Four Irish golfers set to compete at the US Open
The 7th Hole of Erin Hills in Erin, Wis. on Sunday, Aug. 28, 2016. (Copyright USGA/John Mummert)
The US Open takes place in Wisconsin between June 15-18 and anticipation is building ahead of the year’s second major.
Padraig Harrington has failed to qualify for the event at Erin Hills, but four other Irish golfers will be present and we take a look at each one below.
Rory McIlroy
The world No 2 had been a doubt for the US Open but has recovered from a rib injury to take his place at the event. Despite his injury McIlroy is still one of favourites in Betsafe’s betting preview and is set to battle it out against Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth and Jason Day.
He sustained a stress fracture of the rib earlier in the year and pulled out of the PGA Championship at Wentworth. The doubts about his participation increased when he also failed to play in the Memorial Tournament in Ohio.
Rory McIlroy by Andrew Campbell - Rory McIlroy, CC BY 2.0,
However, he told The Guardian: "I am ready for Erin Hills and looking forward to playing there for the first time.
“I never like to miss events either on the PGA Tour or European Tour, but it was important I got back to a level of fitness where I felt like I could give myself the best possible chance at the US Open.”
McIlroy knows that majors will determine his golf career and he’ll be looking for his fifth in Wisconsin. The Northern Irishman, who has been grouped with Jason Day and Justin Rose, won the 2011 US Open at Bethesda, Maryland by eight strokes and will be going after his second title.
Graeme McDowell
McDowell won the 2010 US Open at Pebble Beach and has been competing in the FedEx St Jude Classic in Memphis as he prepares for Erin Hills.
McDowell, who is without a top-10 finish on the PGA Tour this year, reckons the rough at Erin Hills is the thickest for a major in almost a decade.
“I have not seen rough that high since we were last at Royal Birkdale in 2008,” he told golfbytourmiss.com
“There will be some shots at the par 5s at Erin Hills where you’re hitting your second shots probably across waist-high fescue.
“There is just so much rough that does not seem to be in play but will be in play, and more so if we get any wind.”
By © Marie-Lan Nguyen / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0,
Prior to the St Jude Classic, McDowell finished in a share of 29th place at the Dean & Deluca Invitational in Texas after a closing two-over-par 72.
McDowell starts from the 10th with Lee Westwood and Ross Fisher.
Paul Dunne
The Greystones golfer will take part in the second major of the year after making it through via the US Open Championship International Sectional Qualifier at Walton Heath Golf Club in Surrey, England. He secured one of the four final qualifying spots after missing out on one of the 11 spots through regulation play.
Dunne will be the first Irishman in action at Erin Hills when he goes off from the first at 13:18 Irish time with Sweden’s David Lingmerth and Haotong Li from Chinese Taipei.
The 24-year-old featured in the 2015 British Open and caused an early shock by holding a share of the lead after round three. He ended the event in 30th place.
Dunne narrowly failed to secure his first European Tour win in April as he lost out on the first hole of a sudden-death play-off to Italian Edoardo Molinari at the Trophee Hassan II tournament in Rabat, Morocco.
Shane Lowry
The 30-year-old from Offaly was in action in the Memorial Tournament, tying for 15th after a one-over round on the final day left him eight shots behind winner Jason Dufner.
A few days earlier at Wentworth, Lowry was part of the five-way tie for second after racing to the turn in 30 but he then drove out of bounds on the 15th and also double-bogeyed the 17th, before ending with an eagle on the last.
Lowry finished in a tie for sixth as Alex Noren won the title and although it was the 30-year-old’s best week in some time, he said: "I feel like it's a lot more than I deserved.
“When I got up to the 12th I looked at the scoreboard and I saw Alex had got to 11-under, so I knew what I needed to do.
"We got a bit of rain which didn't help our cause and I just hit a bad tee shot on 15 and had a bit of a brain fart on 17.”
Lowry goes from the 10th at 19:58 Irish time with Scott Piercy and Jim Furyk.
