Mike's Blog - U.S. Open

The U.S. Open is here and once again, it's a chance at a major. This week will be a tough test at Bethpage Black, which I remember from 2002 as one of the most difficult courses I've ever played. The setup that week was positively brutal and if you were off the fairway more than a foot or so, it was all you could do to wedge it out. I missed the cut that year, something I'll try to avoid this time around.

I got to see the course this year for the first time on Monday and while it's far from easy, it's a bit fairer in the way it's set up. There is the graduated rough that the USGA has used the last few years which means you find more trouble the further you are from the fairway. That makes sense. And they've cut the rough back on some holes towards the tee where the medium hitters - including me back then - couldn't even get the ball to the fairway last time.

It's still going to be a long test. There are three par 4's over 500 yards out here. Add to that there's been a lot of rain in this area and everything is really wet, and it's going to be a very long course this week, especially if the forecast for more rain holds out. You also will likely see some strange shots this week as everyone is going to get mud on their golf balls with everything being so sloppy.

Today I had a real treat of playing with Andrew Parr and Nick Taylor. Andrew is a young pro playing on the Canadian Tour while Nick is one of Canada's best amateur golfers - he made it into the U.S. Open last year too.

Both players impressed me a lot. They have so much talent, a lot more than I had when I was their age. Just to make it into the U.S. Open in their early 20s says a great deal about how good they are.
 
As we went around, I was impressed with the questions they asked. A lot had to do with the course naturally, as they wanted to know about pin placements from 2002 and how I planned to attack the course this week. I explained to them that the course will likely get harder and harder as the week goes on and that you can't always attack - sometimes hitting it to 30 feet can be a great shot.

They also asked about getting to the PGA Tour and what it takes. Both these guys have their eyes set on careers in golf and with the talent they showed me today, I think they'll make it. I know they're not the only good players coming up as well so I think Canadian golf has a bright future indeed.

My game feels pretty good right now. I feel confident that I'm mentally prepared to play the U.S. Open, which to me is more than half the battle. This tournament tests you mentally probably more than any other so you have to stay calm and even for all 72 holes. It will be especially tough this week if conditions remain wet, but everyone is going to get bad breaks, everyone is going to make bogeys and doubles, so you have to prepare for that and accept it.  I feel that after playing in 10 Opens, I know what to expect.

I'm happy with the way I'm swinging the club, too. I think playing those three weeks leading up to Memorial helped me get in a rhythm and I've been working hard with Mike Wilson to shore up all the parts of my game for this week.

I'm hoping that everything will come together for a good U.S. Open.

As always, thanks for the support!
Mike