The US Open is the great one of survival. While in the other greats each hole is offered as an opportunity, in the great one with the most American aroma it is about avoiding a brown and passing the drink. Pinehurst 2, which does not have robust rough or fairways like corridors, but is a very tough setting because of the greens, once again broke the patience of some of the best players in the world. “It’s about making pars and taking advantage of some birdies,” said Tiger Woods at the end, 74 strokes because he shot two or three holes with three putts that set him back.
Sergio García, who has played the US Open 25 times, He applied the genius phrase to finish the first round in 69 strokes, one under par. It was a textbook round: 17 pars and a birdie. Very confident in his shots from the tee, he only missed one fairway, the golfer from Borriol, who arrived at Pinehurst on Tuesday because he didn’t know he was coming in until Monday, armed himself with patience. He was not obsessed with any flag and that was a success. “It was about trying to create birdie options. I had several between five and nine meters,” he explained. “And if one goes in, it’s a good turn, and if four goes in, it’s an amazing turn.”
Sergio only took advantage of the five, a par 5, in which after a great approach from the sand he left the ball one meter away. The rest were all pars with two putts, a sign of the brilliance with which he played from tee to green. It was his best US Open start since 2019.
Among the golfers who finished in the morning, Patrick Cantlay stood out especially, the protagonist of a round of 65 strokes. As it is an exercise in patience, the slowest golfer in the world has plenty of it. Six birdies and a bogey sealed a card of 65 strokes, one less than the Swedish sensation Ludvig Aberg and two less than Matthieu Pavon, the Frenchman who won the last Acciona Open in Spain.
Puig complicates the Games
David Puig, meanwhile, the other who had finished at the close of this chronicle, complicated the Olympic Games with a double bogey on the penultimate hole, the 8th. Until then, he had not had a quiet Thursday either, but he had endured the score with integrity. Even a birdie, on his twelfth hole, had eased him to +2. But the dark clouds returned, more bogeys, and he finished with 76 strokes.
The score makes the cut difficult, the horizon he must reach if he wants to accompany Rahm at the Paris Games. Jorge Campillo, in his house, seems to charge a lot. It would be the second consecutive time that it is Olympic.
