. The bad - being in the best position to win at Olympic Club in 2012 until a snap-hook on the 16th hole when confused by the USGA moving up the tees.


Backspin: Not since 1999 has a player in his 40s won the U.S. Open. Furyk keeps contending regardless of age and moved up to No. 3 in the world ranking. He won at Hilton Head with a clutch putting performance. That will be the key to Chambers Bay. Lack of length off the tee could be negated on a fast course.


---


PHIL MICKELSON


Age: 45.


Country: United States.


World ranking: 19.


Worldwide wins: 45.


Majors: Masters (2004, 2006, 2010), British Open (2013), PGA Championship (2005).


US Open memory: His six silver medals from being runner-up. No one has more.


Backspin: Mickelson gets his second shot at the career Grand Slam, and this is the 50th anniversary of Gary Player completing his Grand Slam at a U.S. Open. Mickelson hasn't won since the 2013 British Open. That's the bad news. He was runner-up in the last two majors. And he's unpredictable Phil. That's why he could deliver the most magical story off Puget Sound.


---


JORDAN SPIETH


Age: 21.


Country: United States.


World ranking: 2.


Worldwide wins: 5.


Majors: Masters (2015).


US Open memory: Finishing as low amateur at Olympic Club in 2012.


Backspin: Spieth is just getting started, and while he's not in the power group in golf, his putting and short game works anywhere. He shot 83 at Chambers Bay during qualifying for the U.S. Amateur on a course that was harder than it will be for the U.S. Open. His biggest test will be accepting bad shots, which happen to everyone.


---


RORY MCILROY


Age: 26.


Country: Northern Ireland.


World ranking: 1.


Worldwide wins: 17.


Majors: US Open (2011), British Open (2014), PGA Championship (2012, 2014).


US Open memory: Setting the record of 268 in his eight-shot victory at Congressional in 2011 for his first major.


Backspin: For all his talent and feats, questions remain about how hard McIlroy is willing to grind when the stars are not aligned, and how he fares in bad weather. Chambers Bay could provide a test in both categories. McIlroy is a European who plays an American game - through the air. He's also the best player in the world for a reason, so that can atone for any shortcomings. He is coming off consecutive missed cuts. That's not unusual for him, nor is it always a sign of how he will play.


---


DUSTIN JOHNSON


Age: 30.


Country: United States.


World ranking: 7.


Worldwide wins: 9.


Majors: None.


US Open memory: Losing a three-shot lead in two holes and closing with an 82 in 2010 at Pebble Beach.


Backspin: Johnson appears to have his life in order, or at least more settled, after his six-month break. He already won a World Golf Championship and lost at Riviera in a playoff. All the talk about Chambers Bay being a course that requires great study and thinking might not suit him. Johnson likes to smash it. But much like McIlroy, the sheer skill should be enough to give him hope.


---


HENRIK STENSON


Age: 39.


Country: Sweden.


World ranking: 5.


Worldwide wins: 12.


Majors: None.


US Open memory: Wanting to see Torrey Pines for the first time ahead of the 2008 U.S. Open, he went online to book a tee time and was sent out with two paying customers from Orange County. One of them was woman named Pamela Anderson. Just not the actress.


Backspin: Stenson already has been to Chambers Bay to walk the golf course without clubs. He referred to it as ''interesting,'' which could mean anything. The Swede typically is a high-ball hitter. He's powerful off the tee and a supreme ball-striker.


---


TIGER WOODS


Age: 39.


Country: United States.


World ranking: 181.


Worldwide wins: 90


Majors: Masters (1997, 2001, 2002, 2005), US Open (2000, 2002, 2008), British Open (2000, 2005, 2006), PGA Championship (1999, 2000, 2006, 2007).


US Open memory: The most dominant performance in history at Pebble Beach in 2000 when he won by 15 shots.


Backspin: A perennial favorite in the majors has now become an afterthought. Woods has gone seven years since his 14th and last major. More critical to his chances is that he has gone nearly two years without winning any tournament. In recent months, he has been ordinary at his best. In normal times, a course like Chambers Bay would stoke his imagination. These are not normal times. Getting into contention would be a surprise.


---


ADAM SCOTT


Age: 34.


Country: Australia.


World ranking: 12.


Worldwide wins: 25.


Majors: Masters (2013).


US Open memory: As an amateur, he was working with Butch Harmon in Las Vegas in 2000 when Tiger Woods came by for one last session. Scott played with him and watched Woods shoot 63 in the wind. He later said if Woods had not won the U.S. Open, ''I don't think I would have turned pro.''


Backspin: After a strong start to the year with a short putter, Scott got off the rails so badly that he changed back to a long putter, and then he fired his caddie. The swing still looks good. The results have been pedestrian. He is bringing back caddie Steve Williams for the U.S. Open and other majors this summer. He was No. 1 in the world going into the U.S. Open last year. Now he's not even in the top 10.


---


RICKIE FOWLER


Age: 26.


Country: United States.


World ranking: 9.


Worldwide wins: 3.


Majors: None.


US Open memory: Playing in the final group at a major for the first time last year at Pinehurst No. 2. He shot 72 and finished eight shots behind as a runner-up.


Backspin: Fowler showed off his full potential at The Players Championship, not because he won but how he won. He was fearless and confident and took on every shot. And he got rid of that ''overrated'' label in a magazine. He finished in the top 5 in all four majors last year - only Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods have done that. But even after the glow of winning The Players, the victory tally remains low for someone in his sixth full year on tour.


---


JASON DAY


Age: 27.


Country: Australia.


World ranking: 10.


Worldwide wins: 3.


Majors: None.


US Open memory: Two silver medals in four appearances at the U.S. Open. He had an outside chance at Merion in 2013 when he finished two shots behind. He had no chance in 2011 when he finished eight behind Rory McIlroy.


Backspin: Day might be the Australian version of Rickie Fowler, or vice versa - loads of talent, wonderful manners, good performances in the majors, and questions why he doesn't win more. He was trending in the right direction with a string of high finishes, including his victory at Torrey Pines. Missing the cut at the Memorial was probably not the best way to go into the U.S. Open.


---


MARTIN KAYMER


Age: 30.


Country: Germany.


World ranking: 18.


Worldwide wins: 15.


Majors: US Open (2014), PGA Championship (2010).


US Open memory: Trying to steal the thunder from Germany in the World Cup by winning the U.S. Open last year at Pinehurst No. 2. It was the first U.S. Open title for a German, and it was old news by the time his countrymen returned home from Brazil with the World Cup trophy.


Backspin: Kaymer became a complete player by taking some 18 months to develop a full arsenal of shots. Still to be determined is whether he can handle a ground game that will be required at Chambers Bay. As for his form? He has not contended since January.


---


HIDEKI MATSUYAMA


Age: 23.


Country: Japan.


World ranking: 14.


Worldwide wins: 7.


Majors: None.


US Open memory: Matching the low score (67) of the final round at Merion in 2013 to tie for 10th in his U.S. Open debut.


Backspin: Of all the young stars in golf, Matsuyama doesn't get as much attention for the quality of his game, mainly because of his quiet personality and lack of English skills. He has the power and the passion. It might take a major for the world to truly pay attention.


---


BUBBA WATSON


Age: 36.


Country: United States.


World ranking: 4.


Worldwide wins: 6.


Majors: Masters (2012, 2014).


US Open memory: Missing the cut both years he won the Masters.


Backspin: Given his imagination and the shape of any shot he wants to play, Chambers Bay might be best suited for Watson. He also has played it previously at charity events. The wild card is his attitude. Watson struggles on courses that don't fit his eye at first glance, and he doesn't have a reputation for handling bad breaks, which are sure to occur at a U.S. Open like this one.


---


JUSTIN ROSE


Age: 34.


Country: England.


World ranking: 6.


Worldwide wins: 14.


Majors: US Open (2013).


US Open memory: The 4-iron he hit to the 18th hole at Merion that clinched his U.S. Open title.


Backspin: He's not flashy, but he wins. Over the last five years, only Rory McIlroy (11) and Tiger Woods (8) have more than Rose's seven victories on the PGA Tour. After a slow start, he won in New Orleans and lost in a playoff at Memorial, so his form is in good shape heading into a summer of majors.


---


SERGIO GARCIA


Age: 35.


Country: Spain.


World ranking: 9.


Worldwide wins: 22.


Majors: None.


US Open memory: Complaining that Tiger Woods got the good end of the draw in 2002 at Bethpage Black, and then being paired with Woods in the final round and getting verbally abused by the New York gallery as Woods won the U.S. Open.


Backspin: One of the best ball-strikers in golf, the U.S. Open would figure to suit Garcia well, and his performance at The Players Championship (playoff loss) would suggest his game is turning the corner. But he has no confidence in his putting, and Chambers Bay will be a course in which players will do well to accept bad breaks. That has never been a strong suit for the Spaniard.

Odds to win 2015 U.S. Open


June 11, 2015


The U.S. Open, the second golf major of the season, will take place at Chambers Bay from University Place, Washington on June 18, 2015. This will be the first Open played in the state of Washington.


Oddsmakers at Sportsbook.ag have installed Rory McIlroy as the top betting choice (5/1). The Northern Ireland product captured the event in 2011 and is one of four International golfers to win the U.S. Open in the last five years.


2015 Masters champion Jordan Spieth has been installed as an 8/1(Bet $100 to win $800) betting choice.


Listed below are the future odds at Sportsbook.ag.


Odds provided by Sportsbook.ag


ODDS TO WIN 2015 U.S. OPEN (6/18/15)


Rory McIlroy 5/1
Jordan Spieth 8/1
Dustin Johnson 18/1
Phil Mickelson 18/1
Justin Rose 20/1
Rickie Fowler 20/1
Jason Day 22/1
Adam Scott 25/1
Bubba Watson 30/1
Henrik Stenson 30/1
Hideki Matsuyama 35/1
Jim Furyk 35/1
Matt Kuchar 35/1
Sergio Garcia 35/1
Jimmy Walker 40/1
Martin Kaymer 45/1
Patrick Reed 45/1
Tiger Woods 50/1
Brandt Snedeker 55/1
Billy Horschel 65/1
Brooks Koepka 70/1
Graeme McDowell 70/1
Hunter Mahan 70/1
Keegan Bradley 70/1
Lee Westwood 70/1
Louis Oosthuizen 70/1
Paul Casey 70/1
Ryan Moore 70/1
Webb Simpson 70/1
Zach Johnson 70/1
Bill Haas 90/1
Chris Kirk 90/1
Ian Poulter 90/1
J.B. Holmes 90/1
Francesco Molinari 100/1
Jason Dufner 100/1
Charl Schwartzel 110/1
Charley Hoffman 110/1
Gary Woodland 110/1
Harris English 110/1
Jamie Donaldson 110/1
Kevin Na 110/1
Ryan Palmer 110/1
Victor Dubuisson 110/1
Angel Cabrera 150/1
Brendon Todd 150/1
Daniel Berger 150/1
Ernie Els 150/1
Geoff Ogilvy 150/1
Graham DeLaet 150/1
John Senden 150/1
Kevin Streelman 150/1
Luke Donald 150/1
Marc Leishman 150/1
Padraig Harrington 150/1
Russell Henley 150/1
Shane Lowery 150/1
Nick Watney 160/1
Steve Stricker 160/1
Bernd Wiesberger 200/1
Branden Grace 200/1
Brendon de Jonge 200/1
Cameron Tringale 200/1
Charles Howell III 200/1
Danny Willett 200/1
Jonas Blixt 200/1
K.J. Choi 200/1
Kevin Chappell 200/1
Matt Jones 200/1
Michael Putnam 200/1
Miguel Angel Jimenez 200/1
Peter Uihlein 200/1
Russell Knox 200/1
Sang-Moon Bae 200/1
Seung-Yul Noh 200/1
Thorbjorn Olesen 200/1
Ben Martin 250/1
Brendan Steele 250/1
Jason Kokrak 250/1
Joost Luiten 250/1
Justin Thomas 250/1
Matt Every 250/1
Morgan Hoffman 250/1
Scott Piercy 250/1
Shawn Stefani 250/1
Thomas Bjorn 250/1
Tim Clark 250/1
Vijay Singh 250/1
Boo Weekley 300/1
Erik Compton 300/1
Lucas Glover 300/1
Stephen Gallacher 300/1
Thongchai Jaidee 300/1
Anirban Lahiri 500/1
Colin Montgomerie 1000/1
Darren Clarke 1000/1
Gunn Yang 1000/1
Ollie Schniederjans 1000/1
Bradley Neil 2000/1

Low expectations as Fox gets a crack at Tiger


June 14, 2015


UNIVERSITY PLACE, Wash. (AP) - New to golf broadcasting, Fox Sports also gets its first crack at Tiger Woods. And the two primary voices at the U.S. Open, including Greg Norman, don't have high expectations for him at Chambers Bay

That's not alarming.


Woods now has gone seven years since he last won a major. Due to injuries and yet another change in coaches, he has gone 18 months without finishing in the top 10 anywhere in the world. And he's coming off an 85-74 weekend at the Memorial, the highest 36-hole score of his career.


''It's a massive effort, mentally and physically, for him to get himself out of this hole he's in,'' Norman said on a conference call. ''The more he shoots 85, or extraordinary high numbers, the harder it is for him to get out of that hole.''


Norman will be in the booth with lead announcer Joe Buck, who said Woods has been ''front and center'' for as long as Buck has been watching golf.


That hasn't been the case the past two years except for being curious about a comeback. Woods missed the first two majors in 2014 because of back surgery, and he took a two-month break before this year's Masters to fix his short game.


When the USGA announced in August 2013 that it had awarded Fox a 12-year contract to televise the U.S. Open, Woods was coming off his fifth victory of the year that included a 61 at the Bridgestone Invitational. He was No. 1 in the world. He was the betting favorite at majors.


Golf has not lacked for a group of rising stars. Rory McIlroy is No. 1 in the world and already has four majors. Jordan Spieth is a Masters champion at age 21. Rickie Fowler recently picked up an important win at The Players Championship.


Woods still moves the needle. The question is how much.


''Trust me, we're a network trying to get viewers,'' Buck said. ''They'll get Tiger when it's appropriate. But there's no way you can go into expecting him to play great just because history doesn't tell you that he will.''


Woods was among several players who took an early scouting trip to Chambers Bay, a course unlike any other for the U.S. Open with its sprawling fairways shaped through man-made dunes and framed by rugged bunker complex.


Built on a former sand-and-gravel pit that was mined for more than a century, it is not a links golf course. It just plays one on TV. Woods does not lack for imagination, and perhaps this brand of golf might help.


''With the way the golf course is set up, obviously he has the ability to have it click in at some point, though we've been waiting for that,'' Buck said.


''But he also has the ability to blow up. With so much importance being placed on the short game, considering how the season started for Tiger, I don't see how you can go into this with any expectation of having him being among the leaders coming down the stretch on Sunday. That would be crazy. Could it happen? Sure.''


Norman can relate to Woods in one respect. His work ethic was legendary. And that's one reason he believes Woods still has a long way to go, if he ever gets there.


''He's gone through major swing changes in the past,'' Norman said. ''But those swing changes ... his body was a lot younger. When you do make a change, you have to hit a lot of golf balls. You have to get the old swing thought out and the new swing thought in. And that's just a lot of repetition and hitting, hitting and hitting.


''Your body doesn't recover quickly, or as well, like it used to when you were in your 20s and 30s,'' he said. ''He's got that mountain to climb.''


For all the innovation and technological gadgets Fox plans to introduce, the biggest change for television viewers will be sound. For the past 20 years, the voice of the U.S. Open was Johnny Miller. Now it's Norman, a two-time British Open champion and the only player to lose all four majors (stroke play) in a playoff.


Norman was an influential voice as a player. Still to be determined is how that translates to the booth. He's not Johnny Miller and won't try to be.


''I was always a big fan of Johnny. He was very forthright in his thoughts and opinions,'' Norman said. ''When you're in that seat, you've got to give your opinion. It can't be sugarcoated. It irks me when I do watch TV and every player hits the perfect shot, every player is just the greatest short-game player in the world, every player is just so good. When they do something wrong, it's got to be pointed out.


''A lot is going to be magnified dramatically at Chambers Bay,'' he said. ''If a player is a little off, he's going to get brutally penalized.''