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 Thousands scrambled for prime views of Tiger. My reason for wanting to attend was because I had never seen the course before. Because I’m 6 feet, 5 inches tall, I was able to — barely. At least at a baseball game, when there are 45,000 fans in attendance, there’s assigned seating, and not all 45,000 fans are strolling around the concourse at the same time. Not so at a golf tournament, especially when it’s the country’s national championship played on what could loosely be called the childhood backyards of Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson, the top two players in the world. My main mission was accomplished as I walked the course — as much as possible — from the first hole to the 18th. So I went into the Trophy Club for a bite to eat and get a good view of the tournament — on TV. All I had left to do was hit the merchandise tent and call it a day, knowing full well that I was about to become the Southern California sports fan that I detest — one who arrives in the third inning and leaves in the seventh. A satellite — or much smaller — merchandise tent was next to the shuttle entry and exit point near the 12th hole. I started my journey in that direction, and, as luck would have it (or not), the final two pairings of the day — Woods and Robert Karlsson, and Stuart Appleby and Rocco Mediate — were in the vicinity and heading in the same direction. At least that’s what I was told. I arrived at the satellite — but just as crowded — merchandise tent where I picked out some items and stood in a checkout line with more curves than a Colorado mountain road. It was there that we heard a deafening roar and, after glancing at one of the TVs in the tent (on a 7-second delay), we saw Woods roll in a lengthy putt for an eagle on the nearby 13th hole. Little did we know what was about to happen. It was probably during the shuttle ride from the course to Qualcomm Stadium that Woods chipped in for a birdie on the 17th hole, and I’d guess that I was probably walking to my car in the parking lot when he drained another long eagle putt on No. 18 to take the lead. As it turns out, I was at the U.S. Open on a day when one of the more remarkable weekend back nines in the event’s history took place. The fact that it was produced by one of the world’s most popular athletes made it even more spectacular. And I saw all the action ... on the Golf Channel later that night. |
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