The 2011 United States Open Golf Championship

Jun 12, 2011
Brazos Mason

US Open Trophy - Dan Perry - wikicommons

The U.S. Open is contested annually in the United States. It is deemed to be one of four major tourneys in the U.S., and is held at a new venue each year.

This years United States Open golf championship will be played over the Blue course at Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Maryland, just outside of Washington, D. C. This will mark the third time that Congressional has hosted the Open, the other two times being in 1964 (won by Ken Venturi) and 1997 (Ernie Els). Congressional has also hosted a PGA Championship. Additionally, it is the venue for the annual AT&T National hosted by Tiger Woods. The Blue course normally plays to Par-70, 7250 yards from the back tees, but may be stretched out longer for the Open championship.

U.S. Open History

The first U.S. Open was played in 1895 at Newport (Rhode Island) County Club, with only 11 golfers participating, including one amateur. Newport then was a nine-hole golf course and the competition was for 36 holes, all played in the same day. The winner of that inaugural event was a 21-year-old Englishman named Horace Rawlings. The tournament was then dominated by the more experienced British players until 1911, when American John J. McDermott became the first native winner. Americans soon became regular winners of the Open championship, dominating the event until recent years. It soon evolved to become the fourth “major” event in the United States.

Who May Play in the U.S. Open

The U.S. Open is open to any professional, or to any amateur with an up-to-date USGA Handicap Index not exceeding 1.4. Players (male or female) may obtain a place by being fully exempt or by competing successfully in qualifying. The field is 156 players.

About half of the field is made up of players who are fully exempt from qualifying. There are 17 full exemption categories, including winners of the U.S. Open for the past 10 years and the other three majors for the last five years, the top 30 from the previous year's PGA Tour money list, the top 15 from the previous year's European Tour money list, and the top 50 in the Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR) as of two weeks before the tournament. Starting in 2011, the top 50 in the OWGR as of the tournament date will also be exempt; this will allow players who enter the top 50 after the initial cutoff (such as Justin Rose and Rickie Fowler in 2010) to gain entry. For 2012 and beyond, the USGA will eliminate the exemptions for top money winners on the PGA and European Tours, instead inviting the top 60 in the Official World Golf Rankings at the relevant dates.

Potential competitors who are not fully exempt must enter the qualifying process, which has two stages. Firstly there is Local Qualifying, which is played over 18 holes at over 100 courses around the United States. Many leading players are exempt from this first stage, and they join the successful local qualifiers at the Sectional Qualifying stage, which is played over 36 holes in one day at several sites in the U.S. and one each in Europe and Japan. There is no lower age limit and the youngest-ever qualifier was 15-year-old Tadd Fujikawa of Hawaii, who qualified in 2006.

Who To Look for in This Year's U.S. Open

Graeme McDowell is the returning champion, having won last year's event at Pebble Beach Golf Links. From Northern Ireland, he heads a strong international field in this year's classic. Although he has not been playing well this year (by his standards), he always seems able to elevate his game for the major events, and must be considered one of the favorites.

American Matt Kuchar has been having a stellar year, piling up top-10 finishes across the board, albeit without any wins. He has the kind of game and mentality that is suited for the U.S. Open, and will be a factor from the start.

Steve Stricker, after a rather slow start for the year, has been coming on strong lately and notched a win at the Memorial Tournament in Dublin, Ohio. His innate ability and good form make him a person of interest this year.

Lucas Glover won this event two years ago, and is another who seems to have the knack of rising to the occasion in big tournaments.

Luke Donald is leading the OWGR, and has been in contention in nearly every event he has entered this year, and will undoubtedly be among the heavy favorites before the start.

Other names to look for must include Dustin Johnson, Bubba Watson, Germany's Martin Kaymer, South Africa's Retief Goosen, and Argentina's Angel Cabrera, who has a history of contending in major tournaments.

Additional Intrigue to Consider

This year has seen a considerable increase of the so-called “young lions” contending in or winning tournaments. This fact will add spice to this year's U.S. Open. Will one of the young lions spring to the forefront and win, or will the winner come from among the tried-and-true veterans? It is a question that can't be answered at this time, although it is certainly worthy of a golf fan's thoughts.

Whatever the out come and whoever the winner is, sit back and enjoy one of golf's premier annual events. You'll be glad you did.