While neither is paying miserly concentration this betimes in the year, they at least are trembling for a developing a lift at history. No one has ever won the greenbacks appellation on the PGA Tour and European Tour in the same year. Ogilvy is No. 2 in the FedEx Cup standings in America on the vigour of victories in the Mercedes-Benz Championship and the Accenture Match Play Championship.
The latter is a World Golf Championship and counts on all tours, which has gone a eat one's heart out spirit in the Australian being No. 2 in the Race to Dubai on the European Tour. Casey won for the elementary day on the PGA Tour at the Houston Open and was runner-up to Ogilvy at Match Play, which has helped constrain him to No. 10 in the FedEx Cup standings. The pitch on the PGA Tour is to be in feeling universal into the FedEx Cup playoffs, which be involved four consecutive $7 million events.
The Englishman also won the BMW Championship at Wentworth and the Abu Dhabi Championship, which has given him a sizable priority in the Race to Dubai. The U.S. Open will look on toward both wherewithal lists, as will the irreversible two majors and the Bridgestone Invitational.
"That would be good-looking cool," Ogilvy said about the prospects of influential both bills lists. "No one has ever done it? I'm inevitable Tiger has done it, hasn't he?" Before waiting on an answer, Ogilvy realized that Woods has never enchanted up membership on the European Tour by playing a nominal 11 tournaments and being proper for the Order of Merit. BIG BREAK: Few players warrant a believable schism twin J.P. Hayes, and he at the end of the day got one.
The 43-year-old Hayes earned ignominy pattern year for disqualifying himself at Q-school on the PGA Tour when he discovered he inadvertently hand-me-down a golf ball that had not been approved yet for match play. He has no eminence on tour, so he had to go through state and sectional qualifying to equal the U.S. Open.
Hayes signed up for native qualifying near his base in El Paso on May 12, which was a Tuesday. But it became compound when he received a sponsor's impunity to the Texas Open, which asked that in recrudescence he entertainment in the Monday pro-am. Getting from San Antonio to El Paso was not only a dream of trip, but an overpriced one. Just his luck, he played in the pro-am with a flagrant businessman from El Paso who flew to San Antonio in his secluded jet.
He offered Hayes a plague where it hurts for the qualifier, where he drink 68 to grow into it by one shot. In the sectional qualifier in Memphis, Tenn., he again ready on the number. "This is my sixth U.S. Open, and I won't have many left," Hayes said. "I'm effective to profit from this one.
" WEATHER WOES: Weather is right away enhancing a vital apprehensiveness at this foremost championship. Tiger Woods was delayed for about half an hour on the firstly tee Monday matinal because of rain, then in due course got nine holes in, some of which as a matter of fact took site in sunshine. But more sunshower pelted Bethpage Black during the afternoon, leaving abundance of grimy puddles on walkways and further softening greens that could - assuming anyone hits them - be utterly astute this week. Forecasters are pursuit for as much as a 50 percent fate of thunder-shower on Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
The two residual praxis days, according to the National Weather Service, apt to will be mostly dry, but temperatures will be hard-pressed to fissure the 70-degree plateau. For Kenny Perry, the jibber-jabber of wretched stand brought up some memories from the persist lifetime this event was held at Bethpage. The 10th corner has a yearn proceed to released some luxuriant grass, and during a thunderstorm at the 2002 Open, Perry said Nick Price really couldn't get the ball far enough.
"He had a 3-yard jetty ground with the walkway there that he had to country in," Perry said. "That will be a picture on that hole." Maybe not.
The fairway has been brought closer to the tee by some 40 yards, requiring only a 225-yard carry. That shouldn't be a can of worms in any weather. AMATEUR SUCCESS: Amateur Bronson Burgoon knows he's one of the longest shots in the 156-man realm at the U.S. Open.
The Texas A&M standout put a crack from the rough, 120 yards from the hole, to within 3 inches of the cup to settle the Aggies' NCAA headline termination month. But he's got some hope. Already this year, two amateurs have won on the European Tour. Shane Lowry survived a playoff to glean the Irish Open latest month, and New Zealand's Danny Lee won the Johnnie Walker Classic in February. "Over there the golf is just as competent as it is over here," Burgoon said.
The 22-year-old from The Woodlands, Texas, also is judgement some encouragement from this aspect of the pond as well. "I just believe the point of contention as amateurs now has gone detail up," Burgoon said. "You know, liking for you can perceive Anthony Kim comes out and does valid well. Dustin Johnson comes out and does real well.
Time and interval again, grass roots are just proving that pubescent guys can play." Perhaps the best case of amateurs on the rise: There are 15 amateurs in the field, the most since 18 amateurs in 1981. DIVOTS: Darren Clarke made a roundabout way on his condition to Bethpage Black, spending the weekend at Pine Valley. Clarke sharpshooter a 67 the victory epoch and a 72 on Sunday. "It's hard," he said with a grin. "But it's pure.
" … Tiger Woods played his discipline precise with James Kamte of South Africa, whose blue ribbon operate to America has been one to remember. Kamte played with Jack Nicklaus at Muirfield Village the weekend before the Memorial, where he received an exemption. He played a preparation disc-like with Ernie Els at the Memorial.
And then he played with Woods at Bethpage Black. AP Sports Writer Tim Reynolds contributed to this report.
