Sports
U.S. OPEN BLOG: Weir on top
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| Mike Weir of Canada pumps his fist after making a birdie putt on the ninth hole during the first round of the U.S. Open Golf Championship at Bethpage State Park's Black Course in Farmingdale, N.Y., Friday, June 19, 2009. Weir was the leader after the first round with 6-under 64. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa) |
By Nick Prevenas, www.gvnews.com
Updated 2:30 p.m.
Mike Weir has made Bethpage look like a walk in the park, firing a blistering 64 to take a 2-shot lead over the surprising Peter Hanson in the first round of the U.S. Open.
If not for a disappointing double bogey on the brutal No. 6, Weir would be even further under par. Eight birdies in any U.S. Open round is quite a feat, but doing it in a course that was nearly flooded yesterday is just remarkable.
Weir, who enjoyed his finest season as a pro in 2003 when he won the masters and finished third at the U.S. Open, isn't the longest hitter on tour, but the Canadian lefty keeps his drives in the fairway and doesn't waste many shots.
The most surprising name on the leaderboard has to be David Duval, who sits at 3-under. Duval, who is starting his second round as I'm typing, was the longtime No. 2 player behind Woods before seeing his career nosedive for a couple of years. The comeback trail has been rocky, but if he continues to toss up scores in the 60s, he could get the New York fans really fired up.
Currently, 13 players have posted scores under par.
ESPN will be carrying golf action throughout the evening. If this tempermental Internet connection holds out, I'll have one more blog post updating the evening standings.
Updated 9 a.m. --Drew Weaver and Graeme McDowell took it right to the brutal Bethpage black, each checking in with a 1-under 69 in early action.
The players withstood yesterday's rain delay and they're enjoying a much nicer day this morning. However, there is another strong chance of rain, as the USGA attempts to get in all the golf it possibly can by the end of today.
There's no telling how long it'll take to get through these first two rounds, with much of the field still having a ways to go before wrapping up round one this morning.
One of the players who did finish his opening round early wishes he had it to do over again.
Tiger Woods posted a 4-over 74, shooting a disappointing plus-4 on the last four holes, including an ugly double-bogey on 15.
The wet conditions has made the already-long Bethpage play even longer, throwing off a lot of the players' club selection. However, the slick greens have softened up considerably, allowing players to attack the pin -- as long as they avoid the rough.
Sentimental favorite Phil Mickelson is in the mix, currently 1-under through 12. These galleries absolutely adore Lefty.
In early action, Sean O'Hair and Camillo Villegas find themselves at 2-under.
Kevin Sunderland heads to the clubhouse with a very unorthodox even-par 71. After a brutal 41 on the front nine, Sunderland came back to shoot 30 on his next nine. Thirty!
Updated 7:30 a.m. -- I guess Mother Nature wanted to have her say in what would happen at the U.S. Open this week.
As if Bethpage Black wasn't already tough to navigate, heavy rains have made it impossible to maneuver through some parts of the course unless your caddy happened to pack a kayak.
Players had the option to finish their current hole, but everyone has to vacate the course for an undetermined amount of time.
Thus far, we have four players under par -- and not the foursome you'd expect.
Jeff Brehaut, Johan Edfors, Andrew Parr and Ryan Spears are each 1-under, with Brehaut having already completed 11 holes (starting on the back nine).
Tiger Woods? Well, he double-bogeyed hole No. 5 after a couple of errant shots, but got one of them back on No. 6 with a clutch 20-foot birdie putt.
Many of golf's superstars have yet to tee off or have only a couple of holes under their belts.
During the delay, ESPN will be bringing us highlights of last year's Open. Normally, I'd just roll over and go back to sleep until live action gets going again, but I could watch those Woods-Rocco Mediate highlights all day long. I think it's safe to say that was the most dramatic U.S. Open of this era.
I'll update the blog again once the players hit the course again.
Mike Weir has made Bethpage look like a walk in the park, firing a blistering 64 to take a 2-shot lead over the surprising Peter Hanson in the first round of the U.S. Open.
If not for a disappointing double bogey on the brutal No. 6, Weir would be even further under par. Eight birdies in any U.S. Open round is quite a feat, but doing it in a course that was nearly flooded yesterday is just remarkable.
Weir, who enjoyed his finest season as a pro in 2003 when he won the masters and finished third at the U.S. Open, isn't the longest hitter on tour, but the Canadian lefty keeps his drives in the fairway and doesn't waste many shots.
The most surprising name on the leaderboard has to be David Duval, who sits at 3-under. Duval, who is starting his second round as I'm typing, was the longtime No. 2 player behind Woods before seeing his career nosedive for a couple of years. The comeback trail has been rocky, but if he continues to toss up scores in the 60s, he could get the New York fans really fired up.
Currently, 13 players have posted scores under par.
ESPN will be carrying golf action throughout the evening. If this tempermental Internet connection holds out, I'll have one more blog post updating the evening standings.
Updated 9 a.m. --Drew Weaver and Graeme McDowell took it right to the brutal Bethpage black, each checking in with a 1-under 69 in early action.
The players withstood yesterday's rain delay and they're enjoying a much nicer day this morning. However, there is another strong chance of rain, as the USGA attempts to get in all the golf it possibly can by the end of today.
There's no telling how long it'll take to get through these first two rounds, with much of the field still having a ways to go before wrapping up round one this morning.
One of the players who did finish his opening round early wishes he had it to do over again.
Tiger Woods posted a 4-over 74, shooting a disappointing plus-4 on the last four holes, including an ugly double-bogey on 15.
The wet conditions has made the already-long Bethpage play even longer, throwing off a lot of the players' club selection. However, the slick greens have softened up considerably, allowing players to attack the pin -- as long as they avoid the rough.
Sentimental favorite Phil Mickelson is in the mix, currently 1-under through 12. These galleries absolutely adore Lefty.
In early action, Sean O'Hair and Camillo Villegas find themselves at 2-under.
Kevin Sunderland heads to the clubhouse with a very unorthodox even-par 71. After a brutal 41 on the front nine, Sunderland came back to shoot 30 on his next nine. Thirty!
Updated 7:30 a.m. -- I guess Mother Nature wanted to have her say in what would happen at the U.S. Open this week.
As if Bethpage Black wasn't already tough to navigate, heavy rains have made it impossible to maneuver through some parts of the course unless your caddy happened to pack a kayak.
Players had the option to finish their current hole, but everyone has to vacate the course for an undetermined amount of time.
Thus far, we have four players under par -- and not the foursome you'd expect.
Jeff Brehaut, Johan Edfors, Andrew Parr and Ryan Spears are each 1-under, with Brehaut having already completed 11 holes (starting on the back nine).
Tiger Woods? Well, he double-bogeyed hole No. 5 after a couple of errant shots, but got one of them back on No. 6 with a clutch 20-foot birdie putt.
Many of golf's superstars have yet to tee off or have only a couple of holes under their belts.
During the delay, ESPN will be bringing us highlights of last year's Open. Normally, I'd just roll over and go back to sleep until live action gets going again, but I could watch those Woods-Rocco Mediate highlights all day long. I think it's safe to say that was the most dramatic U.S. Open of this era.
I'll update the blog again once the players hit the course again.
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