Scroll down if you want to read Paul Lawrie's comments on the attitude of some sections of the golf writers' corps (not in Scotland) to Monday's victory by an "outsider," Lucas Glover in the United States Open.
We invited readers to give their view. Here's one from the doyen of Scottish golf writers

Jock MacVicar
Scottish Daily Express

I couldn't agree more with Paul's view on Lucas Glover winning the US Open.
Why shouldn't a player who has been on Tour since 2001, played in the Walker Cup, won on the PGA Tour and selected by Jack Nicklaus to play in the Presidents Cup be worthy of the US title?
So many people in the media and outside are blinkered regarding those capable of winning a major.
Unless it's Tiger or Mickelson or another top 10 player in the world rankings they seem to think anyone outside that category is a fluke winner. Rubbish!

Jock MacVicar
Colin,

and another from
Steven Carmichael

Great website. I've been a regular reader since you started.
I'm just emailing about Lucas Glover. I haven't been getting the same negative feeling as the rest of you about these articles.
Lucas Glover is a shock winner. Paul Lawrie was a shock winner in 1999 at Carnoustie. There is nothing wrong with that it is surely just a statement of fact?
Lucas himself said he hoped he didn't 'downgrade' the trophy by winning it. That was very humble of him. He did very well and played like a champion but the fact is the next few years will decide if he was and is a champion golfer or simply a golfer who won a big championship.
I'm not hugely knowledgeable about the facts and figures but if you compare Shaun Micheel with Jim Furyk - one major each I believe - then one is a champion golfer and one has simply one a big championship. Surely that's not as offensive as some of you are making out?
Paul Lawrie did fantastically well at Carnoustie and it remains one of my greatest memories of watching golf despite the weather and he was very harshly treated as Stevie McIntosh said (scroll down for that view) mainly through jealousy by other players but he was a shock winner of the Championship.
That is factual and although the way it was subsequently reported was disgraceful the fact does remain that shock winners will always attract that type of coverage.
As you know,Colin, part of this reporting style is to stimulate debate and discussion and it certainly does that.

Steven Carmichael

EDITOR'S NOTE: If, like me, you are wondering if this is the same "Steven Carmichael" who was a regular in the Scotland amateur international team from the late 1990s through to about 2004, the answer is "Yes." I put an E-mail back to Steven to confirm and asked if he had ever considered a comeback. Here is his answer:

Steven Carmichael writes:
Yes. I play a bit now and then. I actually shot 60 last week at Richmond and have shot some other very low scores in corporate events this year. I work overseas though and, with young twins, life is a bit hectic.
I miss the buzz of competing. I'll reappear soon and see how it goes. My game is currently good enough for the gentle courses but not in good enough shape for places like Lytham or Carnoustie!

Things you might not know about Lucas

Glover, the 2009 US Open champion

*Lucas Glover is ranked 1st in total driving for the year on the US PGA Tour.
*For the US Open Championship, Glover finished 8th in driving distance (291.12 yard average) and T13 in driving accuracy (71.43%).
*Glover is the first player to win a Major Championship using a square shaped driver, the SQ SUMO2 Tour 9.5 degree driver.
*Glover is the second Nike athlete to win this year with a full bag of 14 Nike clubs.
*Hitting 52 of 72 fairways during the tournament, Glover ranked 4th in the field for hitting greens in regulation (72.2%) statistics.
• Glover put the Nike prototype putter in his bag at the 2009 Bob Hope Chrysler Classic, and his putting stats have improved from 107th in 2008 to 28th currently in putting average and from 116th in 2008 to 23rd in 2009 for putts per round.
*The US Open Championship victory is Glover’s first major championship victory and second PGA Tour career title since 2005.

Message from Paul Lawrie

Colin,
Whoever wrote the piece about Lucas Glover being another American no-hoper should be embarrassed with themselves.
Why can't Lucas Glover be US Open champion?
Typical journalism, thinking only the top 10 in world should be able to win majors.
Two of the players on the writer's no-hoper list have actually won it twice - Andy North and Lee Janzen
Cheers,

Paul Lawrie

Editor's Note: Scroll down to read the Daily Telegraph report that the 1999 Open champion has taken exception to.
If you agree, or disagree, with Paul, send your view on the US Open to Colin@scottishgolfview.com


FIRST RESPONSE
From "Alan McIntosh"

I fail to understand how someone can be a "no-hoper" when they have actually given their all to win a tournament or competition. Lucas Glover and Paul Lawrie should and have been given plaudits and rightly so. How can someone belittle them is beyond me. If you compete with your fellow golfers and come out on top, then you are the winner.
I know of many golfers who have never won a single thing in their lives but turn out every week, be it in monthly medals or professional tournaments or majors in anticipation of that illusive win. Well done the Lucas Glovers in the world of golf!

SECOND RESPONSE
From Stevie McIntosh, Muir of Ord GC

When honest golfers such as Paul Lawrie and Lucas Glover win the Open and the US Open, then get criticised by fellow golfers about supposedly not having a high enough profile to win these so-called elite championships, I think this criticism more often than not comes down to jealousy.
Lucas Glover is No 1 in the stats in total driving on the US Tour this year and I've seen Paul Lawrie play on many occasions and in my opinion his ability to strike the golf ball is up there with the best of them.
All any golfer can do is beat the players in front of them. Whether this means shooting 63 or 73, at the end of the day all that matters is having the lowest score at the end of the tournament.

US Open gets a humble champion - Lucas

Glover, second pro win in eight years

FROM THE BBC SPORTS WEBSITE
Lucas Glover said he hoped he would not "downgrade" the US Open title after his unlikely victory elevated him alongside the sport's most illustrious stars.
"I dreamed about it as a kid and pulled it off," said Glover, who came into the tournament ranked 71st in the world.
"It's an honour to be on the trophy with names such as Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer and Tiger Woods. I hope I don't downgrade it or anything."
Glover fought off a late charge from Phil Mickelson to win his first major.
A cool birdie at the 16th - his only hole below par in a three-over final round of 73 - enabled him to shake off the world number two, who was being roared on by the vociferous galleries at Bethpage before having to settle for his fifth runner-up spot at the US Open.
And Glover said he had been expecting a final-round charge from Mickelson and world number one Woods, who eventually finished tied for sixth, four shots back.
"We were waiting on it," he said.
"You knew Tiger and Phil were going to make a move, and they did. And Ricky [Barnes] and I started coming back. That probably motivated them more.
"But I was watching them. You have to. I just like to know where I sit and what I need to do."
The result was the 29-year-old's second tournament win in eight years as a professional, his only other victory coming in the Funai Classic at the end of the PGA Tour season in 2005.
"I'd be telling lies if I said I wasn't nervous [closing out the win]," he added.
"I had the knees knocking pretty good on 16, 17 and 18. But I pulled it off and executed some pretty good golf shots.
"Two pars at the end was tough but I managed to do it. I guess if I can win this one, I should be able to play all right every week.
"It will definitely be a big confidence boost."

Mickelson or Duval should have won

it but Glover, yet another 'no-name'

is crowned US Open champion

To paraphrase the remark by Davis Love - although he later denied it - that the 1999 Open at Carnoustie got the champion it deserved (Paul Lawrie), the 2009 United States Open got the champion it deserved.
Lucas Glover joined a long roster of American "no-names" such as Scott Simpson, Andy North and Lee Janzen to have won this great championship.

FROM THE DAILY TELEGRAPH WEBSITE.
By Mark Reason in Farmingdale, New York
It was Lucas Glover's first major win but let's make no mistake about it. He deserved to be champion. When experienced men such as Phil Mickelson and David Duval capsized down the stretch, Glover had the poise to keep floating his boat.
Mickelson was distraught as he headed off last night to join his family for their last holiday before wife Amy undergoes treatment for breast cancer. He had caught Glover when he eagled the 13th hole, but a three-putt on the 15th sank Mickelson and the New York crowd.
Amy had asked Phil to bring back the US Open trophy for her hospital room, but the emotion of the effort was too much for Mickelson. He has now finished second five times in the US Open, a record for a man who has never won the championship.
You wonder now whether he ever will. It took Mickelson 20 minutes to come round and when he did speak his voice often cracked with emotion. "I put myself in a great position but didn't finish it off – disappointed. This 'second' is more in perspective for me. I feel different."
Englishman Ross Fisher, 28, played as well as anyone from tee to green on the final day, but his putting lurched from hopeful to hopeless. It is the short game that often separates major champions but Fisher, who finished alone in fifth place, still looks like a man who will one day win a big one.
He said afterwards: "What an experience, coming to New York, I can't say enough for the crowd. I'll probably go home and work on my putting. I felt if I'd holed just a couple of putts I'd have won this comfortably. I've hit the ball better than I've ever done."
But what of Glover, the new champion? He had only one previous victory on the US PGA Tour, when he holed an 80-yard bunker shot at the final hole to win the 2005 Funai Classic. But he had never so much as finished in the top 10 of a major and he had even made the cut at the US Open.
The grandson of a former Pittsburgh Steeler (American grid-iron footballer), Glover, 29, is a good ol' southern boy who likes to read. You do not get many of those to the dollar in the US PGA Tour ranks. Glover revealed that he had read four books this week, something of a record for a professional golfer.
Glover lists the best of them as The Lost City of Z, about Percy Fawcett, "the last of the great Victorian explorers who ventured into uncharted realms with little more than a machete, a compass and an almost divine sense of purpose."
The same may be said of Glover, who made seven pars and a birdie, coming home with an antique belief in his destiny.
"We knew Tiger and Phil would make a move. We were waiting on it. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous. The old knees were knocking pretty good. I dreamed about this as a kid and here I stand. I held it together," he said.
Overnight we thought this sodden US Open might turn into the 1812 Overture without the cannon fire, but for the first couple of hours of Monday morning it was more like chopsticks played on a honky-tonk piano. The standard of golf was dreadful.
Glover lost his right footing on one drive and almost fell over. Mickelson took an iron off the tee for safety and blasted his ball into the wavy fescue. Fisher missed a putt from 18 inches. Then there was Ricky Barnes, or 'Rickety Barnes' as one New York headline dubbed him.
Jack Nicklaus used to say that majors were the easiest tournaments to win because most of the field would beat themselves. Barnes trounced himself. Now we know the other reason why Tiger Woods wins so many majors.
Woods had a brief chance in the final round, but he was undone by the 15th hole for the third time. Sounding like the middle-aged bore in the corner of the clubhouse, Woods said: "As well as I hit it, to miss that many putts ... I've missed them all week. My good putts aren't going in and my bad putts aren't even close. I gave myself so many chances. I made nothing." And so on.
If Woods thinks he was hard done by, then Hunter Mahan and David Duval were put through fate's mincing machine. Mahan, another future major winner, saw his ball hit the pin on the 16th and ricochet off the green. Duval was interred in a bunker on the third hole and it cost him a triple bogey.
But fate also cuffed Woods. He won the bad-weather side of the draw by a shot from Henrik Stenson. The top five all came from the sunnier side and were probably four shots better off. For Woods that was the difference between a top 10 and a play-off.
Glover had started the day with a five-shot lead over the field at seven under par alongside co-leader Ricky Barnes as the rain-delayed championship moved into a fifth day at Bethpage Black. ========================
Click on the following line:
Official site of the US Open
========================
Barnes disintegrated with six bogeys in seven holes and Glover was caught by Mickelson and David Duval at four under and three under, while England's Ross Fisher also challenged.
In the end Glover finished with a 73 for a four-under-par total of 276, winner by two shots from three men on 278: Ricky Barnes (76), Phil Mickelson (70) and David Duval (71).
Ross Fisher came fifth on 279 with a closing 72.
Tiger Woods who broke 70 in the second, third and fourth rounds after starting with a 74, finished joint sixth on 280 - only four shots behind winner Glover - alongside Hunter Mahan and Soren Hansen.
Aberdeen-born Australian Michael Sim, the leading money-winner on the US Nationwide Tour, finished joint 18th on 284 with four steady rounds in the low 70s.

HOW THEY FINISHED
Par 280 (4x70)
276 Lucas Glover 69 64 70 73
278 Ricky Barnes 67 65 70 76, Phil Mickelson 69 70 69 70, David Duval 67 70 70 71
279 Ross Fisher (Eng) 70 68 69 72
280 Hunter Mahan 72 68 68 72, Tiger Woods 74 69 68 69, Soren Hansen (Den) 70 71 70 69
281 Henrik Stenson (Swe) 73 70 70 68
282 Rory McIlroy (NIrl) 72 70 72 68, Mike Weir (Can) 64 70 74 74, Sergio Garcia (Spa) 70 70 72 70, Matt Bettencourt 75 67 71 69, Stephen Ames (Can) 74 66 70 72, Ryan Moore 70 69 72 71
283 Anthony Kim 71 71 71 70, Retief Goosen (Rsa) 73 68 68 74
284 Peter Hanson (Swe) 66 71 73 74, Michael Sim (Sco) 71 70 71 72, Graeme McDowell (NIrl) 69 72 69 74, Ian Poulter (Eng) 70 74 73 67, Bubba Watson 72 70 67 75
285 Steve Stricker 73 66 72 74, Sean O'Hair 69 69 71 76, Oliver Wilson (Eng) 70 70 71 74, Lee Westwood (Eng) 72 66 74 73
286 Francesco Molinari (Ita) 71 70 74 71, Vijay Singh (Fij) 72 72 73 69, Azuma Yano (Jpn) 72 65 77 72, J.B. Holmes 73 67 73 73, Stewart Cink 73 69 70 74, Johan Edfors (Swe) 70 74 68 74
287 Jim Furyk 72 69 74 72, Kevin Sutherland 71 73 73 70, Camilo Villegas (Col) 71 71 72 73
288 Adam Scott (Aus) 69 71 73 75, Todd Hamilton 67 71 71 79, Carl Pettersson (Swe) 75 68 73 72, Nick Taylor (Can) (amateur) 73 65 75 75
289 Dustin Johnson 72 69 76 72, Billy Mayfair 73 70 72 74, Tim Clark (Rsa) 73 71 74 71, Drew Weaver (amateur) 69 72 74 74
290 Kenny Perry 71 72 75 72
291 John Mallinger 71 70 72 78, Thomas Levet (Fra) 72 72 71 76
292 Andres Romero (Arg) 73 70 77 72, K J Choi (Kor) 72 71 76 73, Gary Woodland 73 66 76 77, Tom Lehman 71 73 74 74, Geoff Ogilvy (Aus) 73 67 77 75, Rocco Mediate 68 73 79 72
293 Kyle Stanley (amateur) 70 74 74 75
294 Jean-Francois Lucquin (Fra) 73 71 75 75, Angel Cabrera (Arg) 74 69 75 76, Andrew McLardy (Rsa) 71 72 75 76
296 Ben Curtis 72 71 74 79
297 Jeff Brehaut 70 72 81 74, Trevor Murphy 71 69 77 80
301 Fred Funk 70 74 75 82

US OPEN - FOURTH ROUND POSITIONS

Round 4 suspended due to darkness
LEADERBOARD
R Barnes -7 after 1 hole.
L Glover -7 after 1 hole.
D Duval -2 after 2 holes.
H Mahan -2 after 2 holes.
P Mickelson -2 after 2 holes.
R Fisher -2 after 1 hole.
M Weir -1 after 3 hoes.
T Woods Level par after 7 holes.
S Hansen Level par after 5 holes.
G McDowell Level par after 4 holes.
Selected Others
R Goosen Level par after 3 holes.
H Stenson 1 over par after 9
R McIlroy 2 over par after 10
S Garcia 3 over par after 7
L Westwood 5 over par after 8
I Poulter 5 over par after 4
J Furyk 7 over par after 9
V Singh 7 over par after 5
G Ogilvy 9 over par after 5
A Cabrera 9 over par after 3

Bethpage Black Course
Par: 70
Yardage: 7445
...
Weather
Min: 17°C, Max: 24°C
Forecast for Monday: 30% chance of precipitation
....

UNITED STATES OPEN GOES INTO MONDAY

Ricky Barnes comes back to the field

FROM THE AOL GOLF NEWS SERVICE
Ricky Barnes showed signs of cracking under final-round pressure at
Bethpage Black on Sunday evening local time as he lost the outright
lead of the US Open at Bethpage Black, New York.
Barnes had led the field by six shots early in his third round but
ended it with a one-shot lead. Then, as the players went straight back
out to start their final rounds, errant driving saw him give that up,
leaving him to go into Monday's final holes level at seven under par
with Lucas Glover and in thick rough on the second hole.
Barnes and Glover both shot third-round, level-par 70s, the former to
stay at eight under par for 54 holes, one clear of his rival and five
ahead of England's Ross Fisher and American former Open champion David
Duval.
Both Fisher and Duval bogeyed their opening holes to keep the lead at
five shots as play was suspended for the day due to bad light, US Open
officials being forced to move their championship into a Monday for
regulation play for the first time since 1983. Barnes had threatened to
set more records after shooting the lowest 36-hole total in US Open
history, 132, after a 65 on Saturday, holding a six-shot lead at 10
under par at the turn of his third round and was going the right way
about emulating 2003 Open champion Ben Curtis in making his maiden
professional victory a major success.
A long-range eagle putt at the fourth hole sent the 28-year-old to 11
under par, the first man to move into double digits at the US Open
since Jim Furyk in the third round at Olympia Fields en route to his
victory in 2003.
Yet he unravelled over the back nine to fall back to eight under, with
Glover also shooting a 70 to return the leaderboard to the status quo.
Fisher finished strongly, the Englishman sinking a 10-foot birdie putt
at 18 for a 69 to move to three under ahead of the re-pairing for the
final round, which will see him play with Duval, who also closed with a
birdie for a 70 to join him in a tie for third.
That plan did not pan out as Fisher found right rough off the first
tee, Duval veering left as both dropped a shot to slip to two under.
Canada's Mike Weir fell back to two under with a 74, where he was met
coming the other way by American duo Hunter Mahan, with a 68, and world
number two Phil Mickelson, who delighted his big following of fans by
sinking a 38-foot birdie putt at the 18th for a 69.
The American's status had not changed after playing two holes but Weir
had dropped another shot with a bogey at the third

US OPEN THIRD-ROUND TOTALS

Bethpage State Park (Black Course), Farmingdale, New York.

Par 210 (3x70)

202 Ricky Barnes 67 65 70

203 Lucas Glover 69 64 70

207 Ross Fisher (Eng) 70 68 69, David Duval 67 70 70

208 Phil Mickelson 69 70 69, Hunter Mahan 72 68 68, Mike Weir (Can) 64
70 74

209 Sean O'Hair 69 69 71, Retief Goosen (Rsa) 73 68 68, Bubba Watson 72
70 67, Todd Hamilton 67 71 71

210 Peter Hanson (Swe) 66 71 73, Graeme McDowell (NIrl) 69 72 69,
Stephen Ames (Can) 74 66 70

211 Steve Stricker 73 66 72, Tiger Woods 74 69 68, Oliver Wilson (Eng)
70 70 71, Soren Hansen (Den) 70 71 70, Ryan Moore 70 69 72

212 Michael Sim (Sco) 71 70 71, Sergio Garcia (Spa) 70 70 72, Stewart
Cink 73 69 70, Johan Edfors (Swe) 70 74 68, Lee Westwood (Eng) 72 66 74

213 Anthony Kim 71 71 71, J.B. Holmes 73 67 73, Adam Scott (Aus) 69 71
73, Matt Bettencourt 75 67 71, Nick Taylor (Can) 73 65 75, John
Mallinger 71 70 72, Henrik Stenson (Swe) 73 70 70

214 Rory McIlroy (NIrl) 72 70 72, Azuma Yano (Jpn) 72 65 77, Camilo
Villegas (Col) 71 71 72

215 Francesco Molinari (Ita) 71 70 74, Jim Furyk 72 69 74, Billy
Mayfair 73 70 72, Gary Woodland 73 66 76, Drew Weaver 69 72 74, Thomas
Levet (Fra) 72 72 71

216 Carl Pettersson (Swe) 75 68 73

217 Dustin Johnson 72 69 76, Vijay Singh (Fij) 72 72 73, Ian Poulter
(Eng) 70 74 73, Kevin Sutherland 71 73 73, Ben Curtis 72 71 74, Geoff
Ogilvy (Aus) 73 67 77, Trevor Murphy 71 69 77

218 Kenny Perry 71 72 75, Kyle Stanley 70 74 74, Tom Lehman 71 73 74,
Angel Cabrera (Arg) 74 69 75, Tim Clark (Rsa) 73 71 74, Andrew McLardy
(Rsa) 71 72 75

219 K J Choi (Kor) 72 71 76, Jean-Francois Lucquin (Fra) 73 71 75, Fred
Funk 70 74 75

220 Andres Romero (Arg) 73 70 77, Rocco Mediate 68 73 79

223 Jeff Brehaut 70 72 81

US OPEN ROUND 3 TOTALS

Par 210 (3x70)
202 Ricky Barnes 67 65 70
203 Lucas Glover 69 64 70
207 Ross Fisher (Eng) 70 68 69, David Duval 67 70 70
208 Phil Mickelson 69 70 69, Hunter Mahan 72 68 68, Mike Weir (Can) 64
70 74
209 Sean O'Hair 69 69 71, Retief Goosen (Rsa) 73 68 68, Bubba Watson 72
70 67, Todd Hamilton 67 71 71
210 Peter Hanson (Swe) 66 71 73, Graeme McDowell (NIrl) 69 72 69,
Stephen Ames (Can) 74 66 70
211 Steve Stricker 73 66 72, Tiger Woods 74 69 68, Oliver Wilson (Eng)
70 70 71, Soren Hansen (Den) 70 71 70, Ryan Moore 70 69 72
212 Michael Sim (Aus) 71 70 71, Sergio Garcia (Spa) 70 70 72, Stewart
Cink 73 69 70, Johan Edfors (Swe) 70 74 68, Lee Westwood (Eng) 72 66 74
213 Anthony Kim 71 71 71, J.B. Holmes 73 67 73, Adam Scott (Aus) 69 71
73, Matt Bettencourt 75 67 71, Nick Taylor (Can) 73 65 75, John
Mallinger 71 70 72, Henrik Stenson (Swe) 73 70 70
214 Rory McIlroy (NIrl) 72 70 72, Azuma Yano (Jpn) 72 65 77, Camilo
Villegas (Col) 71 71 72
215 Francesco Molinari (Ita) 71 70 74, Jim Furyk 72 69 74, Billy
Mayfair 73 70 72, Gary Woodland 73 66 76, Drew Weaver 69 72 74, Thomas
Levet (Fra) 72 72 71
216 Carl Pettersson (Swe) 75 68 73
217 Dustin Johnson 72 69 76, Vijay Singh (Fij) 72 72 73, Ian Poulter
(Eng) 70 74 73, Kevin Sutherland 71 73 73, Ben Curtis 72 71 74, Geoff
Ogilvy (Aus) 73 67 77, Trevor Murphy 71 69 77
218 Kenny Perry 71 72 75, Kyle Stanley 70 74 74, Tom Lehman 71 73 74,
Angel Cabrera (Arg) 74 69 75, Tim Clark (Rsa) 73 71 74, Andrew McLardy
(Rsa) 71 72 75
219 K J Choi (Kor) 72 71 76, Jean-Francois Lucquin (Fra) 73 71 75, Fred
Funk 70 74 75
220 Andres Romero (Arg) 73 70 77, Rocco Mediate 68 73 79
223 Jeff Brehaut 70 72 81

UNITED STATES OPEN

Ricky Barnes squanders six-stroke

lead before end of third round

FROM THE AOL GOLF NEWS SERVICE
Ricky Barnes further staked his claim to a US Open victory as the third
round came to its conclusion, but it could have been so much better for
the American at Bethpage Black.
As the second major of the year headed for a first 72-hole Monday
finish since 1983, Barnes had threatened to set more records after
shooting the lowest 36-hole total in US Open history, a 132, on
Saturday.
The American, playing his first full year on the US PGA Tour in his
seventh year as a professional, was going the right way about emulating
2003 Open champion Ben Curtis in making his maiden professional victory
at a major.
Barnes, starting the day at eight under with a one-shot lead over
fellow American Lucas Glover, moved into a three-shot lead after six
holes thanks to a birdie at the second and a long-range eagle putt at
the fourth.
The eagle got the 28-year-old to 11 under par, the first man to move
into double digits at the US Open since Jim Furyk in the third round at
Olympia Fields en route to his victory in 2003.
Despite a bogey at the seventh, Barnes' lead stretched to six shots at
the eighth as both Glover and Mike Weir in third place, slipped to four
under.
Yet Barnes unravelled a little after turning for home, bogeying the
long and difficult par-4s at 10 and 12 as Glover birdied the 10th and
11th.
Barnes rebounded with a birdie at 13th but his three-shot lead over the
field at nine under after 14 holes gave his rivals some hope they could
reel him in over the final round, which was set to start late on
Sunday.
Weir was at two under playing the 16th in a tie for third with David
Duval, who birdied the 16th to also join Hunter Mahan, with a 68 and
world number two Phil Mickelson, who delighted his big following of
fans by sinking a 38-foot birdie putt at the 18th for a 69.
England's Ross Fisher had got to three under after four holes but he
stayed in touch with the leaders at two under playing the last.

Another rain delay at United States Open

The start of the third round of the United States Open championship at Bethpage, Long Island, New York has been delayed until noon local time (5pm BST) because of further overnight rain.
The USGA, organisers of this major championship, say they can still squeeze in the fourth and final round by the end of daylight - and this is the longest day of the year - today (Sunday) but it is looking increasingly likely that it will be Monday before a new champion is crowned.

Wind and rain for second round of US Open

Lee Westwood climbs into top 10 as

Harrington, Casey, Donald miss cut

FROM THE AOL GOLF NEWS SERVICE
Lee Westwood defied the rain and a bad draw to climb into the top 10 at the US Open today as US PGA Tour rookie Ricky Barnes took the one-shot halfway lead at Bethpage Black - and Tiger Woods made the cut.
There was less luck for a sizeable section of the European contingent as Padraig Harrington, Paul Casey, Luke Donald and Justin Rose were among those sent packing with the cut line established at four over par.
Westwood, starting the day at two over par, shot a four-under-par 66 for his second round in the worst conditions of the day as rain poured constantly through the afternoon on Long Island.
He joins fellow Englishman Ross Fisher at two under par 138 for the tournament, six shots back on Barnes who earlier in the day carded a five-under-par second-round 65 in the best of the conditions playing back-to-back rounds yesterday and this morning.
"I just went out with the idea of trying to be in front on my side of the draw," Westwood said.
"I've managed to do that so I'm delighted."
Barnes, the 2002 US Amateur champion who earned his tour card this year after six years as a professional, leads at eight under, his 132 the lowest 36-hole total in US Open history.
It puts him one ahead of Friday leader Lucas Glover, who posted a six-under-par 64, and another shot in front of first-round leader Mike Weir, the left-handed 2003 Masters champion from Canada who added a 70 to his opening 64.
Those three were set to get the third round way in a group of three with the lower half of the leaderboard playing from the 10th.
Aberdeen-born Australian Michael Sim will start the third round in joint 24th place on 141, the same mark as Graeme McDowell from Northern Ireland.
SCOREBOARD
Par 140 (2x70)
132 Ricky Barnes 67 65
133 Lucas Glover 69 64
134 Mike Weir (Can) 64 70
137 Peter Hanson (Swe) 66 71, Azuma Yano (Jpn) 72 65, David Duval 67 70
138 Ross Fisher (Eng) 70 68, Sean O'Hair 69 69, Todd Hamilton 67 71, Nick Taylor (Can) 73 65, Lee Westwood (Eng) 72 66
139 Steve Stricker 73 66, Phil Mickelson 69 70, Gary Woodland 73 66, Ryan Moore 70 69
140 Adam Scott (Aus) 69 71, Oliver Wilson (Eng) 70 70, Sergio Garcia (Spa) 70 70, Trevor Murphy 71 69, Geoff Ogilvy (Aus) 73 67, Hunter Mahan 72 68, J.B. Holmes 73 67, Stephen Ames (Can) 74 66
141 Francesco Molinari (Ita) 71 70, Michael Sim (Sco) 71 70, Graeme McDowell (NIrl) 69 72, Retief Goosen (Rsa) 73 68, Soren Hansen (Den) 70 71, John Mallinger 71 70, Dustin Johnson 72 69, Jim Furyk 72 69, Rocco Mediate 68 73, Drew Weaver 69 72
142 Anthony Kim 71 71, Rory McIlroy (NIrl) 72 70, Bubba Watson 72 70, Jeff Brehaut 70 72, Camilo Villegas (Col) 71 71, Stewart Cink 73 69, Matt Bettencourt 75 67
143 Tiger Woods 74 69, Billy Mayfair 73 70, Angel Cabrera (Arg) 74 69, Ben Curtis 72 71, Andrew McLardy (Rsa) 71 72, Kenny Perry 71 72, Andres Romero (Arg) 73 70, K J Choi (Kor) 72 71, Carl Pettersson (Swe) 75 68, Henrik Stenson (Swe) 73 70
144 Kyle Stanley 70 74, Kevin Sutherland 71 73, Tom Lehman 71 73, Fred Funk 70 74, Johan Edfors (Swe) 70 74, Vijay Singh (Fij) 72 72, Ian Poulter (Eng) 70 74, Jean-Francois Lucquin (Fra) 73 71, Tim Clark (Rsa) 73 71, Thomas Levet (Fra) 72 72
MISSED THE CUT
145 Peter Tomasulo 73 72, Rory Sabbatini (Rsa) 72 73, David Toms 69 76, Martin Kaymer (Ger) 76 69, Simon Khan (Eng) 75 70, George McNeill 74 71, Cameron Beckman 76 69, Ryan Blaum 72 73, Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spa) 77 68, Martin Laird (Sco) 74 71, Luke Donald (Eng) 74 71
146 Nick Watney 73 73, Brian Gay 73 73, Justin Leonard 71 75, Bo Van Pelt 73 73, Rickie Fowler 78 68, Cortland Lowe 75 71, Chris Stroud 76 70, Shawn Stefani 73 73, Rodney Pampling (Aus) 74 72, Raphael Jacquelin (Fra) 73 73, Alvaro Quiros (Spa) 73 73, Ryan Spears 73 73, Robert Allenby (Aus) 75 71, Sang-moon Bae (Kor) 74 72, Andrew Parr (Can) 74 72, Nathan Tyler 77 69, Angelo Que (Phi) 77 69, Brandt Snedeker 71 75, Steve Allan (Aus) 73 73, James Kamte (Rsa) 74 72
147 Richard Bland (Eng) 77 70, Colby Beckstrom 76 71, Zach Johnson 75 72, David Smail (Nzl) 70 77, Charl Schwartzel (Rsa) 77 70, Mike Miles 78 69, James Nitties (Aus) 78 69, Jose Manuel Lara (Spa) 77 70, Charlie Wi (Kor) 75 72, J J Henry 73 74, Ryuji Imada (Jpn) 75 72, Ken Duke 76 71, Eduardo Romero (Arg) 76 71, Briny Baird 73 74, Cameron Tringale 70 77, D.J. Trahan 76 71
148 Kaname Yokoo (Jpn) 77 71, Tyson Alexander 73 75, J.P. Hayes 74 74, Matt Kuchar 71 77, Simon Dyson (Eng) 78 70, Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano (Spa) 75 73, Justin Rose (Eng) 73 75, Doug Batty (Nzl) 74 74, Craig Bowden 74 74
149 Michael Welch (Eng) 73 76, Scott Gutschewski 77 72, Heath Slocum 76 73, Stuart Appleby (Aus) 76 73, Steve Conway 80 69
150 Ben Martin 72 78, Chad Campbell 80 70, John Merrick 73 77, Kevin Silva 78 72, Clark Klaasen 76 74, Paul Casey (Eng) 75 75, Darren Clarke (NIrl) 74 76, Charlie Beljan 78 72
151 Jeev Milkha Singh (Ind) 78 73, Chris Kirk 74 77, Ben Crane 76 75, Casey Wittenberg 73 78, Boo Weekley 79 72, Josh McCumber 78 73, Greg Kraft 79 72
152 David Erdy 78 74, Padraig Harrington (Irl) 76 76
153 Drew Kittleson 80 73, Clinton Jensen 78 75, Bronson Burgoon 74 79
154 Vaughn Snyder 76 78, Cameron Yancey 74 80, David Horsey (Eng) 81 73, Darron Stiles 75 79, Andrew Svoboda 80 74
155 Ernie Els (Rsa) 78 77, Sean Farren 80 75
156 Michael Campbell (Nzl) 77 79, Kyle Peterman 81 75, Matt Nagy 76 80
157 Shintaro Kai (Jpn) 79 78
159 Eric Axley 79 80
161 Scott Lewis 81 80
162 Josh Brock 83 79

Aberdonian Michael Sim (71) three ahead of Tiger in US Open

LATEST US OPEN NEWS:

LEFT-HANDER WEIR LEADS WITH A 64

Mike Weir shot a 64 at Bethpage Black to take the clubhouse lead as the rain-delayed first round of the US Open neared completion.
The left-handed 2003 Masters champion from Canada posted eight birdies undone by a double bogey at the par-four sixth hole to sign for a six under par round, two shots clear of Sweden's Peter Hanson with former world number one David Duval three shots behind following a 67.
More News
It could have been much better for Weir as he reached the sixth, his 16th of the round, at six under and on course for a US Open record round of 62. The six at the sixth put paid to that but he rallied with a birdie, birdie finish.
Former world number one Duval, who suffered an alarming dip in form following his victory at the 2001 Open Championship at Lytham, had led a charge among the second wave of starters in the 156-man field as they finally got their first rounds under way in drying conditions on still soft greens.

Graeme McDowell shares lead on one-under-par 69

FROM THE AOL GOLF NEWS SERVICE
Clearing skies and warm temperatures helped the late starters at Bethpage Black steal a march on their earlier rivals as Northern Ireland's Graeme McDowell held a precarious share of the clubhouse lead halfway through the rain-delayed first round of the 109th US Open.
McDowell, coming off a final-round 63 at the St Jude Classic in Memphis last Sunday, posted a one-under-par 69 after opening-round play resumed on Friday morning following Thursday's wash-out on Long Island, while defending champion Tiger Woods suffered a nightmare finish to his first round.
Peter Hanson of Sweden and former Masters champion Mike Weir of Canada were taking their turn at the top of a fluid championship leaderboard, having reached four under par after 11 and nine holes respectively. That gave them a one-stroke lead over Colombia's Camilo Villegas, who had played 11, with American duo Sean O'Hair and Kenny Perry both two under after 10.
===================
click on this line below
Official site of the US Open
===================
McDowell's 69 gave him a share of the early clubhouse lead alongside American amateur Drew Weaver but Thursday's late-starting half of the draw were finding conditions much easier as they finally got their first rounds under way in drying conditions on still soft greens. The Northern Irishman was certainly not getting carried away.
"I've led a few majors after day one," McDowell said. "It's not really what I'm trying to do. I'm just trying to stick around for the weekend. I'm trying to position myself as well as I possibly can and compete in Sunday afternoon."
Joining McDowell and Weaver at one under was an ever-growing group including England's Ross Fisher, after 10, Denmark's Soren Hansen, who had played 11, last year's runner-up Rocco Mediate, who had reached the 11th and world number two Phil Mickelson, having played 10.
Also at one under were Adam Scott of Australia, after 11, and Americans Anthony Kim and David Toms, both of whom were playing the 13th.
Those low scores could spell trouble for world number one Woods, who had been at level par with four holes to play but finished his round with a run of double bogey, bogey, par, bogey to leave him with a four-over 74.
"I was even par with four to go," Woods said. "I was right there where I needed to be, and two bad shots and a mud ball later, here we go and I'm at four over par."
United States Open
championship scoreboard

BETHPAGE STATE PARK
Black Course, Farmingdale, New York
FIRST ROUND SCORES
Par 70
64 Mike Weir (Can)
66 Peter Hanson (Swe)
67 Ricky Barnes, Todd Hamilton, David Duval
68 Rocco Mediate
69 Phil Mickelson, Sean O'Hair, Adam Scott (Aus), Graeme McDowell (NIrl), Lucas Glover, David Toms, Drew Weaver
70 Ross Fisher (Eng), Kyle Stanley, David Smail (Nzl), Soren Hansen (Den), Oliver Wilson (Eng), Sergio Garcia (Spa), Jeff Brehaut, Fred Funk, Johan Edfors (Swe), Ian Poulter (Eng), Ryan Moore, Cameron Tringale
71 Francesco Molinari (Ita), Michael Sim (Sco) (pictured above), Matt Kuchar, Tom Lehman, Trevor Murphy, Kevin Sutherland, John Mallinger, Andrew McLardy (Rsa), Kenny Perry, Anthony Kim, Justin Leonard, Camilo Villegas (Col), Brandt Snedeker
72 Rory Sabbatini (Rsa), Ben Curtis, Bubba Watson, Dustin Johnson, Ben Martin, Hunter Mahan, Rory McIlroy (NIrl), Azuma Yano (Jpn), Vijay Singh (Fij), Jim Furyk, Ryan Blaum, K J Choi (Kor), Thomas Levet (Fra), Lee Westwood (Eng)
73 Nick Watney, Brian Gay, Billy Mayfair, Geoff Ogilvy (Aus), Justin Rose (Eng), Bo Van Pelt, Briny Baird, Henrik Stenson (Swe), Steve Stricker, Peter Tomasulo, Shawn Stefani, Tyson Alexander, Michael Welch (Eng), Retief Goosen (Rsa), John Merrick, Casey Wittenberg, Stewart Cink, Nick Taylor, Raphael Jacquelin (Fra), Alvaro Quiros (Spa), Ryan Spears, J J Henry, J.B. Holmes, Andres Romero (Arg), Jean-Francois Lucquin (Fra), Tim Clark (Rsa), Steve Allan (Aus)
74 Chris Kirk, Cameron Yancey, Tiger Woods, Gary Woodland, J.P. Hayes, Bronson Burgoon, Martin Laird (Sco), Craig Bowden, Stephen Ames (Can), Rodney Pampling (Aus), Angel Cabrera (Arg), Darren Clarke (NIrl), George McNeill, Sang-moon Bae (Kor), Andrew Parr (Can), Doug Batty (Nzl), Luke Donald (Eng), James Kamte (Rsa)
75 Zach Johnson, Darron Stiles, Matt Bettencourt, Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano (Spa), Simon Khan (Eng), Charlie Wi (Kor), Robert Allenby (Aus), Ryuji Imada (Jpn), Paul Casey (Eng), Cortland Lowe, Carl Pettersson (Swe)
76 Colby Beckstrom, Chris Stroud, Clark Klaasen, Martin Kaymer (Ger), Heath Slocum, Ben Crane, Vaughn Snyder, Cameron Beckman, Ken Duke, Matt Nagy, Eduardo Romero (Arg), Stuart Appleby (Aus), Padraig Harrington (Irl), D.J. Trahan
77 Kaname Yokoo (Jpn), Richard Bland (Eng), Charl Schwartzel (Rsa), Michael Campbell (Nzl), Jose Manuel Lara (Spa), Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spa), Nathan Tyler, Scott Gutschewski, Angelo Que (Phi)
78 Jeev Milkha Singh (Ind), Mike Miles, Josh McCumber, David Erdy, James Nitties (Aus), Simon Dyson (Eng), Charlie Beljan, Matthew Jones (Aus), Ernie Els (Rsa), Clinton Jensen, Kevin Silva, Rickie Fowler
79 Eric Axley, Boo Weekley, Greg Kraft, Shintaro Kai (Jpn)
80 Drew Kittleson, Chad Campbell, Andrew Svoboda, Steve Conway, Sean Farren
81 David Horsey (Eng), Kyle Peterman, Scott Lewis
83 Josh Brock

Rain reduces first day's play to only 3hr 15min

US Open may not finish until

Tuesday, says USGA official

FROM THE AOL GOLF NEWS SERVICE

Paul Casey urged patience at a rain-drenched Bethpage Black as US Open play was abandoned for the day just 3hr 15min into the first round.
Tournament officials from the United States Golf Association had hoped to eventually resume play at the Long Island, New York, course when play was initially suspended at 10.15am (3.15pm BST). As the rain that swamped the greens and caused the opening round to be halted continued to pour into the afternoon, however, they decided no further play was possible and at 1.55pm local time declared play would resume at 7.30am (local time) on Friday.
"It's only going to get worse but we will see what happens," Casey said of the weather forecast.
With rain expected to continue into Friday - and Saturday promising a deluge equal to Thursday's - Mike Davis, the USGA senior director of rules and competitions, said a Monday finish was looking a distinct possibility as the body would not contemplate deciding the champion in fewer than 72 holes.
===================

Click on the line below:

Official site of the US Open

===================
With the USGA also resisting calls to introduce a 'lift, clean and place' policy for muddied golf balls on fairways, world No 3 Casey, who will hope to restart on Friday two shots off the four-way lead at one over par, said the eventual champion would need to be have plenty of patience.
"You are certainly going to have to strike the ball very well but it's going to be the guy who keeps his head this week," he said.

"Patience is paramount and you are going to have to deal with not only a very tough golf course but also some of the decisions that are being made like not being able to lift, clean and place. That's going to be very difficult and you are going to have be patient and expect some difficult lies and some mud-balls. That's the way it is."
Asked if that reduced the tournament to a lottery, the Englishman replied: "It does but hey, it all adds to the fun."
Davis insisted the US Open would be allowed to run its natural course.
"The USGA is firm on this, that we will not determine a national champion until we play 72 holes," he said. "So if that takes us in Monday or Tuesday, whatever."
Of the golf that did get played before the suspension, defending champion Tiger Woods needed to be at his combative best to stay on track for back-to-back wins. World No 1 Woods was one over par after six holes alongside Padraig Harrington and Angel Cabrera when play was supended with Americans Jeff Brehaut and Ryan Spears, Sweden's Johan Edfors and Canada's Andrew Parr sharing the lead at one under.

Rain suspension in US Open first day

Play has been suspended on the opening day of the United States Open at Bethpage Black because of heavy rain.
Forecast is for the rain to clear during the afternoon (local time).
The hope is that the morning wave of 78 competitors can complete round one today, with the afternoon wave, which includes Phil Mickelson, completing the first round on Friday.
Once the rain does stop, Jim Hyler, the chairman of the Championship Committee, said it would take 30 minutes or so to get the course back into playing condition.

Robert Karlsson out of US Open

Robert Karlsson has pulled out of the US Open because of an eye infection.
The Swede has withdrawn after failing to beat the infection, which causes a lack of depth perception in his left eye.
The Ryder Cup star's place at Bethpage State Park will go to New York native Andrew Svoboda, who earns the chance to play in front of his home crowd having claimed the first reserve place with rounds of 70 and 69 in qualifying rounds at Century Country Club and Old Oaks.
Svoboda will tee off with Henrik Stenson and Steve Stricker on Thursday morning.

Mickelson birdies 16 &

17 to score first US Tour


win for a year

FROM THE A O L GOLF NEWS SERVICE
Phil Mickelson, two strokes behind with only four holes to play, kept his nerve and produced two late birdies to retain the Northern Trust Open title at Riviera Country Club, Los Angeles in California after edging out Steve Stricker by one stroke in a tension-packed finish.
The world No 5 held a four-stroke third-round lead but after carding an eagle at the opening hole for a third straight day, Mickelson shipped five bogeys in 13 holes to open the door for Stricker to take up the running.
But left-hander Mickelson birdied 16 and 17 to overtake Stricker and his one-over-par 72 was enough to claim a 35th career PGA victory at 15 under par.
Couples had a chance to force a play-off but after his approach to the final green landed on the fringe he failed to take his chance before Mickelson calmly sank a six-foot putt to secure his first title for over a year.
Stricker signed for six birdies in a four under 67 to claim second place, with Fred Couples (69), South Korea's KJ Choi (69) and Argentina's Andres Romero (70) third at 13 under.
J B Holmes (68), England's Luke Donald (68), Mark Calcavecchia (69) and South Africa's Rory Sabbatini (70) finished tied for sixth at 12 under, with Zimbabwe's Brendon de Jonge (67), Dustin Johnson (70) and Scott McCarron (71) rounding out the top 10.
+The Phil Mickelson tournament statistics were: Average distance of drive - 297.3 yards; Greens hit in Regulation - 70.8%; Average putts per green: 1.667.

REPORT FROM THE US PGA TOUR WEBSITE:
By Helen Ross, PGATOUR.COM Chief of Correspondents
LOS ANGELES -- Truth be told, it probably wasn't the kind of confidence-builder he was seeking.
Outwardly, though, Phil Mickelson was all smiles after winning the Northern Trust Open on Sunday. He was at his glass-half-full best during his interview after the tournament was over, too.
Look back on that round of 1-over 72, though, and there wasn't a lot to be happy about -- except for the fact that he played the final three holes like the player Mickelson knows he can be. The player he wants to become again before the Masters rolls around in six weeks.
"I'm pleased to be sitting here as the champion -- it was not easy," Mickelson said. "The bad of it came in that I needed to become a better frontrunner when I get a lead. ... The good thing was that I was able to fight hard.
"That meant a lot to me."
Mickelson entered the final round at Riviera, a course where he lost a playoff in 2007 and came back to win last year, with a four-stroke advantage. And when he rolled in a 38-footer for his third straight eagle at the first hole, the advantage was five.
Five bogeys in his next 13 holes, though, left Mickelson two strokes behind Steve Stricker in a tournament he had seemed destined to win at the start of the day. Then Dr. Jekyll replaced Mr. Hyde and Mickelson played his final three holes in 2 under to seal the win.
"I just blocked everything out, looked at the pin and swung to it," Mickelson said. "Just looked at my target and swung and forgot about all the technical stuff that I had been working on."
Sunday's dramatic swings in momentum marked the two-time champion's entire week.
Mickelson opened with what had to be a pent-up 63 -- he hadn't broken 70 all year, after all, nor finished higher than 42nd. But he was so frustrated by the 72 that followed he called Butch Harmon from the scorer's tent and asked him to hop a plane to LAX.
The work they did Saturday morning paid off in an extremely consistent 62 that saw Mickelson hit 10 fairways and 16 greens. His misses more often than not went to the preferred left and all indications were that Mickelson was back on track.
Or, maybe not.
On Saturday Mickelson acknowledged that he hadn't exactly put together the kind of performance that "exudes confidence" in his first three starts. Sunday's result may have been the desired one, but the confidence gained in his 35th career victory may have come at a price.
"Even when I didn't have my best stuff I was able to fight through it," Mickelson said. "... I'll work with Butch on Tuesday and see if I can continue to build on this and carry some momentum into Augusta with maybe some high performance."
Fred Couples, who played with Mickelson and Andres Romero in the final group and fought gamely to the end, said it didn't take a "genius" to figure out Mickelson was struggling on Sunday.
A putt here or there could have changed things, Couples said. How about a fairway hit? Mickelson went to his 3-wood until he regained some confidence -- there's that word again -- and finally split the fairway at the 15th hole with his driver.
A stellar 9-iron that settled 5 feet from the pin at the 16th hole moved Mickelson within a stroke of Stricker. His best drive of the week at the par-5 17th helped produce a two-putt birdie that drew him even until Stricker bogeyed the 18th and Mickelson regained the lead.
"He's fun to play with, and he's a true competitor, and he makes the game seem easy," Couples said. "When he plays bad he still gets it. ... So he was never going to lose the tournament. He was going to have a shot at winning the way he was playing.
"If he had played well, he would have won by five shots, but he didn't."
Turns out one was enough. Just barely.
Like all great players, Mickelson is clearly pointing toward the Masters, which he has won twice, as well as the rest of the majors. But he needs to harness his swing and handle the pressure of contending better than he did Sunday to snare a third Green Jacket.
So maybe this week's World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship is just what the doctor ordered.
"It's six final rounds," Mickelson said. "I don't have a four-shot lead like I had today. We start out even. It's difficult. It's a very difficult event to win. ... (Each match) feels like a Sunday. And you feel that pressure throughout the course of the day.
"It's dealing with and performing under that kind of pressure that enables you as a player to give your best performance in major championships when the pressure is the greatest."
SCROLL DOWN FOR ALL THE FINAL TOTALS

Tiger Woods wins US Open
play-off at the 19th

FROM THE AOL GOLF NEWS SERVICE
On the very day he reached 500 weeks as world number one, Tiger Woods took his total of major victories to 14 - just four short of Jack Nicklaus's record - after a marathon duel with fellow American Rocco Mediate.
After staying alive with a 15-foot putt on the 18th green on Sunday, Woods again birdied the last to stop 45-year-old qualifier Mediate becoming the championship's oldest winner and Mediate then bogeyed the 19th to hand Woods the title.
They were both round in level par 71s, Mediate having come from three down after 10 to lead by one on the final tee.
In his first event since surgery on his left knee straight after the Masters in April, Woods made it a remarkable five straight victories at the San Diego venue and took his on-course career earnings through the 100 million US dollars mark.
If not the greatest victory of all the 87 he has now had as a professional, it was certainly the most unlikely when he started with a double bogey and appeared miles short of full fitness.
His play-off record now, though, is a stunning 16-3 - and, of course, he has maintained his record of winning every single major he has led after 54 holes. All 14 of them, that is.

Lee Westwood just misses out on play-off

It's Tiger v Rocco over 18
holes for US Open title

FROM THE AOL GOLF NEWS SERVICE
Tiger Woods forced an 18-hole play-off with fellow American Rocco Mediate for the US Open title on the final hole of the fourth round at Torrey Pines.
High drama on the 18th saw both Woods and England's Lee Westwood with tricky putts to join Mediate on one under but after Westwood missed the first, the world number one sank his with his customary coolness.
Both men will return in the morning to battle it out over a full round, though Woods will go into the day's play as heavy favourite.
With Mediate holding a one-stroke lead and watching from a scoring booth, Woods holed a 15-foot birdie putt on 18 to take the championship into an extra day.
"Unbelievable, I knew he would make it," Mediate said after Woods' putt rattled around the cup before dropping.
Mediate shot an level-par 71 to finish at a one-under-par 283, while Woods, a little off colour for much of the fourth round as he clearly struggled with an injury, played his first two holes in three over and signed for a 73.
Woods entered Sunday at three under and with a one-stroke lead over Westwood, but he never got in a consistent rhythm, carding his worst round of the week.
Westwood finished a stroke out of the play-off alone in third at level par overall.
LEE WESTWOOD JUST MISSES PLAY-OFF
Lee Westwood was one shot and a matter of inches away from taking his bid to become the first English major winner since 1996 into Monday's 18-hole play-off.
Westwood finished third on even par after missing with a tricky 20-foot putt which would have seen him join Rocco Mediate and Tiger Woods in the extra round.
"While I'm disappointed, I'm pleased with myself and I think that I've proved to myself and a few others that there is a major championship in me," said the 35-year-old after carding an even-par 71 at Torrey Pines.
"It's sickening not the be in the play-off but all in all I played pretty well all week and if somebody had said 'you're going to have a chance from 20 feet for a play-off' I would probably have taken that at the start of the week."
Westwood, who started the day one stroke behind Woods, bogeyed the first hole but was rock solid for the rest of the front nine, gathering seven straight pars before making birdie at the par-five ninth.
He started the back nine in front, but the next hour prove costly at he ran up three bogeys in four holes due to some ragged shots, before stemming the flow with a tap-in birdie at the 14th, where he almost drove onto the green. He needed one more birdie down the stretch, to join the Mediate on one under par but it was not to be.
He left himself a tough putt at the last and explained that he intentionally hit his third shot long because he did not want to take any chances of his ball sucking back into the pond guarding the putting surface.
But the real problem was that his second shot, a lay-up from the fairway bunker, ended a little too close to the hole.
"I was looking for something like 96 or 97 yards to the front (of the green) and I got 100," said Westwood. "I was caught between sand iron and lob wedge (for the third shot) and I don't really want to hit lob wedge hard, because anything coming back fast down that green and it's in the drink."
Westwood, who carded 73 to finish at even-par 284, recorded his best major result, but Nick Faldo remains the last Englishman to win a major, having triumphed in the 1996 Masters.

US Open Scoreboard
Torrey Pines Golf Club, San Diego, California
FINAL TOTALS
Par 284 (4 x 71)
283 Rocco Mediate 69 71 72 71, Tiger Woods 72 68 70 73 (to play Monday over 18 holes).
284 Lee Westwood (Eng) 70 71 70 73
286 Robert Karlsson (Swe) 70 70 75 71, D.J. Trahan 72 69 73 72
287 John Merrick 73 72 71 71, Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spa) 75 66 74 72, Carl Pettersson (Swe) 71 71 77 68
288 Eric Axley 69 79 71 69, Geoff Ogilvy (Aus) 69 73 72 74, Camilo Villegas (Col) 73 71 71 73, Brandt Snedeker 76 73 68 71, Heath Slocum 75 74 74 65
289 Rodney Pampling (Aus) 74 70 75 70, Ernie Els (Rsa) 70 72 74 73, Retief Goosen (Rsa) 76 69 77 67, Stewart Cink 72 73 77 67
290 Phil Mickelson 71 75 76 68, Hunter Mahan 72 74 69 75, Chad Campbell 77 72 71 70, Sergio Garcia (Spa) 76 70 70 74, Robert Allenby (Aus) 70 72 73 75, Mike Weir (Can) 73 74 69 74, Ryuji Imada (Jpn) 74 75 70 71, Brandt Jobe 73 75 69 73
291 Anthony Kim 74 75 70 72, Adam Scott (Aus) 73 73 75 70, Boo Weekley 73 76 70 72
292 Aaron Baddeley (Aus) 74 73 71 74, Patrick Sheehan 71 74 74 73, Steve Stricker 73 76 71 72, Michael Thompson 74 73 73 72, Bart Bryant 75 70 78 69, Jeff Quinney 79 70 70 73, Scott Verplank 72 72 74 74
293 Pat Perez 75 73 75 70, Oliver Wilson (Eng) 72 71 74 76, Robert Dinwiddie (Eng) 73 71 75 74, Joe Ogilvie 71 76 73 73, Andres Romero (Arg) 71 73 77 72, Todd Hamilton 74 74 73 72, Jon Mills (Can) 72 75 75 71, Daniel Chopra (Swe) 73 75 75 70, Justin Leonard 75 72 75 71, Jim Furyk 74 71 73 75, Stuart Appleby (Aus) 69 70 79 75, Padraig Harrington (Irl) 78 67 77 71
294 Dustin Johnson 74 72 75 73, John Rollins 75 68 79 72, Jarrod Lyle (Aus) 75 74 74 71, Matt Kuchar 73 73 76 72, Tim Clark (Rsa) 73 72 74 75
295 Ben Crane 75 72 77 71, Davis Love III 72 69 76 78, Soren Hansen (Den) 78 70 76 71, Martin Kaymer (Ger) 75 70 73 77, Kevin Streelman 68 77 78 72
296 Rory Sabbatini (Rsa) 73 72 75 76, Stephen Ames (Can) 74 74 77 71
297 Nick Watney 73 75 77 72, Brett Quigley 73 72 77 75, David Toms 76 72 72 77, Alastair Forsyth (Sco) 76 73 74 74, Rickie Fowler 70 79 76 72
298 Paul Casey (Eng) 79 70 76 73, Vijay Singh (Fij) 71 78 76 73, Trevor Immelman (Rsa) 75 73 72 78, John Mallinger 73 75 78 72
299 D.A. Points 74 71 77 77, Derek Fathauer 73 73 78 75
300 Woody Austin 72 72 77 79, Andrew Dresser 76 73 79 72, Andrew Svoboda 77 71 74 78
301 Justin Hicks 68 80 75 78, Ian Leggatt (Can) 72 76 76 77, Jesper Parnevik (Swe) 77 72 77 75
303 Ross McGowan (Eng) 76 72 78 77
304 Chris Kirk 75 74 78 77, Rich Beem 74 74 80 76

One round to go in United States Open

Tiger leads from Westwood after
birdie-eagle finish

Tiger Woods produced a superb finish to his third round on Saturday to take the lead of the US Open ahead of Lee Westwood.
The world number one played the final two holes of his third round in three-under-par, carding an eagle at the par-five 18th to take a one-stroke lead at Torrey Pines, San Diego in southern California.
It means Woods is in great shape to win his third US Open and 14th major championship.
Westwood finished two groups ahead of Woods after carding a 70 and, at two-under 211, he was alone in the lead at the time. However, Woods chipped in from the rough at 17, his ball taking one bounce before gently glancing the flagstick and dropping into the cup. And on 18, Woods split the fairway and launched his second shot onto the green with a fairway wood, grimacing in pain after the shot. It didn't affect him on his putt, as he dropped a 35-footer that was never headed anywhere but the hole.
"It's more sore," Woods said of his leg. "As soon as I get out of here I'm going to put some ice on it.It does affect what I'm trying to do. It acts up on certain shots, I can't say it's a driver and I can't say it's a wedge. Certain shots I just feel it more on."
Woods' closing eagle may have taken the lead away from Westwood, but it didn't take the Englishman out of contention. In fact, while Woods was flashier in posting his 70, Westwood was more steady in his, carding 15 pars with two birdies and a bogey in the par-three eighth where he three-putted.
"I'm very pleased. It's just the position I wanted to be in," Westwood said. "I've played very solidly the first three days and was good today. I've been thinking well out there."
Westwood is one of only three players under-par, the other being Rocco Mediate who shot a one-over 72 and is in third at one-under 212. Mediate had the lead for much of the day and was at four-under after a birdie at 10. He bogeyed 15 and then doubled 15 followed by a bogey at 16 to drop to even-par. A birdie at 17 got him back in red numbers and kept him with a chance entering Sunday.
"I hit my ball really, really good most of the day," Mediate said. "It was in front of me. I missed a couple of shots, but I really liked the way I reacted."
DJ Trahan and 2006 US Open champion Geoff Ogilvy are tied for fourth at one-over 214. Robert Allenby, Miguel Angel Jimenez, Robert Karklsson, Hunter Mahan and Camilo Villegas are another stroke back.
THIRD ROUND TOTALS
Par 213 (3 x 71)
209 Tiger Woods (US) 72 68 70.
211 Lee Westwood (Eng) 70 71 70 .
212 Rocco Mediate (US) 69 71 72.
214 Geoff Ogilvy (Aus) 69 73 72, D.J. Trahan 72 69 73
215 Hunter Mahan 72 74 69, Robert Allenby (Aus) 70 72 73, Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spa) 75 66 74, Camilo Villegas (Col) 73 71 71, R Karlsson (Swe) 70 70 75
216 John Merrick 73 72 71, Sergio Garcia (Spa) 76 70 70, Ernie Els (Rsa) 70 72 74, Mike Weir (Can) 73 74 69
217 Davis Love III 72 69 76, Oliver Wilson (Eng) 72 71 74, Brandt Jobe 73 75 69, Brandt Snedeker 76 73 68
218 Aaron Baddeley (Aus) 74 73 71, Jim Furyk 74 71 73, Martin Kaymer (Ger) 75 70 73, Scott Verplank 72 72 74
219 Patrick Sheehan 71 74 74, Rodney Pampling (Aus) 74 70 75, Robert Dinwiddie (Eng) 73 71 75, Eric Axley 69 79 71, Jeff Quinney 79 70 70, Anthony Kim 74 75 70, Ryuji Imada (Jpn) 74 75 70, Boo Weekley 73 76 70, Luke Donald (Eng) 71 71 77, Carl Pettersson (Swe) 71 71 77, Tim Clark (Rsa) 73 72 74
220 Steve Stricker 73 76 71, Rory Sabbatini (Rsa) 73 72 75, Michael Thompson 74 73 73, Chad Campbell 77 72 71, Trevor Immelman (Rsa) 75 73 72, Joe Ogilvie 71 76 73, David Toms 76 72 72
221 Dustin Johnson 74 72 75, Adam Scott (Aus) 73 73 75, Andres Romero (Arg) 71 73 77, Woody Austin 72 72 77, Todd Hamilton 74 74 73
222 Stewart Cink 72 73 77, Matt Kuchar 73 73 76, Andrew Svoboda 77 71 74, Jon Mills (Can) 72 75 75, Phil Mickelson 71 75 76, D.A. Points 74 71 77, John Rollins 75 68 79, Justin Leonard 75 72 75, Brett Quigley 73 72 77, Retief Goosen (Rsa) 76 69 77, Padraig Harrington (Irl) 78 67 77
223 Pat Perez 75 73 75, Daniel Chopra (Swe) 73 75 75, Jarrod Lyle (Aus) 75 74 74, Bart Bryant 75 70 78, Justin Hicks 68 80 75, Alastair Forsyth (Sco) 76 73 74, Heath Slocum 75 74 74, Kevin Streelman 68 77 78
224 Derek Fathauer 73 73 78, Ben Crane 75 72 77, Soren Hansen (Den) 78 70 76, Ian Leggatt (Can) 72 76 76
225 Nick Watney 73 75 77, Paul Casey (Eng) 79 70 76, Vijay Singh (Fij) 71 78 76, Rickie Fowler 70 79 76, Stephen Ames (Can) 74 74 77
226 John Mallinger 73 75 78, Ross McGowan (Eng) 76 72 78, Jesper Parnevik (Swe) 77 72 77
227 Chris Kirk 75 74 78
228 Rich Beem 74 74 80, Andrew Dresser 76 73 79k. Ernie Els, Sergio Garcia, John Merrick and Mike Weir are tied for 11th at three-over 216.

United States Open Scoreboard
TORREY PINES GC
San Diego, California
Par 142 (2 x 71)
139 Stuart Appleby (Aus) 69 70
140 Robert Karlsson (Swe) 70 70, Tiger Woods 72 68, Rocco Mediate 69 71
141 Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spa) 75 66, Davis Love III 72 69, Lee Westwood (Eng) 70 71, D.J. Trahan 72 69
142 Robert Allenby (Aus) 70 72, Ernie Els (Rsa) 70 72, Geoff Ogilvy (Aus) 69 73, Luke Donald (Eng) 71 71, Carl Pettersson (Swe) 71 71
143 John Rollins 75 68, Oliver Wilson (Eng) 72 71
144 Rodney Pampling (Aus) 74 70, Andres Romero (Arg) 71 73, Robert Dinwiddie (Eng) 73 71, Woody Austin 72 72, Camilo Villegas (Col) 73 71, Scott Verplank 72 72
145 Patrick Sheehan 71 74, Rory Sabbatini (Rsa) 73 72, John Merrick 73 72, Bart Bryant 75 70, Stewart Cink 72 73, Martin Kaymer (Ger) 75 70, Kevin Streelman 68 77, D.A. Points 74 71, Brett Quigley 73 72, Jim Furyk 74 71, Retief Goosen (Rsa) 76 69, Tim Clark (Rsa) 73 72, Padraig Harrington (Irl) 78 67
146 Phil Mickelson 71 75, Dustin Johnson 74 72, Hunter Mahan 72 74, Derek Fathauer 73 73, Adam Scott (Aus) 73 73, Sergio Garcia (Spa) 76 70, Matt Kuchar 73 73
147 Aaron Baddeley (Aus) 74 73, Ben Crane 75 72, Michael Thompson 74 73, Justin Leonard 75 72, Joe Ogilvie 71 76, Mike Weir (Can) 73 74, Jon Mills (Can) 72 75
148 Nick Watney 73 75, Justin Hicks 68 80, Soren Hansen (Den) 78 70, David Toms 76 72, Todd Hamilton 74 74, Andrew Svoboda 77 71, John Mallinger 73 75, Daniel Chopra (Swe) 73 75, Brandt Jobe 73 75, Stephen Ames (Can) 74 74, Pat Perez 75 73, Eric Axley 69 79, Ian Leggatt (Can) 72 76, Trevor Immelman (Rsa) 75 73, Rich Beem 74 74, Ross McGowan (Eng) 76 72
149 Chris Kirk 75 74, Jeff Quinney 79 70, Andrew Dresser 76 73, Heath Slocum 75 74, Chad Campbell 77 72, Vijay Singh (Fij) 71 78, Ryuji Imada (Jpn) 74 75, Boo Weekley 73 76, Alastair Forsyth (Sco) 76 73, Rickie Fowler 70 79, Jesper Parnevik (Swe) 77 72, Steve Stricker 73 76, Paul Casey (Eng) 79 70, Jarrod Lyle (Aus) 75 74, Anthony Kim 74 75, Brandt Snedeker 76 73
MISSED THE CUT
150 Kyle Stanley 72 78, Robert Garrigus 77 73, Zach Johnson 76 74, Casey Wittenberg 72 78, Jon Turcott 77 73, Toru Taniguchi (Jpn) 74 76, J.B. Holmes 75 75, Mathew Goggin (Aus) 77 73, Scott Sterling 80 70, Hunter Haas 80 70, Thomas Levet (Fra) 74 76
151 Peter Tomasulo 76 75, Ross Fisher (Eng) 73 78, David Hearn (Can) 76 75, Scott Piercy 78 73, Ben Curtis 75 76, Rob Rashell 81 70, Steve Marino 73 78, Justin Rose (Eng) 79 72, Mark O'Meara 75 76, KJ Choi (Kor) 74 77, John Ellis 77 74, Richard Sterne (Rsa) 76 75
152 Michael Letzig 77 75, Jonathan Byrd 75 77, Nick Taylor (Can) 77 75
153 Michael Allen 78 75, Fredrik Jacobson (Swe) 74 79, Lee Janzen 75 78, Kevin Tway 75 78, Shingo Katayama (Jpn) 77 76, Jason Bohn 76 77, Charles Howell III 75 78
154 DJ Brigman 79 75, Bubba Watson 77 77, Henrik Stenson (Swe) 78 76
155 Dean Wilson 76 79, Travis Bertoni 82 73, Joey Lamielle 76 79, Nick Dougherty (Eng) 78 77, Angel Cabrera (Arg) 79 76, Jason Gore 79 76, Charlie Beljan 76 79
156 Brad Bryant 77 79, Craig Barlow 80 76, Kevin Silva 80 76, Colin Montgomerie (Sco) 79 77, Craig Parry (Aus) 75 81, Bob Gaus 80 76, Johan Edfors (Swe) 79 77
157 Jerry Kelly 75 82, Sean English 75 82, Jordan Cox 80 77
159 Steve Flesch 78 81, Jeff Wilson 78 81, Phillip Archer (Eng) 78 81, Jay Choi (Kor) 79 80
160 Jeffrey Bors 81 79
161 Philippe Gasnier (Bra) 86 75, Bobby Collins 83 78, Chris Stroud 84 77, Michael Campbell (Nzl) 78 83, Yohann Benson (Can) 83 78
162 Garrett Chaussard 80 82, Artemio-hiromasa Murakami (Phi) 79 83, Brian Kortan 78 84
163 Fernando Figueroa (Esa) 78 85, Jimmy Henderson 81 82
164 Niclas Fasth (Swe) 78 86
165 Gary Wolstenholme (Eng) 83 82
167 Mike Gilmore 86 81, Chris Devlin (NIrl) 84 83, Michael Quagliano 86 81, Brian Bergstol 86 81

:

Hicks, Streelman lead US
Open with 68s

Justin Hicks and Kevin Streelman are tied for the lead after carding three-under-par 68s in the first round of the United States Open at the South Course at Torrey Pines GC in San Diego, California.
The pair hold a one-stroke lead over Rocco Mediate, Stuart Appleby, Eric Axley and 2006 US Open champion Geoff Ogilvy.
World number one Tiger Woods - playing his first tournament since undergoing knee surgery - carded a one-over-par 72, while Phil Mickelson overcame three consecutive bogeys to sign for a 71.
Woods said: "To make two double-bogeys and a three-putt and be only four back, that's a great position to be in. I know I can clean that up on Friday."
Lee Westwood, Sweden's Robert Karlsson, Ernie Els, Robert Allenby and American amateur Rickie Fowler are well placed at one under par.
FIRST ROUND SCOREBOARD
Par 71
68 Justin Hicks, Kevin Streelman
69 Eric Axley, Geoff Ogilvy (Aus), Rocco Mediate, Stuart Appleby (Aus)
70 Robert Karlsson (Swe), Robert Allenby (Aus), Ernie Els (Rsa), Lee Westwood (Eng), Rickie Fowler
71 Phil Mickelson, Patrick Sheehan, Vijay Singh (Fij), Andres Romero (Arg), Joe Ogilvie, Luke Donald (Eng), Carl Pettersson (Swe)
72 Tiger Woods, Kyle Stanley, Davis Love III, Oliver Wilson (Eng), Casey Wittenberg, Woody Austin, Ian Leggatt (Can), Stewart Cink, Jon Mills (Can), Hunter Mahan, Scott Verplank, D.J. Trahan
73 Nick Watney, Ross Fisher (Eng), Robert Dinwiddie (Eng), John Mallinger, Steve Marino, Daniel Chopra (Swe), Derek Fathauer, Brett Quigley, Mike Weir (Can), Brandt Jobe, Boo Weekley, Steve Stricker, Rory Sabbatini (Rsa), Adam Scott (Aus), John Merrick, Matt Kuchar, Camilo Villegas (Col), Tim Clark (Rsa)
74 Rodney Pampling (Aus), Todd Hamilton, Toru Taniguchi (Jpn), Aaron Baddeley (Aus), D.A. Points, Dustin Johnson, Michael Thompson, Anthony Kim, Fredrik Jacobson (Swe), Jim Furyk, KJ Choi (Kor), Rich Beem, Ryuji Imada (Jpn), Stephen Ames (Can), Thomas Levet (Fra)
75 Chris Kirk, Sean English, Bart Bryant, Martin Kaymer (Ger), Ben Curtis, Heath Slocum, Charles Howell III, Justin Leonard, Ben Crane, Mark O'Meara, Craig Parry (Aus), Tway Kevin, Jerry Kelly, Pat Perez, Lee Janzen, Jarrod Lyle (Aus), J.B. Holmes, John Rollins, Trevor Immelman (Rsa), Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spa), Jonathan Byrd
76 Peter Tomasulo, Zach Johnson, Andrew Dresser, David Toms, David Hearn (Can), Charlie Beljan, Dean Wilson, Sergio Garcia (Spa), Alastair Forsyth (Sco), Retief Goosen (Rsa), Joey Lamielle, Brandt Snedeker, Ross McGowan (Eng), Richard Sterne (Rsa), Jason Bohn
77 Michael Letzig, Robert Garrigus, Jon Turcott, Andrew Svoboda, Bubba Watson, Chad Campbell, Brad Bryant, Mathew Goggin (Aus), John Ellis, Nick Taylor (Can), Jesper Parnevik (Swe), Shingo Katayama (Jpn)
78 Michael Campbell (Nzl), Soren Hansen (Den), Steve Flesch, Nick Dougherty (Eng), Scott Piercy, Michael Allen, Jeff Wilson, Niclas Fasth (Swe), Ian Poulter (Eng), Phillip Archer (Eng), Brian Kortan, Henrik Stenson (Swe), Fernando Figueroa (Esa), Padraig Harrington (Irl)
79 Colin Montgomerie (Sco), Jeff Quinney, Angel Cabrera (Arg), Johan Edfors (Swe), Paul Casey (Eng), Justin Rose (Eng), DJ Brigman, Artemio-hiromasa Murakami (Phi), Jay Choi (Kor), Jason Gore
80 Scott Sterling, Garrett Chaussard, Kevin Silva, Craig Barlow, Jordan Cox, Bob Gaus, Hunter Haas
81 Rob Rashell, Jeffrey Bors, Jimmy Henderson
82 Travis Bertoni
83 Gary Wolstenholme (Eng), Bobby Collins, Yohann Benson (Can)
84 Chris Stroud, Chris Devlin (NIrl)
86 Philippe Gasnier (Bra), Mike Gilmore, Michael Quagliano, Brian Bergstol

Tiger-Phil-Adam threesome
on US Open first day

Tiger Woods will play alongside Phil Mickelson and Adam Scott at next week's US Open.
The world number one, who underwent knee surgery following The Masters in April, returned to action by playing his first practice round at Torrey Pines on Wednesday.
Ernie Els, Justin Rose and Geoff Ogilvy will make up another big-name group.
Stewart Cink will compete alongside Sergio Garcia and Vijay Singh, while KJ Choi has been named in the same group as Jim Furyk and Steve Stricker.