Looking back at the 2008 US Open
at Torrey Pines, I am very pleased
to have been part of it as it's turned
out to be one of the best majors ever
played. When I look back at the week,
I leave it with initial disappointment
having let a top 20 finish in a major
slip from my finger tips, however
finishing 36th this week is another
step in the right direction for my
career.
I adjusted well to an environment
we only see four times a year. The
golf course was set up very well,
extremely tight with fast and hard
greens. I have always said the tougher
the course the better so I was quietly
confident of putting in a performance.
I played well Thursday and Friday,
getting it to 2 and 3 under on the
rounds respectively, but was unable
to finish it off. At least I can say
I led the US Open briefly. I just
need to work on extending that amount
of time. I played great Saturday after
getting off to a bad start, which
is hard to come back from. My start
on Sunday hindered me again but I
got myself into a position to get
back to level par for the day until
I hit the flag on 14 that ricocheted
off the green and cost me a bogey.
A brutal horseshoe on 16 and a horrendous
lie on 17 cost me posting a solid
last round, which would have achieved
my goal of top 20.
Over the weekend I was proud of the
way I handled the conditions and in
fact played pretty well tee to green.
If a few more putts had dropped and
some bad breaks went the other way
the result would of been a different
story. As I said before it has been
a great week in so many ways. To have
been involved in the lead briefly
was a fantastic experience and one
I feel pretty comfortable with. If
it hadn't been for a few awful lies
in a row I would have been at the
top for a longer period of time. The
crowds were fantastic all week and
I want to thank everyone who supported
and cheered me on for the week. It
has definitely whetted my appetite
for more!! See you in a couple of
weeks in France.
