Thoughts On The 2014 US Open

In no particular order, here are a few thoughts on the 2014 US Open …

Tiger who?

There’s an old saying that you can’t win a US Open on the first day, but that you CAN lose it. Martin Kaymer proved that wrong. He won the tournament on the first day, when he got three clear of second, then cemented it on Friday when he went to ten under and increased his lead to six shots. That was all Kaymer needed. He finished -9, eight clear of second.

In spite of Kaymer’s gaudy numbers, I don’t think that the USGA’s setup was in any way faulty. There were only three players under par, and two of them were at -1. Martin Kaymer was just an outlier.

Indeed, I think that Pinehurst was the story of the week. Pinehurst’s natural look should serve as a model for courses everywhere. I’ve long thought that courses subject to the vagaries of nature make more sense than the emerald green gems inspired by Augusta’s perfection. Natural courses are more sustainable, cheaper to maintain and frankly, more interesting.

The second best story of the weekend was of Eric Compton, the two-time heart transplant recipient who finished t2 with Rickie Fowler at -1.

I’m sorry that Phil didn’t complete the career Slam, but he thinks he has several more chances, and so do I. Of the men with Career slams, only one closed it out on the first opportunity.

Martin Kaymer is obviously a force, and is emblematic of the young talent out there on the TOURs at this point. It’s also why Eldrick Woods won’t win any more Majors.

Rick Fowler is going to win a Major very soon. Over the past several years, he has been hanging around the finish line:

2011
t5 Open Championship

2013
10th US Open
t19 PGA Championship

2014
T5 Masters
T2 US Open

I am glad to see that Fox is taking over USGA coverage. I don’t think I could take another year of the putrid, schmaltzy NBC coverage. They have done the same thing to golf that the have to the Olympics: reduced coverage of the actual sporting events in favor of saccharine sweet human interest stories and endless interviews. My hope is that Fox shows far more of the competition and lets the sport and the competition tell its own story.