Monday at the US Open -- part I

When I first got the voice mail on Friday from Steve (see 6/18 entry), saying the USGA would honor Thursday US Open tickets on Monday (got those days straight?), I called him back and began to leave a message about how I probably wouldn’t go but would try to get my ticket to him.

It was obvious there would be Monday golf – at that point it looked like there might be golf into Tuesday or Wednesday of the next week (which for those of I've confused is this week). But by the end of my message to him, I was already talking myself into going.

Even though I’d been on the road a couple of nights during the week (last week) and out of town over the weekend, the chance to see a final round was too much to pass up. It didn’t come at a convenient time from a work standpoint either, but I could clear the decks for one more day.

(Hi, this is Tom, I’ll be out of the office Monday and won’t have access to voice mail or email. Dial zero if you need immediate assistance, otherwise I’ll get back to you Tuesday when I return. Translation: Hi this is Tom, I’m going to the US Open and per regulation, I’m leaving my dingleberry in the car, so if you want to reach me, you’re out of luck. My guess is whatever you’re calling about can wait until Tuesday, but press 0 if you feel the need be very important).

So Monday at 4:30 am, I headed South on I-91. I made good time to Bridgeport to catch the ferry to Long Island, where I was becoming a regular.

After an uneventful ferry ride and trip to the Ronkonkoma (still fun to say) train station, I caught the 7:57 am train with about 8 minutes to spare. I had to check my backpack at the "disallowed items" tent, though I was able to take all its contents (primarily my rain gear) with me -- go figure.

While my Thursday visit was interactive, this trip was all about the golf -- no wing man and no man on the street interviews.

The night before as I plotted my trip logistics, I also thought about where I wanted to station myself. The best way to catch the most golf is to position yourself on one hole, but I’m more of a wayfaring fan. So I decided to compromise and take a quick trip across the road (where holes 2 through 14 reside) to see Phil Mickelson play the fourth or fifth, and then settle in somewhere – and I’d decided 17 was the spot.

Before executing my plan, one of my best moves was obtaining an American Express Coursecast head set when I arrived. I’d seen them on Thursday -- people walking around with a device about the size of a half ping pong ball hanging off their ears.

I’d asked a couple of guys on the shuttle bus and they told me it provided play by play of the tournament. This would be a key enhancement, because it’s hard to follow the tournament when you can only see the hole in front of you.

The old schoolers might object to Coursecast. I’ll concede there is something nostalgic about people wondering what the roars from the other side of the course mean and waiting for updates to be posted on the manual scoreboard. But then, there's also something nostalgic about writing a letter on a typewriter. It has romance, but if there was a computer and a printer handy, you’d probably use them. The kicker is the Coursecast service was only available for AmEx customers. If you were at a certain level (maybe their new black card?), you actually could get a mini-TV to take on the course (seriously).

The good news is I have an AmEx card (no black card though). The bad news is my card was back in Massachusetts. So as I went up to get my headset, I pretended to fumble with my credit cards until the gal handing them out starting talking to a colleague and I snatched one. I enjoyed the microthrill of getting away with something, so if I come to your house in the future and something's missing when I leave, it's OK, because I have an AmEx card at home.

Play started with three blasts of an airhorn as I walked along the 18th fairway. I stuck to my plan and hustled to catch up with Phil's twosome at the reachable par-five fourth. I got there just in time to see him make a clutch par save (though a birdie would have been nice) and briefly got caught up in the Phil Phrenzy, nearly being run over by the grandstand emptying as he and Hunter Mahan headed toward the fifth tee.

It turned out to be a pretty inefficient trip to that part of the course, meaning a long walk without seeing much golf. I thought about staying to watch the final two groups play the fourth (plenty of good seats available), but the course was filling up fast, and thought it best to fight my tendency to wander and find a good spot (a thought that would occur many times before I actually followed through).

On my way back across the road (where 1, 15-18 reside), I couldn't help and stop at 13, the par 5 on the back nine. While it played 605 yards, it was downwind, and though I didn't realize at the time, the USGA had moved the tee up, so the green was definitely in reach.

One thing about a Monday finish is that the staff and volunteer force are noticeably reduced. This manifested itself in a number of ways, from a few concession stands being closed (most were open) to inaccurate scoreboards. The mini scoreboard at 13, for example had Phil at 1 over par, and 4 over for the day (at that point he was actually two under par, even for the day)

I saw a three groups roll through 13, including Andres Romero who made a nice up and down from a drop area for birdie. He was in the last of the groups who had started on ten (the last place group). After him, the lead groups started coming through, groups actually playing their 13th hole.

JB Holmes and Henrik Stenson were next, followed by Anthony Kim and Adam Scott. I watched the latter group play 13 and then followed them to the tiny par-3 14th. Poor Adam Scott. On 13, he was just over the green in two, hit a funky chip and then three putted for bogey, and then missed a short birdie putt on 14. AK birdied 13 after a zippy little pitch from just short of the green and then almost holed a swerving downhiller on 14 for biride, but tapped in for par. At the 14th hole my faith in scoreboard operators was restored -- at least they had Phil's score right.

As I crossed back across the road, I parted ways with the Scott Kim group. Tiger was turning to the back nine and I figured the seats would be filling up fast. On my way to 17 green, I waited at the 17th tee while Rocco Mediate and his playing partner waited for the green to clear. You could tell it had been a long week for him, and though he'd made the cut, he was at the tail end of the field (like Andres Romero), which had to be disappointing after he gave Tiger all he could handle last year. But Rocco's one of those guys who comes across as amiable just asking for a water bottle while he sat on the tee box.

As I was procrastinating my way back to 17, I was listening to the front nine action of the leaders, and while no one was making a major charge, Glover and Barnes were coming back to the field. As the announcers described their scrambling for bogeys, some level of collapse felt inevitable, especially with Barnes. (the coverage was the Sirius satellite coverage)

While 17 might not be the best spot for actual viewing (tough to follow long iron shots), I figured it would be the best place to experience the excitement and drama of the final round. It has an arena feel with a long grandstand lining the left side and a large hillside and another grandstand behind. It's in the middle of the final stretch of holes and you can get glimpses of what's going on at 15, 16 and 18 too.

I picked a crowded spot in the long grandstand that didn't work at all, and even thought about going back to 13 or 14. But I noticed some spots in the grandstand behind the 17th where there was more room. One advantage of being lone wolf (sans wingman) is being able to squeeze in anywhere.

I still couldn't follow the ball on 17 tee to green, but my perch near the top of the grandstand was a great spot nonetheless. I had a great view of the 17th green itself and had a clear view of the 16th green and 15th tee. If I looked over the back of the grandstand, I could see players going up the 15th and coming down 16th fairway. I could even see the 18th tee on top of the hill above the 17th and the 18th green in the distance.

That's not to say I could see what ball anyone was playing, but it was a great panorama of the whole scene that unfolded over the next couple of hours.

(I plan to post part II of Monday at the US Open sometime later this week and share a "few" more thoughts).