US Open:If you want to stay around 'til the real decision making process takes place in a major, which usually occurs on the back nine of the final round, then you've got to hang tough for three and a half rounds up to that point.
Graeme McDowell knows the score – and, in shooting an opening 71 in this 110th US Open Championship at Pebble Beach to get into contention, the in-form Ulsterman has completed the first part of that task.
On a day when neither Tiger Woods nor Phil Mickelson managed a birdie between them, shooting rounds of 74 and 75 respectively, a trio comprising Shaun Micheel, Brendan de Jonge and Paul Casey shared the first round lead with 69s that simply
emphasised the tough test which the links hard by the Pacific Ocean presented. It was Woods’ first round without a birdie since the 2003 US Masters.
McDowell, though, hung tough even if there were times he felt a degree of frustration.
“My caddie Kenny (Comboy) was giving me a hard time, trying to keep my head on. This is a tough week and you have to keep your emotions in check. The US Open beats you up a little bit,” remarked McDowell after a round which comprised five birdies and five bogeys and which, generally, confirmed that his game is in good all-round shape.
Coming here on the back of his win in the Wales Open a fortnight ago, McDowell – who played in the same three-ball as co-leader Micheel, who ran in a 30-footer for birdie on the 18th – claimed he had to “recalibrate the system” for the test presented
here rather than the birdie-fest he had in both of his last two tournaments, in Madrid and Wales.
“I know my game is in good shape and I was able to come here and prepare well. But it is like a really tough exam. It doesn’t matter how much you have studied, it is always going to ask you questions and see if you have the answers. It’s such a
difficult test you are going to get into Position Z at times and I did that on occasions and you have to take your medicine.
“Thankfully, I made five birdies which is something to build on . . . . it is tough not to get frustrated but sometimes you have got to play your way into these things. On day one, it is extremely important not to shoot your way out of it.”
Critically, McDowell made some momentum saving putts, like the par save on the 10th from 15 feet which kept him ticking along nicely. The Portrush man birdied the 12th but then fell victim to the Par 5 14th where he had a poor lay-up into the rough. He recovered, producing a superb approach to the 16th to five feet to set up his fifth birdie of the round, only to drop a shot on the Par 3 17th where he hit what he felt was a “perfect” shot only for it to run into the back rough, one of those Position Zs he talked about.
Still, he has put himself into good position heading into the next three rounds. “I think I am getting more prepared every time I come to a major. They are difficult, really tough tests of golf, and you just have to enjoy it. I feel like I have learned a lot about the golf course. It doesn’t matter how much practice and preparation you do, you really have to get the ball down and get the card in your pocket and see how the golf course is actually playing.”
Rory McIlroy had a tougher time, opening with a disappointing 75 which included a double bogey seven on the 14th where his attempted recovery from beside a cypress tree hit an overhanging branch.