Prediction for AT&T National (Bethesda, Maryland)

I have to go with Jim Furyk this week. I realize he gave away the U.S Open in his previous start, but Furyk is a fighter and he isn't the one to give up. Furyk has been successful because he doesn't let emotions get the best of him on the course. He also has been working hard to get past his 2011 season and I doubt Furyk will allow a bad performance get in his way. Jim Furyk also has had some sucess at Congressional Country Club over the years with a a handful of top 10s. The only thing that could possibly hold Furyk back is the fact that he has struggled to close this season.

Golf Digest Tip of the Week

"TIP: SQUARE AND SOLID ON SHORT PUTTS        

You need to hole short putts to post a good score, so here are a couple of keys. First, hit the middle of the ball with the middle of the putterface. To help you do that, align the stamp on the side of the ball with your putter's alignment aid (left, inset). Next, when you stroke the putt, keep your head down for a count of at least one after the ball is gone (left). You might want to think to yourself One-thousand-one, especially on a must-make putt. As Sam Snead used to say, listen for that sweet rattle of the ball in the bottom of the cup.
—Tom Watson / Golf Digest Playing Editor"

You should really do this on all putts, especially hitting the middle of the ball with the middle of the putterface. Some people don't use the alignment stamp on the ball, but I recommend it especially if you have a hard time sinking putts. You are also going to want to have the ball on a straight line down from your eyes as it will help you with the line. A tip from me: when you mark your ball, use the alignment stamp at first to line up the putt when you replace your ball. If it is a big breaker, forget about the hole and just find the point that you need to putt to in order to get the ball in the hole. Then when you are putting, just have confidence in your line and forget about alignment. Use the line on your putter for your line and putt with confidence Just worry about the stroke now. It helps when you break it into 2 parts

Davis and Thatcher Lead While Jacobson was Stagnant in Round 3

Today there were plenty of people who had -6 and -5 rounds and surged towards the top of the leader board. Brian Davis and Roland Thatcher currently have the lead at -12 at the end of round 3 of The Traveler's Championship. There are a few at -10 including Stuart Appleby, and then a lot more at -9 including Padraig Harrington, Matt Kuchar, and Fredrik Jacobson, last year's champion.

I would like to see Padraig Harrington, Matt Kuchar, or Camilo Villegas win this tournament. Villegas hasn't really played any decent golf since 2010 or possibly earlier. Even though he is a relatively big name, you tend to forget about him now that he isn't mentioned and is at the bottom of the leader board.

As for top shots go, I am really going to have to take my hat off to Marc Leishman on the 15th hole where he birdies by hole-ing a pitch/chip shot.

Play Haulted in Round 2

Play was stopped in what would be the middle of round 2 of the Travelers Championship due to the weather. It will most likely be resumed early Saturday morning. Fredrik Jacobson was hot and is in the lead with -9 already. If he keeps this up, there is no doubt he will be the champion 2 years running.

Round 1 of The Traveler's Championship

I didn't get a chance to watch ANY golf today which was sad, but I was happy to see my favorites who are playing (Poulter, Kuchar, and Duke) are within a few shots of the lead. Fredrik Jacobson, who is the defending champion is also only 1 stroke off of the lead, which could be interesting since few defending champions come close to their previous scores.

My uncle did get a chance to get his hands on some tickets because his friend is volunteering down there, but we won't be able to go since we wouldn't have a chance to get down there because of his schedule...pretty bummed. We are going to go to the Deutsche Bank Championship near Boston in August since we are actually planning for it. It is a FedEx Cup playoff event so it'll be exciting!

For the Traveler's, all I got to watch were some top shots including Bubba Watson's Eagle on the 10th hole, where he holed an approach shot. Vijay Singh also had a Par putt on the 15th hole from well off the green. Matt Kuchar also really had to work for a Par on the 18th hole too.

Our leader is David Mathis who is -6 for the round, though there are plenty at -5 including Jacobson, last year's champion. Hopefully my favorites will stick around for the weekend

Golf Digest Tip of the Week

"TIP: BE ATHLETIC AT ADDRESS        

The way you set up to the ball has a major impact on your swing. Here are my tips on posture: Stand up as you normally do, then relax your legs. Bend slightly from the waist. Now hold the club and drop your shoulders (left). Where your arms fall, that's where the club goes. I try to keep my back straight but not tense, with my arms hanging. I want my chin up so my shoulder turn is not restricted. The feeling for me is athletic and relaxed.
—Jack Nicklaus / Golf Digest Playing Editor"

Very true. You want to have your knees bent slightly, butt out, and your back straight. The most important thing is to not be tense as it says. An athletic stance will be the first thing you will be taught with your feet about shoulder width apart. In order for your arms to be in good position, make sure the butt of the club if pointing towards your belt buckle. During your backswing, make sure you don't extend your body (stand up) because your hitting will be inconsistent and you will lose power.

Furyk Lost It Late in the Round to Webb Simpson

Jim Furyk played a birdie free +4 round and he lost the lead late to Webb Simpson. Fuyrk struggled to make putts, and often left them a little too short. Furyk's putts were right on line, but he didn't seem to have good distance control. Furyk's tee shot on the long par 5 16th hole lost him the tournament. He hooked his shot into the deep woods and was forced to layup. Jim bogeyed, and even though he got out with limited damage, he is going to look back at that and wonder what would've happened if he didn't have his one real screw up of the round on the 16th.

Simpson played a good round of -2 which obviously was enough to win the U.S. Open at +1 for a total score. McDowell was 3 over for the round and didn't seem to hit a whole lot of greens. It as also somewhat disappointing to see Beau Hossler let the low amateur title slip away to Jordan Spieth, who I believe also competed in The Masters.

Overall, I am greatly disapointed that Jim Furyk didn't end up on top. This round was a nailbiter and had me sitting on the edge of my seat for the entire time. The one good putt Furyk made was to save par on the 12th. I thought that might've been the turning point, but it all came down to the 16th hole. I am disappointed that one of my favorite golfers let the tournament slip out of his grasp so late in the round. I think a veteran like him could have used a win the most, but I sympathize for his loss.

Woods was No Match for Furyk

Jim Furyk has played excellent golf this week and he really doesn't seem to have a problem playing at Olympic. He may have missed a few putts here and there and he didn't seem to hit a whole lot of fairways today, but that didn't stop him from being the only golfer to have all 3 rounds at par or better. Furyk will be playing with another former U.S. Open winner Graeme McDowell. I really hope Furyk, a close favorite to Poulter, has what it takes to stroll through a final round at Olympic. He hasn't played well in the 2011 season after his dominant season and FedEx Cup win in 2010. Furyk has been close this season, but hasn't been able to close. McDowell played a great round under par today. He birdied the 18th which brought him to a tie with Furyk at 1st place.

Tiger Woods Struggled today. He only had 1 birdie and really struggled to make putts. Most of his troubles came on the opening holes, which is key to winning this tournament. If you mess up on those holes, then you need to make up for it later in the round. Woods did not and added 2 more bogeys to his score on the back 9. Even with the bad round, Woods still didn't play himself out of contention since anything could happen.

There are tons of golfers at +2 (Colsaerts, Adams, Westwood, and Ernies Els who eagled to bring him here), and +3 (Hossler, Dufner, and Simpson to name a few). Most of these people actually shot under par for their round, with the lowest being a 67 from Lee Westwood.

Big Names Miss the Cut while a 17 Year Old Amateur is Tied for 11th

The cutline today was high at +8 which is due to the tough playing course. In most cases if you are on the cutline, you have little to no chance. That isn't going to be the case this weekend. These scores are tightly bunched together and we all know that anything can happen...to anyone. The majority of golfers ended up having rounds above par, and that isn't bad at this course.

I really liked Jim Furyk's play today. He made a putt well off the green, and nearly holed one on the 15th as well. Overall, he had a confident looking round. Tiger played well also. He shot an even par while Furyk was -1. Tiger had a few awkward shots all around the bunkers. On the 18th he had a terrifying lie in the bunker where the ball was close to the lip, and the lip was a good 4 feet above the ball. Tiger managed to get it up and save par. Furyk and Woods will be playing together Saturday.

I was happy to see some veteran golfers such as Davis Love III, Phil Mickelson, Lee Westwood, and especially Retief Goosen will be around for the weekend. Goosen finished strong with 3 birdies. It is nice to know that those who have paid their dues to this game for many years will still have a chance to finish off the US Open. A lot of the world's top such as McIlroy and Donald won't be around for the weekend which is disapointing to most.

The real story today was Beau Hossler, a 17 year old amateur from Texas who I at first mistook for Davis Love III (the visor and striped polo and impressive play). He looked great from the 9th-1st (some started on the 9th hole) and even took the lead at one point at -2. Somewhere during the back 9, his fairway shot bounced off the flagstick, and chipped one in on the 7th...talk about precision. This kid can play. Hossler shot even par the 1st round, but shot a +3 which is still solid. As I said, he played excellent for the first half, but he ran out of gas midway through. Even though the front 9 was swamped with bogeys and worse, he still played confidently and seemed fairly calm throughout. Hossler had some great shots including great drives, a chip in, and a bold shot from far off the fairway through the trees. I look forward to him in the weekend and I would like to see him break some records. The real question is: will Hossler be able to hold up for the weekend?

Low Scoring Round at the US Open

To be fully honest, I didn't get to watch the full round since I was watching it on NBC and it was cut short because of the news. To say the least I was angry considering I got to see 1 or 2 shots from Kuchar and none from Poulter. Their threesome which also included Steve Stricker just got done playing. Both Poulter and Kuchar posted an even par which turned out to be great considering there are only 14 golfers at par or under.

Olympic is a tough golf course and combined with fast greens, fast fairways, and tricky hole positions, it was tough playing for everyone.

The group of Tiger, Bubba and Phil was a letdown for all since Watson posted +8 and Mickelson shot +6. Naturally, neither seemed happy with their play in interviews but neither made excuses. This is the 2nd bad tournament (so far) in a row for Phil Mickelson and Bubba Watson so they need to find a way to step their game up. This isn't really a course for Watson considering he just whack the ball out there somewhere in the fairway when this course requires pinpoint precision.

Tiger played solidly and played confident from what I saw of him. He posted a solid score of -1. His putting seemed to be in line.

I did get to notice on the scorecard that Poulter eagled the 7th which made me happy since it brought him to par for the round. That was the same hole that Love missed his 6' eagle putt. The only thing that is really hurting Love's game is his short putting.

Our leader Michael Thompson was -4 for the day, 3 strokes better than the crowd at -1. He played early in the day, so I didn't get to see him play either.

With Olympic playing tough and with players having a tough time scoring, there is about 2 dozen people I would say who really have a chance to make a comeback going into cut day of the US Open.

U.S. Open Prediction



I only have one real pick for the US Open, and that would be Matt Kuchar. He has played excellent all year, he has been consistent, and he has made every single one of hits cuts. Kuchar has even posted top-25 finishes 3/4 of the time. That is impressive. I remember watching an interview (just scroll down the page) about the US Open and he basically said that winning The Players helped him become more confident and he now knows he can win on golf's greatest stages even with a tough player field. I have a lot of confidence in Kuchar due to this great season. He played a consistent golf season last year as well, though this year he finally got some real recognition.

Of course, I am still planning on rooting for my personal favorite Ian Poulter who has been playing on the European Tour since The Players. Since he splits his time, I don't get to see him as much as I would.

Other notables playing in the US Open are the more "obvious" choices which include Tiger, Mickelson, Donald, McIlroy, Bubba, and those big names. I still have my main pick as Matt Kuchar even when considering the so called "best of the best" who have all been pretty up and down all season.

Golf Digest Tip of the Week

"TIP: SCOOP IT FROM THE SAND       

In a steep-faced bunker, your goal is to get the ball up in the air as quickly as you can. Start by addressing it with a slightly open stance. Next, open the face of your sand wedge, then take your grip—in that order. Now's the tricky part, because you must do the opposite of what you've been taught: You must let the clubhead pass your hands before impact and slide under the ball. I feel as if I'm flicking my right wrist at the shot (left). Do it right, and the ball will land softly and stop fast.
—Matt Kuchar, four-time PGA Tour winner"

I personally rarely open my stance ever in golf, but unless it is an extraordinarily steep bunker, I will. It is a good idea to always open the face up during almost all bunker shots. The important thing, as noted is to do it in that order: open stance, open face, then grip because if you do the process in some other order, your alignment will suffer. On normal shots, you should finish high and keep your hands relatively straight. In this situation, you don't want to take a completely full swing, and you want to curl your wrists upward.