-
Phil Mickelson has six runner-up finishes at the U.S. Open. (Chris Condon/PGA TOUR)
• FEDEXCUP: Winner receives 600 points.
MORE: The mystery of Chambers Bay | Memorable moments | Sectional qualifying | Hammer, 15, qualifies | Full Rd. 1 and 2 tee times
• COURSE: Chambers Bay, 7,742 yards, par 70. The Open’s first venue in the Pacific Northwest has existed less than eight years, constructed over an abandoned mining site along Puget Sound. Designer Robert Trent Jones Jr. was tasked with building a course that could host an Open, moving 1.5 million cubic yards of sand to create a links layout in the Scottish/Irish mold. That includes fescue turf throughout, making this Open the first to be played on all-fescue terrain seen at many a British Open. The U.S. Golf Association fast-tracked Chambers Bay within a year of its 2007 debut, awarding the course the 2010 U.S. Amateur (won by Peter Uihlein) and 2015 Open. This will be the first Open played on such a freshly minted site since 1970 at Hazeltine.
• CHARITY: The USGA distributes more than $5 million a year through its “For the Good of the Game” grants, helping create opportunities for underprivileged youth and people with disabilities. Among the recipients are The First Tee, LPGA-USGA Girls Golf, National Alliance for Youth Sports and National Alliance for Accessible Golf.
• FIELD WATCH: World No.1 Rory McIlroy, the 2011 champion, and Masters winner Jordan Spieth join defending champion Martin Kaymer to head a roster expected to include all of the top 60 in the world rankings. … Six slots remain unfilled for players who move into the world top 60 by Monday and haven’t already qualified. Kevin Kisner, runner-up at THE PLAYERS and currently No.57, is likely to get one. … A total of 17 amateurs are in the field, most since 1981. Fourteen of them punched their tickets via 36-hole sectional qualifying, including 15-year-old Cole Hammer.
• 72-HOLE RECORD: 268, Rory McIlroy (2011 at Congressional CC).
• 18-HOLE RECORD: 63, Johnny Miller (4th round, 1973 at Oakmont), Tom Weiskopf (1st round, 1980 at Baltusrol), Jack Nicklaus (1st round, 1980 at Baltusrol), Vijay Singh (2nd round, 2003 at Olympia Fields).
• LAST YEAR: Kaymer became just the seventh wire-to-wire winner in Open history, using a record 65-65 start as a springboard to an eight-shot romp at Pinehurst No.2. Only a late bogey kept the German from joining McIlroy and Tiger Woods as the only players to finish an Open in double digits under par. Even so, Kaymer’s final 1-under-par 69 was only par-buster from the final eight groups, and no one got closer than four shots over the final 48 holes. Rickie Fowler and Erik Compton shared second after closing 72s, though neither could mount a charge on the back nine. Kaymer – who also won the 2010 PGA Championship – joined Woods, McIlroy, Ernie Els and Seve Ballesteros as the only men to in the rankings era to win two majors and reach No.1 in the world before age 30.
• STORYLINES: Anxiety hangs over Chambers Bay, where newness and its quirky nature have fostered expectations ranging from curiosity to trepidation. It easily will be the most variable Open layout ever, capable of playing over 7,900 yards and with tees that can make a hole play uphill one day and downhill the next. … Par is even adjustable at Nos. 1 and 18, where one will play as a par-4 and the other as a par-5. Conditions will dictate which is which. … Spieth seeks to become the first man to sweep the Masters and U.S. Open since Tiger Woods in 2002. The Texan will have a local advantage in caddie Michael Greller, a part-time looper at Chambers Bay shortly after its opening. … Phil Mickelson, six times an Open runner-up, sets out once again in quest of the final piece to complete the career Grand Slam.
• SHORT CHIPS: Europeans now have captured four Opens in the past five editions, a reversal from the 40-year drought between Tony Jacklin’s victory in 1970 and Graeme McDowell in 2010. … Rose’s share of 12th last year made him just the fourth Open winner since 1991 to place higher than 30th in his title defense. Woods did it three times, with a best of sixth at Bethpage in 2009, joined by Retief Goosen (11th, 2005) and McDowell (14th, 2011). … A noticeable absence from Chambers Bay will be the massive hole-by-hole manual scoreboard that has graced every site since 1980. A gigantic video screen will take its place, as the USGA goes all-digital.
• TELEVISION: Thursday-Friday, noon-8 p.m. ET (FOX Sports 1), 8-11 p.m. (FOX). Saturday, 2-10 p.m. (FOX). Sunday, 2-10:30 p.m. (FOX).
• RADIO: Thursday-Friday, 1-11 p.m. ET; Saturday, 2-10 p.m.; Sunday, 2-11 p.m. (SiriusXM).
Love this time of year and love watching the US Open. As a fan of a particular golfer there is no tournament I would like to see him win more than the US Open. . Chambers Bay offers Robert Trent Jones Jr his first US Open course , as a fan of the trail in Alabama ,watching the pros work around Jr's work this should make for an exciting week in the Pacific NW
DFS still holding the top spot
