U.S. Open thread [SPOILERS]

Mister Sifter

eagle eye wrote: »

It looks like Tiger now, although if Appleby can hold the lead until Sunday then we would have an interesting. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think Appleby has never lost when having the 54 hole lead. Meh something in the back of my mind somewhere is telling me that I'm wrong there, but I'll leave it and get the correct answer from one of you.

I don't think Tiger Woods has ever comefrom behind after 54 holes to win a major either. Still a long way to go.

copacetic

don't see Tiger getting this one. You can see he is struggling with his knee and around the greens he isn't his usual self. He is a good grinder and I wouldn't bet against him but doubt he will win it.

Mister Sifter

I thought that until his back nine last night. Like you, i still have doubts he will actually win it, but i think he will challenge. Will be interesting to see how his presence near the top effects the ones around him. Would be great if a couple of Europeans can keep in contention til late Sunday.

JerryHandbag

Well done Paddy Harrington, great round I should never have doubted him, will probably need 2 more sub par rounds though to have a chance of winning.....have to say its looking very ominous for Tiger now, despite him wincing in pain in his follow through, that might be the only thing that stops him - his injury. His back nine last night was something else....good to see "The Mechanic" Jimenez in the mix too

Apparently Poulter walked off the course with a "wrist" injury?

A.Partridge

From a European perspective it was great to see so many players up there such as Karlsson, Jiminez, Westwood, Donald, Harrington,etc.

Have to applaud the effort of Woods though. Fantastic round.

No doubt about it but it is already proving to be one of the best (and most exciting) US Open comps in years!:)

Appleby has the game and the experience to stay the distance. Today's round will be crucial.

ant043

The minute tiger gets to the top, you might as well call the tournament off he ain't going to be beaten. mentally the players are basicly playing for second at that point. Its a bit sad really.

Mister Sifter

Wouldn't really say Harrington is 'up there'. The other European lads mentioned are all much better positioned.

As for it being sad that Woods is such a presence. He's the greatest player the game has ever seen. It's an absolute privilege to be watching him. If the others are mentally handing him it as soon as he hits the top then they don't deserve to be major champions.

Woods is a genius and a winner in every sense.

copacetic

T22 is 'up there' imo Graeme, maybe not going into Sunday, but going into moving day it is. If he went 3 under today and started Sunday level I think he would be in with a shot.

He will be out that bit earlier today when the greens may be still rolling ok, so maybe that will help him a bit.

slumped

What a pillock!

Why didn't he learn from his first mistake, or second

A 9 on a par 5 for someone who knows the course better than anyone else.

Is it just a case of sheer thickness on Mickelsons part??

Sky Commentators (Murray) have no sympathy for him - neither do I!

I could do what he did.

stockdam

I think sometimes he tries too hard a shot then won't reconsider......so he makes the same mistake again. Doesn't mean he's a bad player though.

Mister Sifter

slumped wrote: »

Is it just a case of sheer thickness on Mickelsons part??

I'd say he took on the shots he did for one simple reason.... to try and get himself back in it. For a guy like Mickelson it's all about winning. He took the risk and paid for it.

He was 5 over already and unless he made something happen all hope was gone.

slumped

Graeme1982 wrote: »

He was 5 over already and unless he made something happen all hope was gone.

I hear what you're saying but given the way things are turning out at the moment, 5 over par might only be 5 or 6 off the lead at the end of the day.

Everyone seems to be dropping shots.

I'm just surprised Mickleson is not playing percentage golf. Giving himself chances.

S

bucks73

It was a shocker alright. Cant remember who it was or the hole but someone else did something similar on Thursday when they were trying to be too delicate with their chip out of the rough instead of just getting it back on the green. Took 3 chips to get it on.

When you are in contention for a major surely the most important thing is to get the ball back into play or on the green as soon as possible to keep the damage limited. As the old saying goes...you cant win it on Thursday/Friday/Saturday but you sure can lose it.

Mister Sifter

bucks73 wrote: »

When you are in contention for a major surely the most important thing is to get the ball back into play or on the green as soon as possible to keep the damage limited. As the old saying goes...you cant win it on Thursday/Friday/Saturday but you sure can lose it.

In defence of Mickelson, he wasn't in contention. He had to do something to try and get himself back in though. At least he racked up 9 having given it a shot.

stockdam

It's looking interesting.

As with most US Opens it will be the guy who makes fewest mistakes.

Westwood is looking good and so is Allenby. I wouldn't rule out Love and obviously Woods can't be ruled out but I think he may be feeling a bit of pain.

JerryHandbag

Cant believe Mickelson took a nine....and Appelby 4-putts from no distance, crazy stuff but then it IS the Us open after all.....my bet on Mike Weir lookin promising, safe in the clubhouse on +3

kmart6

Some eagle putt by Woods on the 13th,drive was miles off,then hit from 208 with a 5 iron nearly pitching straight in but ended at the back of the green with a lightning putt,went straight in the middle though!:)

stockdam

Yes absolutely stunning putt.........there was a danger of putting off the green.


Woods has been all over the place but he's still fighting.


Westwood and Mediate are both playing well so maybe it's going to be a great day tomorrow.

copacetic

stockdam wrote: »

Yes absolutely stunning putt.........there was a danger of putting off the green.


Woods has been all over the place but he's still fighting.


Westwood and Mediate are both playing well so maybe it's going to be a great day tomorrow.

yep, i thought that was going to the bottom of the valley if it didn't go in. He is driving so badly it is working out for him, 40 yards from the fairways there is no 6 inch rough just trampled down grass. Jus done it again on 14..

kmart6

It's amazing to think that no matter how good he is he can't get a handle on his driving!

rigal

kmart6 wrote: »

It's amazing to think that no matter how good he is he can't get a handle on his driving!

Yeah, I'm glad he can't get a handle on it. At least that way he's not running away with it.

stockdam

Westwood two ahead and deserves to be more............he controlled his golf superbly. He played the best golf today.





Oh dear Woods just chipped in to be one behind. He doesn't deserve to be so close to Westwood. Woods hasn't hit a fairway for 6 or 7 holes and has been so wide he's found the specator walkways.

eagle eye

I'm finding this hard to watch, its just too much for me nowadays.

I know he is the best golfer in the world. I know he is probably the best golfer ever. But this stuff happens too often in majors for Woods.

I mean these things don't happen in golf to the same player all the time.
First he holes a ridiculous putt for eagle after playing the hole terribly and then chips in for birdie without hitting a good shot on the hole and finds himself three shots better than he should be.

Its ok when you see a player get this sort of luck once in a lifetime but not every time you are in a major and trying to stay in contention. It just seems to happen for Woods all the time. It just makes me sick.

eagle eye

Fair play on the last hole but the other stuff that happened is just ridiculous.

But its just ridiculous to see him lead this championship after the way he played his round. Its like a fairytale movie or something.

I just don't know what to say anymore, I just fed up with seeing this rubbish happen for Tiger every time he plays it seems.

stockdam

Now Woods has eagled the last with another ridiculous putt to take the lead which he doesn't deserve. Karlson hit a super putt that stayed on the lip whereas Woods' putt drops.

Westwood has played the better golf but Woods has had three major slices of luck. Hopefully Lee takes him on tomorrow and beats him. At least Westwood will be playing with Woods and it's time Lee had the same luck that Woods had.

copacetic

if you knock the putt in the middle of the hole you deserve it imo. Anything else is just life. Karlson hit a good putt, Woods hit a better one thanks to the pace read off Karlsons putt. Why exactly are you complaining about it? Golf isn't fair?

Marshy

Amazing play from Woods there over the last 6 holes, how he managed to shoot under par today I'll never now. Pulled off a succession of miracle shots.

His driving was truly appalling, missing countless fairways way right. He was incredibly lucky on a few occasions to miss by so much he had shots from the trampled grass of the galleries. Yes there was quite a bit of fortune involved there but 2 eagles in the last 6 holes of a US Open is unheard of.

Still should be an exciting finale tomorrow.

cooker3

Watching Tiger Woods play is the closest I come to having an religious experience

eagle eye

Marshy wrote: »

Amazing play from Woods there over the last 6 holes, how he managed to shoot under par today I'll never now. Pulled off a succession of miracle shots.

Replace with 'terrible and lucky'.

He holes a putt from one end of the green to the other. He gets to take a drop where apparently his ball was lifted up before it stopped moving when its in the heavy rough. His ball then ends up in the hole when he chips it all wrong.
I remember he hit a shot in a tournament a couple of years back which defies all I know about golf. He managed to hit a low hook under the branch of a tree and the ball lands on the green and takes one hop and stops.
Its more like wizardry than golf imo.

A.Partridge

I admire Tiger Woods greatly and love it when he produces shots out of nowhere through skill and sheer determination.

However, an awful lot of his results last night were due to old fashioned luck on a MAJOR scale (no pun intended). Imagine what his score would be if the course was empty and the grass was untrampled?

I think it would be better for golf if someone else took the title because they hit the best shots and scored rather than being the beneficiary of extreme fortune.

Lee Westwood to win...provided he doesn't go wobbly down the stretch.:)

ant043

How can you say tiger woods was lucky. He just proved last night again what a genius he really is. sure there was a bit of luck involved but that evens itself out over the week. i really really hope lee westwood doesn't win it. Couldn't stand the reaction from skysports with an englishman winning the us open. He won't anyway, probably choke like the rest of them

eagle eye

ant043 wrote: »

How can you say tiger woods was lucky. He just proved last night again what a genius he really is. sure there was a bit of luck involved but that evens itself out over the week. i really really hope lee westwood doesn't win it. Couldn't stand the reaction from skysports with an englishman winning the us open. He won't anyway, probably choke like the rest of them

From my post, what do you call this stuff?

He holes a putt from one end of the green to the other. He gets to take a drop where apparently his ball was lifted up before it stopped moving when its in the heavy rough. His ball then ends up in the hole when he chips it all wrong.

ant043

the ball went in the hole. It doesn't really matter what way it happened. The man hasn't played competitively in a few months. His knee isn't 100 % and he is still leading going into the final day. So he had a bit of fortune with the chip on 17 but there was absolutely no luck involved with them two eagles. Or maybe every long putt that goes in the hole must be lucky.

JerryHandbag

Was hoping his injury would leave the door open for someone to win a major who hasnt already done so eg Westwood, but that last few holes were astonishing, EVERYTHING went in for him.....and on one particular hole, 15/16 not sure which, a spectator (obviously a Tiger supporting whooping and hollering one) picked up his ball after a wayward drive and place it down for him!!! FFS! Obviously gave him a better lie in the rough!

Still, you gotta recognise the talent that he is, is there another golfer alive that couldve done what he did over the last 6 holes?

rigal

I hope Westwood does the business tonight but he'll be under immense pressure. It's a real pity that he's in the final group with Woods, some of those "fans" following him are unbearable.

Stinger-bar

I agree. Most of those American fans are pure idiotic. Tiger took his first shot off the tee yesterday and it was YEAHHH TIGER!!! IN THE HOLE!!! Ok...you expect that ignorant crap at this stage...up step Karlson, takes his shot and its....YEAH TIGER!!!

I REALLY hope he doesn't win this US OPEN. Yeah he's done a lot for the game (too much if you ask me....the money has gone bananas) but I'm really gone off him. He's a class act etc...but he's not the God he and the fans think he is.

copacetic

lads, lets at least try to keep things on a positive note, i.e who you want to win, etc rather than slagging off any player no matter who it is.

(except Poulter, go to town on him! )

Mister Sifter

ant043 wrote: »

How can you say tiger woods was lucky. He just proved last night again what a genius he really is. sure there was a bit of luck involved but that evens itself out over the week. i really really hope lee westwood doesn't win it. Couldn't stand the reaction from skysports with an englishman winning the us open. He won't anyway, probably choke like the rest of them

Go on Lee Westwood tonight, hope he does it. I don't care what the English media do if he wins, Westwood is a gentleman and a top golfer who has come back from bad times to be a cracking golfer again. Players like him deserve it. Would be great to see a Brit / European do it.

The Irish media have made an absolute meal of Harrington winning the Open last year. I bet you didn't complain when your own media did it for one of your own!?

Westwood winning a major in the US, with the best player in the history of the game as his main competitor would be a phenomenal achievement and the media in his home country would be quite entitled to go town with it.

Go on Lee!!

rigal

Graeme1982 wrote: »

Go on Lee Westwood tonight, hope he does it. I don't care what the English media do if he wins, Westwood is a gentleman and a top golfer who has come back from bad times to be a cracking golfer again. Players like him deserve it. Would be great to see a Brit / European do it.

The Irish media have made an absolute meal of Harrington winning the Open last year. I bet you didn't complain when your own media did it for one of your own!?

Westwood winning a major in the US, with the best player in the history of the game as his main competitor would be a phenomenal achievement and the media in his home country would be quite entitled to go town with it.

Go on Lee!!

+1 Well said.

themont85

I want Westwood to win but mother of God just accept that Woods is just a freak of nature. IMO only the chip could be described as 'lucky' if even, every player gets a bit of luck. The guy is just ridiculous playing through that injury and still been at the front. Westwood has been playing consistantly and very well but he hasn't taken advantage of the par 5s, hopefully he'll sink a birdie or two along the way today.

ant043

just can't see westwood winning it. If anyone is going to challenge woods it will be ogilvy.

dc69

What the hell happened to harrington,ive only been watching bits of it but last I heard he had shot a good round and was in contention lol
Checked there and he is +7

Marshy

eagle eye wrote: »

Replace with 'terrible and lucky'.

Yeah sure I said myself his driving in particular was quite awful and yes there was a lot of luck in those shots he holed. I said it was amazing play because regardless of how fortunate he was one rarely sees those kind of shots being pulled off at such a crucial stage of a Major. I thought the putt on 13 was something but then he does what he did on the last 2.

Anyhow, I still think Lee has a great chance. He was the most impressive player yesterday from tee to green anyway.

ant043

the last day of a major is a completely different animal. Does westwood have the nerve. We'll see tonight. I'm really looking forward to it.

tiptap

Ok, I don't know now to put this, but in all honesty, anyone thinking that Westwood is going to win this is living in Cuckoo land.

Look at Woods record leading after 54 holes. It's obvious he's in pain. Has this stopped him from scoring well ? Not really.

If anything, I think Tiger will be probably the only one that ends up under par (again!). Maybe I'll eat my words but I think a miracle needs to happen for Lee to lift the trophy.

ant043

i agree

Marshy

tiptap wrote: »

Ok, I don't know now to put this, but in all honesty, anyone thinking that Westwood is going to win this is living in Cuckoo land.

Look at Woods record leading after 54 holes. It's obvious he's in pain. Has this stopped him from scoring well ? Not really.

If anything, I think Tiger will be probably the only one that ends up under par (again!). Maybe I'll eat my words but I think a miracle needs to happen for Lee to lift the trophy.

If you go on records, or on paper if you like Westwood has no chance of course. Woods has 13 Majors having led after 54 holes, Lee has never come that close to winning 1.

I definitely don't think this is a foregone conclusion though. Partly because Westwood is playing very well and partly because Woods hasn't been totally convincing. Yes he's scored well but he's needed everything going his way. Thats not to say he isn't strong favourite but I do think his lack of competition before this week and the stress of the injury will give the other players hope.

Put it this way, I'll stay up for the front nine anyway...

The bloody time difference is a killer. I'll be knackered going into work tomorrow morning if I watch it all.

copacetic

and also westwood has beaten woods in the past. So not like it is impossible, he has done it before. (2 shots behind and beat him by 4!) Although he was in the group ahead at the Deustche Bank..

Woods is favourite but someone like Westwood is as likely to beat him as anyone.

ant043

you can't compare playing in the deutsche bank with the us open though. Its just completely different.

A.Partridge

Carl Pettersson is -3 thru 5 holes...making a charge @ +3 for the tournament.

If he keeps this up maybe we will have a european winner after all?