U.S. Open 2018: 1 hole ruined Gary Woodland at Shinnecock Hills
By Stan Unruh
The United States Open Golf Tournament proved too much for many big names. Thursday’s back nine hurt former University of Kansas golfer Gary Woodland.
Kansas Jayhawk fans who follow golfer Gary Woodland are paying extra attention following his February win at the Phoenix Open. We were excited to see Woodland handle the difficult U.S. Open set up at Shinnecock Hills. Woodland was still dreaming of a pro golf career the last time the Southhampton, New York course hosted the open.
Woodland has been inconsistent since his Super Bowl weekend victory. He started ten PGA tour events the past four months and missed the weekend six times. His game and confidence got a boost at the June 3, Memorial Tournament. He finished strong with a final round 67 and a tie for 27th.
For fans who tuned into the Fox Sports coverage early Thursday, the course looked intimidating. Watching Tiger Woods triple-bogey the 399-yard par 4 first hole didn’t help. Woodland had little problem with that opening hole Thursday or Friday.
On the other hand, the opening hole on the back nine along with a couple others killed Woodland’s chance for the weekend. He struggled with to make an 8 on the 415-yard par 4 No. 10. That quadruple bogey came after bogeys at 2, 3, 8 and 9 on the front. The course was just as difficult as expected. Only those like World No. 1 Dustin Johnson were up to the challenge.
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He made the cut
Woodland started strong in round two Friday. He gave Jayhawk fans some excitement after three birdies in his first four holes. As a matter of fact, he birdied No 10 after the disaster on Thursday. It was a nice effort and the Fox Broadcast showed him sink a long birdie putt. Amazingly,, Woodland’s 8 over par was good enough to make the cut. Then he can get set for next week’s Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands in Connecticut.