Graeme McDowell Wins the 2010 U.S.Open

The 2010 U. S. Open at Pebble Beach Golf Links in California ended Sunday with Northern Ireland's Graeme McDowell emerging as victor. Another European, Gregory Havret, came in second. Both players were playing in their first U.S. Open. In preparation for this major golf tournament, Pebble Beach Golf Links was recently given a facelift. The changes included firm, fast fairways, small greens and difficult rough and hazards. The key to winning the tournament was more about accuracy than driving distance.

As in most major golf tournaments, the U.S. Open was full of excitement and suspense. The roller coaster ride for golf's top two players began with Thursday's opening round. Both Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods had disappointing rounds. Neither player had a birdie and both finished over par. Mickelson rallied on day two to share second place behind leader Graeme McDowell. Woods continued to play mediocre golf. The other players to share second place with Mickelson were Ernie Els, Dustin Johnson and Ryo Ishikawa.

Round three saw Els, Mickelson and Ishikawa fall behind. Woods had a slow start to his round but birdied the last three holes shooting a 66 and finishing in third place, 5 behind the leader. It looked like Ireland's McDowell would maintain his lead until the 17th hole. Johnson birdied the last two holes which gave him a 3 stroke lead over McDowell.

The drama began early in the final round. On the second hole Dustin Johnson hit his ball into the rough and had to hit his next shot left handed, even though he is right handed. That shot went only a few feet. Johnson followed that shot with another bad shot that only went another few feet. He missed his putt and triple bogied the hole. Johnson, who had been in the lead by 3 strokes was now tied for the lead with Graeme McDowell. The third hole did not go any better for Johnson. His drive went into the rough and was not found within the five minute allowance for looking for lost balls. Johnson had to go back and drive again ending up with a double bogie. He never recovered and ended the tournament at 5 over par.

McDowell was back in the lead by hole three. The only player to challenge his lead was Ernie Els who gained the lead at hole 6. McDowell regained the lead and never lost it. The Frenchman, Gregory Havret, who just managed to qualify for the tournament, finished one stroke behind McDowell.

With the top players in the world competing, the tournament did not disappoint in excitement and suspense. Pebble Beach Golf Links is a very difficult course and the players had to use creativity and muscle power on all the holes. All this plus the beautiful scenery surrounding the course made this a very enjoyable tournament to watch.

Sources: 1. The Wall Street Journal, article by John Paul Newport
2. The Democrat and Chronicle, article by Doug Fergusen
3. http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2010/jun/20/2010-us-open-leaderboard/