Week 24 Approach Shots: U.S. Open

text size

PLEASANT MEMORIES: Jason Gore already has pleasant memories of Pebble Beach.

"I got married right there," Gore said, pointing to a spot behind the 18th green. "Won the California Amateur here, played in the AT&T a bunch of times and I just love it. The place is pretty special."

TV/Radio (all times ET)

TV: ESPN (Thu.-Fri., 1-3 p.m., 5-10 p.m.); NBC (Thu.-Fri. 3-5 p.m., Sat. 4-10 p.m., Sun. 3-9 p.m.) RADIO: ESPN Radio - Sirius 120, XM 140, PGATOUR.COM (Thu.-Fri. 1-7 p.m., Sat.-Sun. 3-9 p.m.)

Key links

• Expert picks | Tee times • Rankings | Fantasy Insider • Inside the Field | Course

Weather

Partly cloudy with temperatures in the low 50s, low 60s. Winds will be from 5-10 mph. Updated weather info

Gore became a fan favorite at the 2005 U.S. Open at Pinehurst and is seeking to regain that touch that put him in contention heading into the fourth round.

"The golf course this year, the way it's set up, is almost completely different from what we usually play during the AT&T. You just have to kind of relearn a few lines. But it's weird to see how hard the greens are and how it is to play here in June, but the golf course is fantastic."

Gore admits there's been a little bit of a struggle with his game since his moment at Pinehurst No. 2

"Struggling with a little bit of confidence. I've just got to believe in myself and that I have the ability and go from there and hopefully find a little something that kind of clicks and keep moving forward."

TOP TWO SPOTS ON THE LINE: Phil Mickelson, for the fourth time this season, has an opportunity to take the world No. 1 ranking for the first time this year. He could potentially take the top spot with a finish as high as T3 if other circumstances play out.

With 11 of his 38 career victories coming in the state of California, this stands as his best chance to secure the top spot for the first time in his career.

Tiger Woods has been in the top position for more than five years.

A finish out of the top three could cost Mickelson the No. 2 spot, however, if Lee Westwood were to win the U.S. Open. This would move the Englishman into second place and drop Mickelson to third.

A FIELD OF CHAMPIONS: Every U.S. Open Champion since the turn of the century will be in the field this week at Pebble Beach. Lucas Glover will look to be the first repeat champion in the event since Curtis Strange won back-to-back U.S. Opens in 1989 and 1990. Angel Cabrera is the only one of the champions from this decade who has won another major since his most recent U.S. Open victory (2007 U.S. Open, 2009 Masters).

Tiger Woods could tie Willie Anderson, Robert T. Jones, Jr., Ben Hogan and Jack Nicklaus for the most U.S. Open wins in history with four if he were to win this week's event. South Africans Ernie Els (1994, 1997) and Retief Goosen (2001, 2004) will each be seeking their third U.S. Open title.

PEBBLE BEACH BRINGS OUT THE BEST: Winning the U.S. Open is no easy task. Winning at Pebble Beach would put a player in some pretty elite company. The four previous winners at Pebble Beach Golf Links have combined for 202 career PGA TOUR wins. None of them had fewer than 15 TOUR victories before claiming their title at Pebble Beach.

Predictions: Columnists vs. Interns

PGATOUR.COM's interns are trying to out-predict our expert columnists this summer. We'll keep tabs and see how they do at the end of the summer. Here are their picks for the U.S. Open. Columnists Pick Comment Stan AWTREY PHIL MICKELSON: After an epic performance at the Masters, what does he have waiting for us at Pebble Beach? Craig DOLCH PHIL MICKELSON: It's Phil's world these days and, finally, his turn to win the U.S. Open. Melanie HAUSER LEE WESTWOOD: Hard to go against Tiger or Phil. A U.S. Open with a European winner? It won't be easy. Interns Pick Comment Chris DUNHAM ERNIE ELS: The Big Easy has been in the top 20 in three straight majors. He has the short game necessary to scramble on the small greens at Pebble Beach. Todd HOSKINS STEVE STRICKER: A great putter, especially on short putts. That's going to be a differentiating factor this week. He has a simple swing that stays on plane which allows him to hit the ball consistently solid. That's a must the wind and as hard & dry as the fairways are. Ryan PIERCE TIGER WOODS: Three reasons Woods takes his 15th major title this week: he's money at Pebble, he'll only have to hit driver "on a handful of holes," and that nostalgia we saw after yesterday's practice round might just put him back into his old dominating form.

Columnists vs. Interns Standings

Through the first week of summer scoring, the interns lead on the strength of Ryan Pierce's selection of Heath Slocum (6th) at the St. Jude Classic. Stan Awtrey netted the Columnist team 51.5 points, keeping them very close. Columnists 128.5 Interns 138.5 Stan Awtrey 51.5 Ryan Pierce 100.0 Craig Dolch 38.5 Chris Dunham 38.5 Melanie Hauser 38.5 Todd Hoskins 0.0

Bolton's Yahoo! selections

Fantasy columnist Rob Bolton will provide his Yahoo! picks as a starting point for you every week. Use the advice and opinion from his Power Rankings and Fantasy Insider to assist in determining lineups changes throughout each tournament. Group Starters Bench Group A Luke Donald Phil Mickelson Group B K.J. Choi, Jim Furyk Nick Watney, Lee Westwood Group C Ben Crane Graeme McDowell

Sign up for our FREE fantasy golf game on Yahoo! Click here

Winners of the Masters and U.S. Open in the same year

Craig Wood 1941 Ben Hogan 1951 & 1953 Arnold Palmer 1960 Jack Nicklaus 1972 Tiger Woods 2002

Did you know?

Of the top 10 players behind Tiger Woods in 2000 at Pebble Beach, seven will be playing this week. They are Ernie Els, Miguel Angel Jimenez, Lee Westwood, Padraig Harrington, David Duval, Stewart Cink and Vijay Singh. Those not returning: Nick Faldo, John Huston and Loren Roberts.

What the winner gets

A victory this week at the U.S. Open will earn the following benefits: • Fully Exempt through 2015 • 600 FedExCup points. It took 354 points to qualify for the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup in 2009 and 494 to reach the Deutsche Bank Championship. • A spot in the following events in order of play: 2010 AT&T National, 2010 British Open, 2010 PGA Championship, 2010 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, 2011 SBS Championship, 2011 Masters and 2011 PLAYERS among others. • If a U.S. player, an undetermined number of points towards making the 2011 Presidents Cup team. (one dollar=one point)

...