The scores rose Sunday, but that didn’t stop the flow of compliments from the players about Cherry Hills Country Club.
Last year’s U.S. Open champion Meg Mallon said: “This was one of the fairest Open courses we’ve ever played – and the toughest rough we’ve ever seen.”
Mallon liked the fact the thick rough equalized some of the power of the big hitters who were afraid to use driver off the tee.
“I saw Michelle Wie advance like 20 feet from the rough once. And she’s a strong player,” Mallon said. “That’s good rough. The U.S. Open isn’t fun, because it demands so much of the players. It’s the ultimate challenge.”
Leta Lindley can relate. She finished tied for fifth in her first U.S. Open, in 1995 at The Broadmoor, so she has fond feelings toward playing in Colorado in general. That did not change this year. She finished tied for 19th at 294.
“The fans have been wonderful,” Lindley said. “It’s been a great week.”
U.S. Open rookie Sarah Huarte, a niece of Notre Dame Heisman Trophy winner John Huarte’s, also raved about Cherry Hills. “The course is amazing,” she said. “The fans were great.”
Sunday’s announced attendance was 31,037, breaking the all-time single-day record at the Open, which was set Saturday. The weekly total of 131,137 surpassed the previous Open record of 118,864, set last year.
-Nick Groke and Theresa Smith
All glory, no money
Improbable as it was, two teenage amateurs, Brittany Lang and Morgan Pressel, finished tied for second. As amateurs, they cannot accept prize money, so the pros were the lucky benefactors.
According to the USGA, that money goes into the overall remaining pool and increased the purse for the rest of the pros. The fourth-place finishers, Lorie Kane and Natalie Gulbis, split second-place money. In this case, Birdie Kim’s first prize of $560,000 was unchanged, but Kane and Gulbis each pocketed $272,723. Other pros further down the money list also earned slightly more than their normal slot.
Park toughs it out
Grace Park, a six-time LPGA tournament winner and the 2004 Vare Trophy winner for lowest scoring average, remains hampered by a back injury, but she gutted out four rounds. The injury forced the 26-year-old South Korean to pull out of the LPGA Championship two weeks ago. She finished at 19-over par.
She refused to blame her back on her results.
“I mean, it’s not 100 percent, but it didn’t hurt when I played,” she said. “I’m not making excuses.”
Keeping eyes straight
Lang knew she was playing well during the final stretch of the U.S. Women’s Open, but she had no idea how well.
“I didn’t look at a scoreboard all day,” said Lang, 19. “I looked up once to see my name was on the board, but I never looked at the numbers.”
Lang birdied No. 17 after going for the green over water with her second shot on the par 5.
“It was kind of a gutsy play, but I didn’t have anything to lose, so I went for it,” she said.
Lang bogeyed No. 18 to finish at 5-over.
A Wie reward
Susie Packer didn’t expect any rewards for her year-long volunteer efforts in preparation for the Open. The mother of four was just pitching in along with many Cherry Hills Country Club members – in her case, training and scheduling scorekeepers.
To that end, Packer, 38, traveled to the Open in South Hadley, Mass., last year and learned the nuances of the hand-held computers and the most efficient way to manage her cadre of 62 volunteer scorekeepers.
When Michelle Wie requested a practice round June 17, Cherry Hills officials put together Wie’s foursome, selecting Cherry Hills pro Heikke Nielsen, tournament chairman Jeff Briggs and Packer, the club championship runner-up.
“She is delightful,” Packer said of Wie. “We talked about school and golf and Michelle getting her driver’s license. She asked me to recommend a famous restaurant and asked where she should go on her day off.”
Packer suggested Elway’s for dinner and a drive to Boulder.
Putter betrays Webb
Australian Karrie Webb has won 30 LPGA tour events, matching her age. But putting struggles all season have kept her off the victory stand.
Webb made two birdie putts Sunday, 11 for the tournament. During a round of 75 on Sunday she had 33 putts. In contrast, Open champion Kim had 27 and Pressel had 26.
Footnotes
Several fans watching on television called the USGA and Cherry Hills on Sunday after seeing Pressel replace and clean her ball on No. 10. The viewers thought Pressel might have violated a rule because it was unclear from watching if the ball was on the green or on the fringe. A USGA official said the ball was “deemed to be on the putting surface” and thus no penalty. … Kim made nine of 33 cuts before the Open. … The last 20 players in the field shot an average round of 76.3.
