(Stevens Point) The temperature was up, so was the rough and the skies finally cleared of Canadian smoke as the 43rd United States Senior Open Golf Championship began at the SentryWorld Golf Course in Stevens Point.
The showcase of Sentry Insurance has never looked better, right down to what architect Robert Trent Jones, Jr. called his “Mona Lisa”, the colorful flora and fauna surrounding the 16th green.
The U.S.G.A. made it pretty clear all week players better not venture off the fairways or miss on the wrong spot around the green because the rough cut is long and thick. It prevented the top of the leaderboard to go lower than -3, posted by Rod Pampling in the morning. He rolled in seven birdies but rough recoveries led to a pair of bogeys and a double bogey on his day. His 68 held up through the day and the Australian veteran got his weekend off to a great start and will take a two shot lead into Friday’s second round.
The only others finishing in the red on opening day were Champions tour veterans Miguel Angel Jiminez and Retief Goosen, along with qualifier Mike Small, the Head Golf Coach at the University of Illinois, all in at -1, 70.
Brad Lanning (middle) talks up opening round.
It was a Stevens Point neighbor, Brad Lanning of Hortonville, who opened the tournament with the first group off number one. He qualified by finishing second at the Stevens Point Country Club, finally breaking through to the field in his 5th try. Lanning admitted he had a bout of the nerves which resulted in going out in +8, 43. He recovered with and even par 36 on the backside. He met a cluster of reporters in the shade after signing his scorecard.
Jerry Kelly strolls down 10th fairway.
One of the Wisconsin veterans on the tour, Jerry Kelly, had an even par round of 71. Kelly’s group was thrown for a loop before the first tee when Davis Love III withdrew, allowing an alternate from Hudsonville, Michigan into the field in Tom Werkmeiester, making it into the field for the 4th time. Kelly also sported plenty of tape around his left wrist and afterwards, got an explanation as to what happened before he gutted out a round of four birdies, two bogeys and a double on 13.
Steve Stricker lines up his 2nd on par 5, 5th.
The galleries were largest for Steve Stricker, coming in as both the expected and sentimental favorite playing on a course where he won the state High School championship for Edgerton High back in 1984. Stricker kept it steady with a birdie on the around the lake par 5 5th. After a second on number 8, Stricker made the turn just one off the lead but quickly ran into double trouble. His drive veered left on the par 5 10th and came to a stop at the base of a tall tree. Stricker had to use a left handed, back handed pop shot back into the fairway and couldn’t recover, making a double bogey 7. Then on the par 3 12th, his tee shot came up well short and into the water. A drop and two putt had Stricker go from -2 to +2 in a three hole stretch. He got one back with a birdie on 13. He missed a downhill birdie chance on 18 to finish at +1, 72, ending his record breaking run of 55 consecutive rounds of par or better. Stricker was the last to appear in the media interview tent to discuss the day.
Stricker’s playing partner, David Toms, took his double bogey medicine on the par 4 9th but heated up with three straight birdies on 10, 11 and 12. Toms stayed tied for the lead until back to back bogeys on 15 and 16. Another on the finishing hole left him even on the day. Retief Goosen also reached -3 but stumbles on the 6th and 8th (his 15th and 17th holes), brought him back to the pack at -1.
On a humid day with a penal cut of rough, if putts didn’t drop, par was a rewarding score. Only four players finished in red numbers for the opening round. A couple of familiar major winners were even on the day, Ernie Els and Bernhard Langer.
As for the infrastructure overtaking an already beautiful property. The folks at Sentry and the USGA did a wonderful job with an unobtrusive build out with grandstands that blend in well with the surroundings especially where a lot of the action takes place around the first, tenth and 17th tees, with only a few steps required to catch the 9th, 18th and most famous 16th greens. A “major” well done is deserved. Three more days to go.
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