USGA Pairs Woods, Mickelson In First Two Round Of U.S. Open
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Woods, Mickelson Pairing
Expected To Draw Large Crowd |
The USGA has paired Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson along with third-ranked Adam Scott in the same group for the opening two rounds of next week's U.S. Open at Torrey Pines, according to Thomas Bonk of the L.A. TIMES. USGA Senior Dir of Rules & Competitions Mike Davis said that "for the USGA, it was a no-brainer." Davis said of possible overcrowding, "We've kicked that round. Will they get 35[%] of the crowd, 50[%]? We just don't know, but obviously, it's going to be a lot. ... It's a new opportunity, a rare one, we've got No. 1 and No. 2, they've got so much history at Torrey Pines, it just seemed like the right time to do it." The threesome's first-round tee time on Thursday is 8:06am PT, and they start Friday's second round at 1:36pm on the 10th tee. NBC Sports Dir of Communications Brian Walker: "It's great for TV and for the viewers. We'd be showing as much of their round as possible, so in some ways, it makes it easier to cover." Meanwhile, the USGA is "trying to anticipate the traffic-parking-bus problems associated with a huge crowd following Woods-Mickelson." U.S. Open Managing Dir Reg Jones said, "We're not sure it's going to be so bad. Obviously, Tiger and Phil have large followings, but maybe what happens won't affect the traffic pattern that bad" (L.A. TIMES, 6/6).
CROWD CONTROL: CBSSPORTS.com’s Steve Elling wrote at “first blush, it sounds as though the USGA is giving fans exactly what they’ve been hankering for. But for anybody who has attended a U.S. Open, or any event staged at Torrey Pines for that matter, this is fraught with risk and short-sightedness. By that I mostly mean, in order, getting trampled and being unable to see two feet in any direction.” There is going to be "more gridlock on the front nine than there will we on Interstate 5, the main artery leading to the course" (CBSSPORTS.com, 6/5).
BUILDING BUZZ: In San Diego, Tod Leonard writes Davis has "either come up with an incredibly bold move that will be lauded for years to come, or he could end up like Hal Sutton, the goat captain of the 2004 Ryder Cup team whose coupling of Woods and Mickelson for the [U.S.] was a disastrous dud." Davis: "We're not stupid. We knew it would create a buzz." Davis added that "this was not about the buzz. At least not initially." Davis said, "I was ready to pull the plug if Tiger wasn't healthy. If he's not healthy and we do this, all of sudden it backfires" (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 6/6).
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