U.S. Open 2012: Tiger Finishes 1-Under; Phil Struggles To 6-Over

SAN FRANCISCO -- You can’t really prepare for following a grouping of Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and Bubba Watson around The Olympic Club for 18 holes at the U.S. Open. Putting the three marquee names of the tournament together was the USGA at its finest, producing a group made for TV and meant to draw in the casual fan. Little did I know just how crazy the scene would be.

Woods, Mickelson and Watson went off early enough that getting to the course meant rising from bed before the sun rose in the east and, for the gallery, staking out a prime spot along the ropes. Fans had been there since the gates opened at 6 a.m., all in hopes of seeing the three titans of the sport. Never mind that any glimpse they’d get would be brief: It was all about the experience.

Tiger Woods is one of six players under par after the first round of the 2012 U.S. Open, and a big reason he had success on Thursday was his strong play on some of the course’s toughest holes.

Woods finished the first round at 1-under par, but played especially well over the first six holes. The 156-player field combined to shoot 420-over par over the first six holes of the Olympic Club, but Woods shot 2-under over the same stretch.

SAN FRANCISCO -- “It was a war,” Casey Martin said after walking off the 18th green and up the steps to the clubhouse. For most, those words would be used to describe the conditions of the course and the battle going on between the first and 18th holes at The Olympic Club. For Martin, the war was also a constant fight with his body.

Sure, he’s able to ride a cart around the course after successfully suing the tour for an exemption in 1999. A rare circulatory problem in his legs forces Martin to walk with a severe limp, making even the most simple of tasks look difficult. It’s almost painful to watch him navigate the course, walking from his cart to his ball, climbing hills to reach each green and then navigating the putting surface with the flatstick.

The conditions at Olympic are toughening as Thursday progresses, with the wind drying out the course and heat creating incredibly slick putting surfaces. But that doesn’t mean the best players in the world can’t pull off miraculous shots.

Nick Watney came to the 17th hole at 3-over par and managed to get it all back in one shot, moving to even-par with an amazing double eagle. It’s the second double eagle in a major this year, coming on the heels of Louis Oosthuizen’s albatross on No. 2 at Augusta.

Tiger Woods played perhaps his best round of golf in two years during his Sunday charge to win the Memorial Tournament two weeks ago, and that momentum carried over Thursday at Olympic in an opening round at the 2012 U.S. Open that eclipsed the dramatics at Muirfield Village.

Woods was steady throughout Thursday, rarely having to scramble for par and keeping his drives in the ballpark. The win at the Memorial will largely be remembered for the flurry of birdies on Sunday, but it was the steady week of par saves that put him in contention and made that win seem different that his victory at Bay Hill in March.

As advertised, there was no gabbing among Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, and Bubba Watson as the three megastars made their way around The Olympic Club in Thursday’s opening round of the U.S. Open. Instead, Woods left his playing partners mumbling to themselves as he raced off to a spot near the top of the leaderboard while the two lefties in the marquee group struggled to make it to the clubhouse.

Mickelson got off to a horrid start, losing a ball on his first drive off No. 9, made three consecutive bogeys, and hit more trees and galleries than fairways early, on his way to a 6-over 76. He settled down somewhat with five straight birdies after a bogey on the 670-yard, par-5 16th until he three-putted for bogey on the fourth and made another on the fifth.

The most star-studded trio in the 2012 U.S. Open has wrapped up its opening round of play on Thursday. Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and Bubba Watson all navigated the tricky course at the Olympic Club in San Francisco together, but only Woods seemed to be having any luck at all throughout the day.

Woods evened out through his first nine holes after the trio teed off on Hole 9 to start the day. All told, Woods had three birdies and a pair of bogeys to finish at a very respectable 1-under. Woods finds himself near the top of the leaderboard, in a tie for second place with David Toms and Aaron Watkins, the latter of whom is just starting out.

Phil Mickelson is off to an awful start at the 2012 U.S. Open. The unforgiving Olympic Club has not been kind to Lefty, who has bogeyed his first three holes. His most recent bogey came in especially frustrating fashion, with Mickelson failing to make a four-foot par putt on the 3rd hole.

His group-mate Bubba Watson is off to a rough start as well. He’s two-over par through three holes. Tiger Woods has been steady thus far, making par on every hole he’s played to stick at even. It’s very early in the day, and no one is putting up big scores anywhere on the course just yet. There are seven players tied at one-under par, with most of the field yet to tee off.