U.S. Open Questions Abound

By John Nestor
PA SportsTicker Golf Editor

SAN DIEGO (Ticker) - If sports has taught us anything, it's one simple lesson. There is no such thing as a sure thing. It just takes a quick look at the sports landscape - even recently - to bear this out. How about that Big Brown - unbeatable right? Absolutely not, and the Triple Crown drought will now reach 31 years. What about the New England Patriots? They went from football immortals to victims of one of the most stunning upsets in Super Bowl history in one night.

Even golf has shown us the sure bet is often a sucker bet. Good thing we didn't just give Tiger Woods a green jacket on Tuesday of Masters week. It turns out Trevor Immelman would have had plenty to say about it. It just shows why we play the game, the match, the tournament, It's because in sports, the result is unknown until we play it out, and that brings us to this week's U.S. Open at Torrey Pines. The season's second major is presenting question after question with a number of possible answers. We'll start to get a clearer picture starting today and we will have our answers, with undoubtedly more questions Sunday night.

The uncertainty starts at the top. What should we make of Tiger Woods? After a two month layoff due to knee surgery the World No. 1 has not played since Sunday at The Masters. Will he be rusty? Will his knee hold up? Will he maintain his usual dominance at Torrey Pines where he has won six times as a professional, including each of the last four years. Woods has played three abbreviated practice rounds and was spotted on the practice putting green on Wednesday morning. There haven't been any signs of trouble with his knee but Woods would not let on about its condition one way or the other. "Is it fully recovered? Probably not." Woods said. But does it need to be for him to win his third U.S. Open? Probably not. "I'm good to go. I plan on playing competitively," Woods said. "Come game time on Thursday, I'll be ready."

The second favorite is Phil Mickelson, who played high school matches at Torrey Pines and can barely contain his enthusiasm at the event being held in his back yard. But with that excitement also comes expectations. Can Mickelson snap his U.S. Open jinx? Can he handle the pressure of a major coupled with the pressure of playing with Tiger on Thursday and Friday? He's 0-for-17 in U.S. Opens with four runner-up finishes. He loves this championship, would love to win it and especially love to win it here. It just seems that the U.S. Open just doesn't like Mickelson like that. "I love it," Mickelson said of the Open. "I just haven't gotten the love back." Maybe it's because Mickelson is too open about his affection for and desire to win this tournament.

The U.S. Open is called the toughest test in golf, it's not some touchy-feely pro-am. Look at last year's winner. Angel Cabrera gutted out a closing 69 on a hellish Oakmont setup and then went into a chain smoking fit that would have made the Marlboro Man proud as he waited for Jim Furyk and Woods to finish a stroke out of the lead. Cabrera is back to defend his title but minus the smokes. "Everything is still the same, just without the smoking," Cabrera said. He quit earlier in the year, but his game is the same. He's a tremendously long hitter off the tee and with his irons. That part of his game is intact, but the defending champion is still working on his putting and if that doesn't come around, it's hard to imagine him repeating. "My game is in very good shape, especially the long game," Cabrera said. "I'm working on my putting, trying to improve a little bit. Hopefully I have. "I'm having a rough time on my putting right now. I'm trying different things, different putters. I have two putters, the one I used last year at Oakmont and a new one. So I'll see. The one that feels best I'm going to play on Thursday."

And when play does start Thursday, one of the biggest questions of the week will be answered, just how tough will Torrey Pines be? We know it won't be setup like the Buick Invitational, not with the USGA in charge, but will they maintain their protection of par or loosen the reigns a bit? Geoff Ogilvy, a contender this week and the 2006 U.S. Open champion, feels players will have some options, even if they miss fairways, with the big hitters having more options than the rest. "The rough in spots is shorter than in the Buick, at least just off the fairways," Ogilvy said. "I'm not saying a guy who doesn't hit it long can't win, but length is definitely an advantage. Last year at Oakmont, you could poke some irons off the tees. There's not much of that here." But there are plenty of questions and four days worth of answers ahead.