Tacoma Times

It's time to revisit the preparations for the U.S. Open at little-seen Chambers Bay.  We'll get back to our hole flyovers in a sec, but first some other items.

Who Will Be There - Monday was sectional qualifying, and of course there are great stories aplenty.  Will Gray had this good summary from all venues, covering Luke Donald, Lee Jantzen and other notable qualifiers.

Art Stricklin introduces us to 15-year old Cole Hammer who qualified out of Dallas.  Let me repeat, 15-years old.

This might be the funniest story:

Professional golfers are used to having the ability to change equipment at a tour event, as

equipment vans and tour reps are waiting to address any need. During a U.S. Open qualifier, that’s not quite the case. But that didn’t stop Sam Saunders from switching irons before his 36 holes Monday at Brookside Golf and Country Club and The Lakes Golf and Country Club in Columbus, Ohio. 

Saunders, who used Callaway’s MB1 muscleback blades at the Memorial, borrowed his caddie’s Callaway Apex Pro irons -- a model Saunders has used in the past -- and shot 66-66-132 to grab co-medalist honors with Michael Putnam and earn a trip to Chambers Bay. Specifically, Saunders borrowed caddie Travis McAlister's 5-PW as well as his Callaway Apex UT 2- and 3-irons. Curiously, these irons were actually Saunders' before he gave them to McAlister.

Sam of course is Arnie's grandson.  And Michael Putnam might be a good longshot pick because of this:

None of those starts will be as meaningful as this one, though. He was the first to take divots from Chambers Bay’s fairways, he said. He shot 70, the default course record. Lasers measured each of his shots to see how the course would stand up to a professional. 

"We grew up watching the course being built," Putnam said. "It's the biggest tournament we're ever going to host up there in our little city of University Place. Obviously, there was a lot of pressure on me today, but I had a great day."

Not to mention this:

Their brother, Joel, has caddied more than 500 rounds at Chambers Bay. He will be on Michael’s bag at the U.S. Open.

That'll make Mike Davis happy...John Strege has these further notes on those that qualified:

• Luke Donald finished second in the Jupiter, Fla., qualifier, with friend Michael Jordan in his gallery.
• Amateur Bryson Dechambeau of SMU, who won the NCAA championship, qualified in Columbus, Ohio, in a field that included many PGA Tour players. Besides talent, Dechambeau is known for playing irons that are all an identical length, 37 1/2 inches.
• Andres Romero holed an eagle chip on his last hole to qualify on the number in Memphis.
• Beau Hossler, 20, a University of Texas junior-to-be who finished T-29 in the U.S. Open as a 17-year-old in 2012, tied for second in the Newport Beach, Calif., qualifier. Hossler held the outright lead midway through the second round in the ’12 Open at the Olympic Club.

There will be 17 amateurs in the field, not including Tiger.  Hey, we kid because we love...

And Speaking of Tiger.... - How's that for a professional segue....watch closely folks, my hands never leave my wrists...

Alex Myers surveys the bookies so we don't have to, and it appears that at long last the odds on Tiger are in conformance with what our eyes are seeing:

According to Bovada, Woods is now listed at 33-to-1 odds to win next week's U.S. Open at Chambers Bay. Prior to the Memorial, Woods, who finished T-17 at the Masters, was 14/1, with only Rory McIlroy (5/1) and Jordan Spieth (7/1) having lower odds. Now there are 11 players with lower odds than Woods at the U.S. Open.

Only eleven?  I'm still smelling a short here, but remember our discussion of the Mendoza line.  But Alex does find a prop bet that he likes:

The odds of him winning one major this year are up to 5/1, while Woods failing to win a major this year has become an overwhelming favorite at 1/16. And now there's actually a prop bet on whether Woods will shoot another 85 (or worse) this year. 

Incredibly, at 14/1, that's probably the best value of the bunch.

Sad that.

Martin Dempster, writing in the Scotsman, does a credible job in surveying the wreckage that is Tiger.  You can read as much as you desire, but this is the comment applicable to this subject:

It’s impossible to see him being a contender in next week’s US Open at Chambers Bay. One bookmaker has him at 40-1 to win in Washington State and odds like that illustrate the depths he’s plunged.

Yes, at this point having a weekend tee time is a moral victory...

Fox, Chicken Coop - I'm not optimist about the audio portion of next weeks Fox broadcast, as the best case scenario is this team will jell over a few years.  But we may see some new visuals in an attempt to better convey the three-dimensional world on a TV screen.

We saw some of this in the Fox coverage of the USGA Fourball events, most notably data shown on the screen for yardages to the hole as well as cover yardages for hazards.  We also know that they've been out there with their drones, though during the event the aircraft have to stay over Puget Sound, so they'll only be able to cover a couple of holes from them.

Fox has a preview video here, though I couldn't get the audio to function properly.  Jessica Marksberry has an interview with Producer Marl Loomis here, though there's an obvious absence of details.

And here's a taste from the Fox press release:

FOX Sports also plans multiple visual enhancements, including 3D immersive graphics, allowing 3D elements like distance markers, hole highlights and wind indicators to be placed in space. The patent-pending SHADED GREEN technology tracks existing and dedicated cameras to project an artificial light source, creating virtual shadows – giving the viewer a much clearer look at subtle variances in the greens. 

Multiple TEE CAMS, a selection of small POV cameras placed around tee boxes to deliver multiple angles, including head-on as players tee off, also are part of the camera arsenal.

This stuff can be enlightening or it can just as easily be a distraction...

In With The New... -  Say goodbye to tradition:

The USGA has announced several enhancements to the U.S. Open's "digital fan

experience," most notably the elimination of their iconic manual scoreboards. Fans sitting on the U.S. Open's 18th green, home to the largest of the manual scoreboards, will now see a video screen replicating the look of the old board while being interspersed with other content.

And by "Other content" you mean exactly what?

“The 12 on-course boards and a 'monster' board at the 18th green will provide a steady stream of performance data, enhanced player statistics and video feeds throughout the course,” announced a press release. “Fans will be treated to highlights between live groups, including 'What just happened?' moments throughout the day's play."

No Cialis ads?  How about some loud rock music?

Flyovers - Holes 7-9 -  No. 7 ends a stretch of four difficult Par-4's that seems like it could have a significant effect on the outcome, and this one looks like a monster.  For those unclear of the term Cape hole, Gil Hanse explains:

The 8th is a long three-shotter at more than 600 yards.  It looks to me like the lay-up is a difficult shot with the prevailing crosswinds:

No. 9 is a Par-3 with wildly varying tee boxes, including one with an hundred foot drop: