Playing in that special zone,
Yang didn’t notice McIlroy – U.S. Open
BETHESDA, Md. – Playing in the zone can be a special place. Take Korea’s Y.E. Yang.“I didn’t know I was six strokes behind,” Yang was saying, “so thanks for reminding me.”
It would seem that Yang must have been the only one at Congressional and the millions watching on TV not to know that Rory McIlroy had shot 66 and was leading by six.
Yang finished shortly before 8 p.m. with a 69 and a 137 total, six behind McIlroy. Yang said he had no target score at the start of the day, and especially not after McIlroy’s early lead.
“So I didn’t really think about what Rory’s game was or how I’m going to catch him,” Yang said.
And as to McIlroy’s six-shot lead?
“I think at this point it’s a little bit irrelevant,” Yang said. “Last year, during the Korean Open, I played against Seung Noh. He was 10 strokes ahead of me, and I won. So anything can happen in golf. There are many amazing things that happen in golf.”
Including the 8-over Seung shot in the final round.
WEATHERED OUT: Following a later-afternoon weather delay of about 40 minutes, play was suspended because of darkness at 8:04 p.m., leaving 21 players to finish the round Saturday morning, before the start of the third round. The cut would be made at the low 60 scores and ties, plus anyone within 10 shots of the lead.
BOUNCE-BACK: German pro Marcel Siem made this U.S. Open one to remember, with a stunning bounce-back: After a 79 in the first round, which he started by hitting a spectator, he shot 66 Friday for a 145 total. “All of a sudden,” he said, “I found my rhythm on the greens.”
NO COMFORT: Someone pointed out to Matt Kuchar, after his rally, that only one position was between him and McIlroy. “If McIlroy keeps playing the way he is, he’s uncatchable,” Kuchar said. “I’m just going to play the best I can, and add them up.” Kuchar added a 68 to his opening 72 to join a five-way tie for third.
ROCK SOLID: Robert Rock, the Englishman who arrived at Congressional just in time to tee it up Thursday – and after paying thousands in legal fees to get an emergency visa – shot a 71 to make the cut on 1-under 141 and tied for eighth. This after the first day on automatic pilot and the second jetlagged. “I ran out of energy after nine holes,” Rock said. “I just didn’t have it in me.”
THANKS FOR THE MEMORY: Beau Hossler, 16-year-old amateur from Mission Viejo, Calif., bowed out with a 77-153 and found that the fondest memory from his first U.S. Open would be his opening tee shot, at the scary par-3 10th the first day. “But I hit a pretty good shot in there, so it was pretty neat,” he said. His best golf tip came from Anthony Kim, on playing a course with firm greens: Get the yardage to the front of the green and play to that point, and run the ball on.
SOUNDS LIKE A PLAN: Phil Mickelson has tried just about everything to get his game under control, including frequent visits to his swing doctor Butch Harmon. But still he’s finding the wild places. After his opening 74, he improved to a 69 Friday, a round that was torpedoed by a double bogey-6 at the 18th. “I’m still struggling,” said Mickelson, who’s never won the U.S. Open. “Rather that go work on it, I think I’m going to try to figure out what it is I need to work on first, and then get back to the range.”
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