Can Norman claim a consolation US Open

BY Bruce Young | Champions Tour | 2005 US Senior Open | Preview | 27 Jul 2005

The USPGA Tour’s Champions Tour is in Kettering, Ohio this week for the staging of the US Senior Open with perhaps more hype about the event than has been the case in recent years.

The main reason for that increased hype is the addition to the Senior ranks of Greg Norman and following his good debut last week at the Senior British Open Championship, his Senior debut in the USA will be watched with interest.

The event will be played over the Dick Wilson designed NCR Country Club’s South Course in the City of Kettering, just outside of Dayton. The course was first built in 1954 and has previously played host to the US Women’s Open, the U.S. Mid-Amateur, and the 1969 USPGA Championship. The course features rolling terrain and tall mature vegetation framing most holes. Many of the abundant trees have been removed in a recent culling and several new tees have been built which now means the course will play at just a touch over 7000 yards.

The field, as is always the case with the US Senior Open, reads like a veritable who’s who of golf’s past. Sixteen of the field were major winners in their regular tour years, collecting more than forty majors between them.

The newcomers to the Champions Tour and the event, Greg Norman and Loren Roberts will likely dispute favouritism but there are many arguments for others to be sharing the mantle. Norman showed at the Open Championship and then again last week at Royal Aberdeen that he is in very good form despite a long break prior to the Open Championship. A win here would be some sort of consolation for a couple of near misses in the US Open but he is certainly no lay down misere.

Loren Roberts has a knack of playing traditional courses well as his wins on courses such as those in Milwaukee and at Hilton Head would attest. This is very much a strategic golf course and although he has struggled a little of late on the USPGA Tour, he did finish fifth at his senior career debut last week and could do well in this kind of event.

Craig Stadler has yet to win this season on the Champions Tour but has had several near misses. He was 4th last week behind Watson in Scotland. He has already won a major on the Champions Tour and he must be considered a threat here.

Tom Watson won the Senior British Open last week in conditions in which he thrives. The loss of his favourite driver this week to breakage may or may not be a concern but any man who can make the cut at the Open Championship and then win the Senior British Open in lead up weeks must stand some sort of chance. He has been runner up in this event twice.

Jay Haas played well last year when in his first season on the Champions Tour but to some extent has disappointed in 2005. He is still however trying to mix this and the regular tour and it appears to be hurting his chances at both. He is a class act and although he has not won an event since 1993, it would not surprise if he was thereabouts on Sunday.

Hale Irwin is and has been until now the undisputed king of the Champions Tour and, although now 60 years of age, he is still playing well enough to try and emulate his US Open record with three wins at this level. With 42 victories on the Champions Tour and still playing well enough to finish second at the recent Ford Players Championship you know he is going to figure somehow.

Peter Jacobsen won the Ford Players Championship in which Irwin was runner up and is the defending champion here. He has played well enough of late to finish 15th at Pinehurst in the US Open and although he had a hard time last week in Aberdeen, he is good enough to bounce back.

There are many others who could win this including the likes of Ireland’s Des Smyth who was runner up last week, Tom Kite who seems a little out of form at present and Mark McNulty and D.A. Weibring, who are in the middle of a fine runs of form.

The Australian contingent is headed by Norman but previous winner and runner up, Graham Marsh, and Rodger Davis are both in the field although neither appear to be playing well enough to threaten.

The tournament carries prizemoney of US$2.6 million.