Countless golfers wake up before dawn to make an early Monday morning tee time. Not many, however, do so knowing that at the end of the day, if they play well enough, they will earn a spot in the U.S. Open.
“As long as I can get up in the morning, it should be fun,” said Jason Preeo, who drew the 7 a.m. slot, the very first tee time for the sectional qualifier at Columbine Country Club, one of 15 that will take place worldwide. The winner of the 36-hole event will gain a spot in the 156-player field for the national championship, to be played June 17-20 at Pebble Beach.
There’s a chance that more than one player will get the nod, but that won’t be determined until sometime Monday, after the United States Golf Association implements a formula more secret than anything Coke or KFC ever dreamed of. About the only thing known for sure is that strength of field comes into play, one reason why the qualifiers in Columbus, Ohio, coming the day after the conclusion of the Memorial, usually gets a ton of PGA Tour players — and subsequently a ton of spots in the Open.
The Columbine qualifier has yielded two spots in each of the last two years.
“We’ll just have to wait for the smoke to rise from the chimney at USGA headquarters,” said Ed Mate, the executive director of the Colorado Golf Association, which runs the local qualifier.
There are 29 players slated to compete Monday, and if politics plays a role, there’s every chance that two players will once again advance. The field at Columbine will include Tom Kite, a World Golf Hall of Fame member who won the 1992 Open when it was played at Pebble Beach. Kite, who competed in last week’s Senior PGA Championship at Colorado Golf Club in Parker, played a practice round at Columbine on Monday before traveling to Iowa for this weekend’s Champions Tour event.
It’s the second time in the last three years that one of professional golf’s major stars has been slated to compete in the sectional — in 2007, former British Open champion and Cherry Hills Village resident David Duval registered, but didn’t play in the event. Duval has a spot in this year’s field after finishing in a tie for second in the 2009 Open at Bethpage Black in New York.
Another member of Kite’s group, Clay Ogden, also has strong USGA ties. Ogden beat Michelle Wie en route to winning the 2005 U.S. Amateur Publinks Championship.
Preeo, who coached the Valor Christian High School boys team to the Colorado Class 4A state title this season, said that when he heard Kite was in Monday’s field, his first thought was that he wished he could play with him. The presence of such a high-powered player might appear to make things a little tougher, but the reality is that no one, not even Kite, can totally control what happens during such a stressful day.
In 2007, Preeo held the 18-hole lead after shooting a 4-under-par 68. However, he blew up on the final 18 holes, shooting a 77 to miss out on the single Open spot by five shots.
This Monday, Preeo said he may be helped by his early tee time.
“It’s one of those things where you’re not going to see too many scores, so you just go out and take care of your own business,” he said. “And you never know when the wind is going to start blowing; the more holes you get in before that starts, the better.”
Kim qualifies for Women’s Open, but won’t return to DU.
On Monday, Kimberly Kim qualified for a spot in the 2010 U.S. Women’s Open, marking her second appearance of the season in an LPGA major championship.
However, the native of Hawaii told reporters after the 36-hole sectional at the Broadmoor in Colorado Springs that she would not be returning to the University of Denver. That was confirmed Wednesday by the Pioneers’ coach, Sammie Chergo.
“We probably thought that we could do more for her than we actually could,” Chergo said. “College golf isn’t really meant for someone like her.”
Kim won the 2006 U.S. Women’s Amateur, becoming, at age 14, the youngest winner in the event’s 106-year history. She is also a two-time member of the U.S. Curtis Cup team, the female amateur version of the Ryder Cup.
There was some question about whether she would go to college at all, and many in the golf community were surprised when she decided to attend DU. In her only season with the Pioneers, Kim was suspended early in the season for missing a practice, but she rebounded to lead the team with a 73.73 scoring average and qualified as an individual for the 2010 NCAA championships, where she finished 27th.
“I think she’s probably as happy as a clam now,” Chergo said. “She loved the team and loved the girls, but she showed no desire or willingness to buy into it.”
Chergo said she’ll root for Kim, adding the experience won’t dissuade her from recruiting more elite players for the Pioneers.
“It would have to be . . . We knew what we were getting with Kim,” Chergo said. “We’ll still go after them.”
