Bewerbung (Moderator) » Allen said when asked about his mindset

Nick Dougherty explains why he is so fond of the US Open and reveals what to expect from Oakmont this week. The US Open is well known for teetering on the edge of what is a fair test of golf. The USGA dont always get it right, and weve seen that over the year. Any time they have to water the greens in between groups is a sign that theyve missed it. To be in with a chance of winning the replica set of clubs and golf bag used by this years US Open champion, simply answer this question When conditions are like that, youre relying too much on luck as well as skill and thats nonsense. Having said that, I loved the difficulty of the US Open and it will always be my favourite of the four majors. You know that par is always going to be a good score regardless of where the tournament is and it is fair to say I never played on a gentle course at the US Open.Very rarely does a winner of the US Open say that they were not quite on top of their game, which you do hear sometimes at regular Tour events. Jason Day said that at Sawgrass recently and still found a way to get the job done, but the US Open wont let you off like that. Angel Cabrera ended the week five over when he won the tournament in 2007 But even if you are playing well and full of confidence, youre not going to hit perfect shots for 72 holes. It just means you are tighter with your dispersion when you do make mistakes, and it means knowing where your misses are.If youre playing poorly and missing on both sides, youve got absolutely no chance on a US Open course. And if you make too many mental errors at crucial times, its also not going to get you very far.It is tough to be critical of Phil Mickelson as he has been runner-up in his home Open six times, but a lot of those times its been the odd bad shot that has let him down. This was abundantly evident in that infamous finish at Winged Foot 10 years ago, and he was also too loose on too many occasions as Merion and that let in Justin Rose for the win. Mike Davis said if they ever had a problem with a scheduled host venue for the US Open and had to switch it at short notice, they could tee it up at Oakmont within two or three days. Nick Dougherty on Oakmont I think its the hardest of the four majors to win and, more often than not, the man holding the trophy on Sunday evening will have been the grittiest player over the four days. Graeme McDowell was a prime example of that when he won at Pebble Beach in 2010.It wasnt that he was constantly hitting sensational shots, but he played to his strengths, stuck to the shape of shot he likes to hit and he simply made fewer mistakes than his closest challengers.I hope the Oakmont course is set up in similar fashion this year to when I played there in 2007 because. Although it was not the easiest, or the hardest course I played, it definitely felt the fairest. Oakmont last hosted the US Open in 2007 The fairways are not super tight. I dont like it when its almost impossible to keep the ball on the fairway and all you can do is chop your ball back out. But I do like good shots to be rewarded and bad shots to be punished, and thats what you will get in a US Open at Oakmont.You want the guy holding the trophy at the end to have stood out from the rest under that cauldron of pressure having delivered at the very highest level. You want the champion to have dealt with all the challenges, both mentally and technically. You dont want to see players being punished for good shots if the USGA get the course setup wrong. You will get the odd bad bounce here and there, and thats fair enough, but youll probably get a couple of lucky breaks as well.But weve seen a few times that players have hit what appear to be perfect shots, only to find its impossible to hold the ball on a fairway or a green, and it rolls down a bank and into a position where its virtually impossible to get up and down.I dont believe we saw any of that at Oakmont last time, so if anyone gets out of position, they will probably only have themselves to blame. I remember the rough being really thick in 2007, and some people dont like to see that - they want to see the pros have a fighting chance to get to the green. Dougherty finished the 2007 US Open in tied-seventh after playing with Woods on the Saturday I agree with that to a point, but because the fairways were that little bit more generous at Oakmont, the punishing rough was fine with me. You knew you had to hit the fairway in order to be able to go at the green.When I played with Tiger in the third round nine years ago, he missed only one green all day, at the 18th, and thats because it was the only fairway he had missed all day and it led to a closing bogey.You stand on each tee knowing if you go offline, youre more likely to make bogey than par, and if youre two over and trying too hard to claw it back, you could be stood on the next tee at four over. It is the ultimate test, its what a US Open is all about and I think well see that again at Oakmont.There was a lot of criticism of Chambers Bay last year, particularly over the condition of the greens and the fact that a couple of holes were off limits for spectators. The USGAs decision to change the par-five 18th into a par-four for the second round also didnt do down well with players or viewers. Chambers Bay recieved criticism from the players during last years tournament Generally, I like what Mike Davis and the USGA do at any US Open venue. I wasnt a fan of changing the par on 18 last year, but I like the way they vary the lengths of several holes. The par-three eighth at Oakmont could be a driver for some players one day, and a short iron the next.Weve seen long, tough par-fours turned into risk/reward driveable par-fours, and each hole can present a completely different challenge for the players over the week.Davis, the executive director for the USGA, was talking about Oakmont recently and said that if they ever had a problem with a scheduled host venue for the US Open and had to switch it at short notice, they could tee it up at Oakmont within two or three days. Heavy bunkering and thick rough are a feature at Oakmont The course is presented virtually the same all year round and rumour has it that the greens are actually quicker for the members than for a major tournament. Im not sure I believe that, but I do know that the challenge is there for all to see, and theres no need to have the layout tricked up.The tournament officials dont have to do much to set it up for a US Open, and if you ever get the chance to play there, youll be presented with pretty much the same conditions at the Tour pros face.That is testament to the design talents of Henry Fownes in the early 20th century, and it is simply a great major championship venue.Watch the US Open throughout the week live on Sky Sports 4 - your home of golf American Golf Competition Win replica clubs and bag of the 2016 US Open champion - enter now! Also See: Critchley on historic courses Lefty: Oakmont is toughest US Open latest news Golf live on Sky Sports Fake Jordan . The 31-year-old Russian dominated the No. 3-ranked Ferrer throughout, breaking the defending champion and local favourite four times on the indoor hard court. Jordan China . He made another correct read. The Browns, who have been shuttling quarterbacks on and off the field all season, finally got some good news on that front: Campbells ribs are only bruised. https://www.jordanchina.us/. "Ive got a lot of work to do on this team and the sooner that I can get back to my office and start that work, itll be better," he said straight-faced as the rest of the room erupted in laughter. Air Jordan Outlet . -- The Guelph Storm are moving on to the Western Conference final after defeating the London Knights 5-4 on Friday in Ontario Hockey League playoff action. Cheap Jordan From China . -- The Atlanta Braves are facing the possibility of losing another pitcher for the season after general manager Frank Wren said Saturday that Cory Gearrin has a serious injury to his right elbow.DES MOINES, Iowa -- Doug Garwood sent his approach on the 18th hole into the sand and sighed. He was able to joke about it after nearly holing his bunker shot and saving par for a 7-under 65 and a one-stroke lead Saturday in the Champions Tours Principal Charity Classic. "I hit the classic fat shot that the unknown leader hits on 18," Garwood said. "And then after that it was a pretty simple sand shot and I hit it close." The 51-year-old Garwood, making his fourth start of the year and ninth in two years on the 50-and-over tour, had an 11-under 133 total at Wakonda Club. Garwood is a conditionally exempt after blowing a chance to earn a full card when he bogeyed three of his final four holes in the qualifying tournament. If he wins, hell earn full status for the next year. "Ive never been in this position before," Garwood said. "I think what I usually do is I just try to play golf. I set a score, a goal for my round, and I just try to focus on one shot at a time and achieving that. The rest of the time, I cant control what the other guys do. Im sure Ill be nervous. But thats part of the deal." Last year, he tied for second in the Nature Valley First Tee Open at Pebble Beach. His best finish this year is a tie for 25th in the Allianz Championship in February.dddddddddddd Michael Allen, the Allianz winner, was second after a 66. Mark Calcavecchia and Tom Pernice Jr. were 9 under. Calcavecchia had a 69, and Pernice shot 67. Allen has six career Champions Tour wins, and he pushed himself into a tie for the lead with a birdie putt from the fringe on the par-3 14th hole. Allens shot delighted the fans in the grandstand because it meant that beers would be half-price for half an hour -- and Allen joined in the fun by pretending to chug one after sinking his putt. Allen made three straight birdies on the back nine -- and missed three other birdie putts that were within inches of going in. "Win, win, win," Allen said when asked about his mindset for the final round. "Ive got to keep putting well." The second round was delayed for 1 hour, 19 minutes because of lightning in the area, though the conditions remained calm throughout the stoppage in play. The delay didnt bother Chien Soon Lu, who stuck a 60-foot approach to 15 feet on No. 18 once play resumed. Lu then made a right-to-left putt to move into a temporary tie for the lead. Lu was 8 under along with Joe Durant (67), John Riegger (68) and Wes Short Jr. (70). ' ' '