2012 US Open at Olympic Club Discussion Thread

[bplewis24]

It sounds like +1 or even +2 may be a good start through the first 6.  Either that, or every account is a bit exaggerated.

Brandon

[marcv68]

I think any par 4 over 500 yds. is effing ridiculous. Yes we like the pros to be challenged but do that with penal rough,fairways that, if u hit it too far u run out of fairway and slick greens. To think that the opening 6 holes will prolly not be played to par is an autrocity. Thats not enjoyable, thats a punishment. Sometimes the USGA goes too far!

[bplewis24]

I'm honestly and genuinely now intrigued to know if the Olympic 6 will be played near par, near +2, or near +4 on average.  Curious to see how difficult it proves to be on a historic level.

Brandon

[joekelly]

Can John Daly get into the Open?  Does the winner of St Jude's get an invite?

[zipazoid]

I don't think so, unless a win puts him in the top 50 in the world rankings?

It's not like the Masters, that sends out invites to tour winners, so if a non-winner wins the week before the Masters he gets in.

I think the field for the US Open is pretty much set...?

[Dave H]

Originally Posted by marcv68

I think any par 4 over 500 yds. is effing ridiculous. Yes we like the pros to be challenged but do that with penal rough,fairways that, if u hit it too far u run out of fairway and slick greens. To think that the opening 6 holes will prolly not be played to par is an autrocity. Thats not enjoyable, thats a punishment. Sometimes the USGA goes too far!

To use a cliche saying, I think it's going to separate the men from the boys this week. Those who are able to stay steady through the incredibly difficult stretch of holes all week will probably be the ones in contention on Sunday.

[ApocG10]

Originally Posted by zipazoid

I don't think so, unless a win puts him in the top 50 in the world rankings?

It's not like the Masters, that sends out invites to tour winners, so if a non-winner wins the week before the Masters he gets in.

I think the field for the US Open is pretty much set...?

Top 60 I believe. A win would get him in next years Masters, as well as the upcoming PGA, but I dunno about either Open. I think its top 60, plus qualifiers and exemptions.

I dont think Daly thinks too much about Majors right now. I would love to see him win one though. Just a tourny even. I think he's a good guy, and if he has his demons under control, I wish him the best.

[brocks]

I think the field for the US Open is pretty much set...?

Pretty much. If I'm not mistaken, the only way for somebody not already exempt to get in is to move into the top 60 in the world rankings on Monday. Spencer Levin is currently ranked #61, and missed the cut this week. [quote] Originally Posted by marcv68 I think any par 4 over 500 yds. is effing ridiculous.[/quote] Well, according to [url=http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/more-sports/u-s-open-preview-tiger-woods-season-marked-big-hits-misses-article-1.1092748?pgno=1]this article[/url], the second hole is a 2,428-yard par 4, and it plays longer.

[bplewis24]

Originally Posted by brocks

Pretty much. If I'm not mistaken, the only way for somebody not already exempt to get in is to move into the top 60 in the world rankings on Monday.

Spencer Levin is currently ranked #61, and missed the cut this week.

Well, according to this article, the second hole is a 2,428-yard par 4, and it plays longer.

Those first two holes combined are longer than some of the front 9s I've played recently

[turtleback]

Originally Posted by brocks

Pretty much. If I'm not mistaken, the only way for somebody not already exempt to get in is to move into the top 60 in the world rankings on Monday.

Spencer Levin is currently ranked #61, and missed the cut this week.

Well, according to this article, the second hole is a 2,428-yard par 4, and it plays longer.

That 1520 yard first hole looks pretty tough, too.

[zipazoid]

Originally Posted by marcv68

I think any par 4 over 500 yds. is effing ridiculous. Yes we like the pros to be challenged but do that with penal rough,fairways that, if u hit it too far u run out of fairway and slick greens. To think that the opening 6 holes will prolly not be played to par is an autrocity. Thats not enjoyable, thats a punishment. Sometimes the USGA goes too far

While I agree the USGA sometimes goes too far, I wouldn't put a 500y par 4 in that category. Pros can reach it with an iron, provided they hit the fairway off the tee. A 300y drive will leave 200-200 in, and the hole is downhill on the 2nd shot. That's a 6i for most of them.

[Wally Fairway]

Are the players who finished yesterday in Sweden, on the Euro tour, playing practice rounds today at Olympic?

[Shorty]

[Beachcomber]

I just read that Spencer Levin was invited to the Open as he moved up to 60th after Memphis.

[taxpayor]

Four outfits??!!  I guess he's planning on making the cut!!

[bplewis24]

I didn't even think that possible after he missed the cut (from what I heard).  How do you move up a spot in the rankings with a missed cut?

Brandon

[turtleback]

Originally Posted by bplewis24

I didn't even think that possible after he missed the cut (from what I heard).  How do you move up a spot in the rankings with a missed cut?

Brandon

Well let's say that the event that scrolled off from 2 years ago was an event where he missed the cut, so he didn't lose any pts.  Further suppose that the guy on 60th place had pts. in the event that was scrolling off and he also missed the cut.  So the guy ahead of him would lose pts. while he didn't.  So it wouldn't be that he jumped ahead of the guy but that the guy fell below him.

This is all hypothetical supposition.  But a way it COULD happen.

[brocks]

Well let's say that the event that scrolled off from 2 years ago was an event where he missed the cut, so he didn't lose any pts.  Further suppose that the guy on 60th place had pts. in the event that was scrolling off and he also missed the cut.  So the guy ahead of him would lose pts. while he didn't.  So it wouldn't be that he jumped ahead of the guy but that the guy fell below him. This is all hypothetical supposition.  But a way it COULD happen.

That's pretty close to what actually happened. The last substantial change to the way the World Golf Rankings are calculated was the addition of a maximum divisor. If you play over 52 events in two years, only your last 52 are counted. Both Levin, who was #61, and Ryo Ishikawa, who was #60, have played over 52 events in the last two years. That means that their oldest events that count will have a higher weight than normal, since they are closer to 18 months old than two years old. And as luck would have it, the oldest event in Ryo's window was a win, so it was worth over 5 points up to now. Ryo didn't miss the cut this week, but he finished T38 in a fairly weak field, so he lost most of those five points by playing this week. Levin's oldest event was a T55 at the 2010 Fry's, which was worth zero points even when it was fresh. Missing the cut this week didn't hurt him much. His average remains about the same, while Ryo's drops enough to fall below Levin's. Ironic that the maximum divisor, which was instituted to make the rankings more fair to golfers who played more often, hurt Ishikawa this week. The good news is that the US Open has two cutoffs for the top 60 in the WGR --- June 11, and May 21. Since Ryo was in the top 60 as of May 21, he doesn't lose his spot in the US Open.