A crystal-clear and cool morning parlayed into brilliantly sunny afternoon at the Olympic Club in San Francisco on Tuesday. Pristine blue skies and the foothills of the city provided the perfect background to the sparkling course. And with Round 1 of the 112th U.S. Open two days away, the buzz is turning into a roar.
A slight play on words to simply segue into Tiger Woods, who is one of 10 former U.S. Open winners in the 156-player field this week.
“Played the golf course now a couple of times, and it’s quick out there,” Woods said Tuesday, following his early morning practice round. “It’s getting there. It’s getting up to speed. I’m sure that it will get quicker as the week goes on. But it’s going to be a wonderful test.”
Angel Cabrera (2007), Michael Campbell (2005), Ernie Els (1994, 1997), Jim Furyk (2003), Lucas Glover (2009), Retief Goosen (2001, 2004), Graeme McDowell (2010), Rory McIlroy (2011) and Geoff Ogilvy (2006) are the other nine champions entered.
Test became the operative word among players Tuesday. Not concisely a physical examination, either, but a true probing of mentally capability as well.
“Playing in The Open, you know it’s going to be a test of golf,” 2012 Masters champion Bubba Watson said. “You know it’s going to be a fun test, a very difficult test. It’s going to require mental focus that you’ve never had on most golf tournaments.
“You know the U.S. Open is going to challenge you in all aspects of your game. That’s the challenge for all of us this week.”
Defending champion McIlroy is certainly aware of the challenges that lay ahead as he is tries for back-to-back U.S. Open victories – a feat only completed by Curtis Strange (1988-89.)
“You can look at every hole here and you can pick out something that’s tough about it,” he said. “All 18 holes this week are going to be crucial.”
McIlroy won his championship at Congressional. His only other U.S. Open appearance came in 2010 at Pebble Beach.
“This is a little more similar to Pebble – not quite. It has that feeling about it, just with being on the coast and sort of the cool air and stuff,” McIlroy said. “I’m not sure it will be quite as difficult as Pebble was a couple of years ago, but it’s going to be a tough test.”
Holes No. 1 through No. 6 at the Olympic Club’s Lake Course, which includes a 520-yard Par 4 at No. 1 (the third longest Par 4 in U.S. Open history), is regarded as the course’s toughest stretch. The tree-lined, undulous Olympic measures 7,170 yards.
“You have to curve it more off the tees here than any other golf course that we play,” Woods added. “Even to the greens, you’ve got right to left slopes of, let’s say right to left slopes of fairways and greens, and you have to cut it, so you’re going against the grain. It’s the same thing on the flip side.
“That’s the neat thing about this golf course is it seems like the majority of the doglegs kind of run away from you,” Woods continued, captivating a packed interview room. “And it puts a big premium on shaping the ball. But also it puts a big premium on game planning, what you want to do, where you want to hit it, and being committed to that.”
Woods, the 2000, 2002 and 2008 U.S. Open champion, will be paired with Watson and Phil Mickelson on Thursday and Friday, forming a delightful “super group” to keep am eye on heading into the weekend. Woods, though, said there wouldn’t be much conversation between he and his playing partners.
“I don’t think we’re going to talk about a lot. This is a Major championship. We’ve got work to do…This is a long grind,” Woods said. “We’re teeing off of No. 9, so we don’t get to play obviously the first six holes until it’s basically our back nine. “It’s such a test playing in this championship. I think this is one of those championships that I think the guys talk the least to one another because it’s so difficult.”
- A hot topic – 14-year-old amateur Andy Zhang. Originally from the People’s Republic of China, Zhang took Paul Casey’s spot in the field after Casey withdrew Monday with a shoulder injury. Zhang, who competed in sectional qualifying at Black Diamond Ranch, is believed to be the youngest to compete in the U.S. Open.
“He qualified. He earned a spot. I tried it when I was 15, but he earned a spot,” Woods said. “He went out there … and did it. It’s not too young if you can do it. … That’s the great thing about this game, it’s not handed to you. You have to go out and put up the numbers and he did.”
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Lee Janzen won the last U.S. Open at Olympic Club in 1998, besting the late Payne Stewart by one stroke.
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Twenty players who were in the field in 1998 have returned.
