2013 U.S. Open Running Thread

[Tarheel316]

Enjoyed catching the back nine today. Just enough clutch shots by Rose — and missed putts by Phil — for another runner-up finish.

Oh, and I did see this li'l incident earlier in the final round:

Some girls will do anything to meet a pro golfer ...

Was she waiting for Tiger to have a relapse?

Post of the day. But she isn't a 6.

Pretty sure Tiger's girls weren't all 6s either.

No question, starting with the Perkins waitress.

 

[Chef2]

The USGA wins again. 1 over par wins a tournament that measures less than 7000 yards after several inches of rain.

I saw a picture of the pin on 7. Couldn't remember where I saw it, and it was kind if fuzzy, but it looked like it was on the back of a slope.

On a slope? Fine. In front of a slope? Fine. But on the back if a slope?
Come on.....

 

[qtlaw]

I thought the USGA did a phenomenal job with the course.

No. 1: guys who complain? Never forget, the conditions are the same for everyone.

No. 2: Not every hole was penal; No. 13 was 98 yds! No. 10 was a driveable 280 yd Par 4 (If you could draw it).

No. 3: Greens were brutally tough, but not lightening fast such that the ball would not stop; problems were with judging the amount of break; not the speed.

Very happy to see Rose win; damn thought Donald, my pre-tourney pick, would excel yet could not keep the ball in play;

Lefty, well he's lefty; brutal 3 jacks, unbelievable wedge game; drove the ball really well with his 2/3 woods.

Was pulling for Day too, too bad he just could not get it done; oh so close at the Masters and now the US Open.

Ultimately, it wasn't the course that did a player in, it was the player themself; don't believe me? Look at Stricker's flat out shank on No. 2(?) into the woods (from the fairway I believe). That's pressure.

 

[jr/shotglass]

Pretty good Pierce column.

http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/9394910/the-decline-tiger-woods-us-open/

 

[micropolitan guy]

I thought there was a real lack of drama throughout the whole tournament, even with Mickelson ahead heading into the final 18. There were no birdie chances down the stretch and no way was anyone getting a birdie at 18 if they needed one.

The USGA seems to take it as a personal affront if somebody breaks par. I'd rather see some holes that have a realistic chance of birdie, especially down the stretch, than 513-yard par 4s where somebody playing from behind has no chance whatsoever.

Then again, any tournament where Woods shoots 14-over is enjoyable. Those guys in SI Golf that keep brown bunnying him before every major continue to look like idiots.

 

[heyabbott]

I thought there was a real lack of drama throughout the whole tournament, even with Mickelson ahead heading into the final 18. There were no birdie chances down the stretch and no way was anyone getting a birdie at 18 if they needed one.

The USGA seems to take it as a personal affront if somebody breaks par. I'd rather see some holes that have a realistic chance of birdie, especially down the stretch, than 513-yard par 4s where somebody playing from behind has no chance whatsoever.

Then again, any tournament where Woods shoots 14-over is enjoyable. Those guys in SI Golf that keep brown bunnying him before every major continue to look like idiots.

before I celebrate Woods collapse, I'd like to know the extent of his injury. If he's gota ruptured tendon or muscle tear in his arm, then he's one helluva trooper for being out the and not quitting. OTOH if he's not injured and just collapsed, it may be the most significant fall of any stellar athlete in my half century of sports watching

 

[Armchair_QB]

I thought there was a real lack of drama throughout the whole tournament, even with Mickelson ahead heading into the final 18. There were no birdie chances down the stretch and no way was anyone getting a birdie at 18 if they needed one.

The USGA seems to take it as a personal affront if somebody breaks par. I'd rather see some holes that have a realistic chance of birdie, especially down the stretch, than 513-yard par 4s where somebody playing from behind has no chance whatsoever.

Then again, any tournament where Woods shoots 14-over is enjoyable. Those guys in SI Golf that keep brown bunnying him before every major continue to look like idiots.

before I celebrate Woods collapse, I'd like to know the extent of his injury. If he's gota ruptured tendon or muscle tear in his arm, then he's one helluva trooper for being out the and not quitting. OTOH if he's not injured and just collapsed, it may be the most significant fall of any stellar athlete in my half century of sports watching

He did act like he was having some sort of elbow problem early in the weekend so he's probably hurt. But I'm not sure what that had to do with his inability to read greens or putt. That killed him more than anything.

 

[old_tony]

Pretty good Pierce column.

http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/9394910/the-decline-tiger-woods-us-open/

There's peril in writing about something you didn't bother to watch.

Tiger was hampered throughout by a painful left elbow that made it especially brutal to hit out of the rough. Pierce doesn't seem to be aware of it. And that wasn't your run-of-the-mill rough.

 

[playthrough]

I thought there was a real lack of drama throughout the whole tournament, even with Mickelson ahead heading into the final 18. There were no birdie chances down the stretch and no way was anyone getting a birdie at 18 if they needed one.

The USGA seems to take it as a personal affront if somebody breaks par. I'd rather see some holes that have a realistic chance of birdie, especially down the stretch, than 513-yard par 4s where somebody playing from behind has no chance whatsoever.

Then again, any tournament where Woods shoots 14-over is enjoyable. Those guys in SI Golf that keep brown bunnying him before every major continue to look like idiots.

I think the USGA had their pants extra-wadded in this Open, with so much mounting criticism over technology and such. "OK, so you're legislating out anchoring for 2 percent of the golf population, but what about the tennis-racket drivers and moon balls?" A sub-7000 yard course would in theory be torn apart by players, so Davis and Co. pulled out every brutal pin position, fluffed the rough every day and even left the fairways just shaggy enough to keep good drives from bounding down into sand-wedge territory.

No one birdied 18 all weekend, which I'm sure is getting high-fives in Far Hills. But I didn't like Mickelson being on that tee needing a birdie and having virtually no chance.

 

[JC]

I thought there was a real lack of drama throughout the whole tournament, even with Mickelson ahead heading into the final 18. There were no birdie chances down the stretch and no way was anyone getting a birdie at 18 if they needed one.

The USGA seems to take it as a personal affront if somebody breaks par. I'd rather see some holes that have a realistic chance of birdie, especially down the stretch, than 513-yard par 4s where somebody playing from behind has no chance whatsoever.

Then again, any tournament where Woods shoots 14-over is enjoyable. Those guys in SI Golf that keep brown bunnying him before every major continue to look like idiots.

I think the USGA had their pants extra-wadded in this Open, with so much mounting criticism over technology and such. "OK, so you're legislating out anchoring for 2 percent of the golf population, but what about the tennis-racket drivers and moon balls?" A sub-7000 yard course would in theory be torn apart by players, so Davis and Co. pulled out every brutal pin position, fluffed the rough every day and even left the fairways just shaggy enough to keep good drives from bounding down into sand-wedge territory.

No one birdied 18 all weekend, which I'm sure is getting high-fives in Far Hills. But I didn't like Mickelson being on that tee needing a birdie and having virtually no chance.

Then Mickelson should have played 13 and 15 better.

If that's a par 5 you'd be ok with it because he needs eagle instead of birdie?

 

[Mark2010]

Well, we see once again that the USGA can fix any course to the point where no one breaks par. What is so great about that?

Was this tournament better than 1981, when David Graham's winning score was -7? I thought the tournament had plenty of drama, but it was the "oh my god, I hope my guy doesn't screw this next hole up and make triple bogey" kind. It was always a question of who was going to mess up the least.

As for Woods, hey, all golfers have their down weeks. He may or may not be seriously injured. If he's hurt, take time off, like he did in 2011. At least he's not making excuses.

As for Merion, the golf course itself was fine. A bigger issue, perhaps, was all the logistics surrounding a tournament of that size. Merchandising tents, media facilities, practice grounds, ticket sales, concession stands, locker rooms and, of course, porta potties. It's a fine, quaint little facility that would be fine for a Women's Open, a Senior Open, US Amateur, Walker Cup or whatever. But with so many other larger courses ready, willing and able to host a US Open, I kept asking "Why are they doing this?"

 

[trifectarich]

I thought there was a real lack of drama throughout the whole tournament, even with Mickelson ahead heading into the final 18. There were no birdie chances down the stretch and no way was anyone getting a birdie at 18 if they needed one.

The USGA seems to take it as a personal affront if somebody breaks par. I'd rather see some holes that have a realistic chance of birdie, especially down the stretch, than 513-yard par 4s where somebody playing from behind has no chance whatsoever.

Then again, any tournament where Woods shoots 14-over is enjoyable. Those guys in SI Golf that keep brown bunnying him before every major continue to look like idiots.

I think the USGA had their pants extra-wadded in this Open, with so much mounting criticism over technology and such. "OK, so you're legislating out anchoring for 2 percent of the golf population, but what about the tennis-racket drivers and moon balls?" A sub-7000 yard course would in theory be torn apart by players, so Davis and Co. pulled out every brutal pin position, fluffed the rough every day and even left the fairways just shaggy enough to keep good drives from bounding down into sand-wedge territory.

No one birdied 18 all weekend, which I'm sure is getting high-fives in Far Hills. But I didn't like Mickelson being on that tee needing a birdie and having virtually no chance.

Then Mickelson should have played 13 and 15 better.

If that's a par 5 you'd be ok with it because he needs eagle instead of birdie?

Doesn't matter to me if the USGA didn't assign par to any hole; just give 'em 18 holes and let 'em have at it. But when 146 of the world's best play a hole and there are 0 birdies, my inclination is to say that's a bit over the edge of providing a fair and proper test of their skills.

 

[Michael_ Gee]

It should be noted that Rose, the winner of the tournament, was the golfer who came closest to birdieing 18, at least as far as was shown on TV.

 

[Matt1735]

Mickelson birdied the hole to end the second round. No one birdied it on Sunday. And with no driver in the bag, he left himself too long of a second shot with the wind and wet conditions. He didn't have a chance, not because of the USGA, but because he had five wedges in his bag.

 

[LongTimeListener]

Mickelson birdied the hole to end the second round. No one birdied it on Sunday. And with no driver in the bag, he left himself too long of a second shot with the wind and wet conditions. He didn't have a chance, not because of the USGA, but because he had five wedges in his bag.

Broadcasters said earlier in the round that the Sunday pin placement eliminated driver from consideration for everybody. Not having the driver was no biggie there. The lords of golf simply did not want a 3 to be possible on that hole.

 

[micropolitan guy]

If that's a par 5 you'd be ok with it because he needs eagle instead of birdie?

My quibble with 18 was, it was a tweener hole.

* Too long and difficult of a par 4 to have a realistic shot at birde.

* Too short for a real par 5. If it's gonna be a par 5, then lengthen it, or everyone make birdie and that's not a test of skill either.

No quibble that Rose won. He was the best over 72 holes. But unlike say, the Masters, the closing holes were way to tough for anyone to have a real chance at birdie and to make a late charge. And that's what makes a tourney exciting.

 

[Michael_ Gee]

On Sunday, the pin placements appeared to be set on the principle of easier for the easier holes and harder for the harder ones. Mickelson bogeyed a 100-yard par three on Sunday. That and the missed short putts are why he lost, not 18.
Micro, the idea that the closing holes are so hard disaster is only a swing away can generate some drama, too. Excitement is just about birdies. If it was, the Palm Springs tournament would have the highest ratings every year.

 

[MileHigh]

I go back to what I wrote a few days ago.

Par doesn't matter one iota except to the blue blazers.

You play four rounds. Whoever takes the fewest shots over those four rounds wins. No. 18 could have been a par 2 or a par 7. It doesn't matter. Rose took two fewer shots over 72 holes than Mickelson and others -- and that's all that matters.

 

[LongTimeListener]

I think setting the final hole up that way is like the NFL doing away with the two-point conversion -- it would be a reasonable and historically grounded decision, but it makes for a lot less excitement as a spectator sport.

 

[Mark2010]

I go back to what I wrote a few days ago.

Par doesn't matter one iota except to the blue blazers.

You play four rounds. Whoever takes the fewest shots over those four rounds wins. No. 18 could have been a par 2 or a par 7. It doesn't matter. Rose took two fewer shots over 72 holes than Mickelson and others -- and that's all that matters.

Yeah, but it affects your mindset as you play a round. It's a lot harsher to think "gee, I just bogeyed from the fairway" than "well, no birdie this time, but at least I made par."