Goose misses golden opportunity
Brad Morgan
21 June 2005
Retief Goosen missed out on a golden opportunity to secure a third US Open title in five years when he collapsed to a final round of 81 on the Pinehurst number two course, after leading by three shots through three rounds.
It was a hugely surprising demise for a man known for his icy-cool temperament in the toughest of conditions. Indeed, that is what had him at the top of the leaderboard heading into the last round, as the only man under par at that stage, on three-under par 207 after rounds of 68, 70 and 69.
However, no player turning in an eleven-over par score in the final round is going to win a major any time soon. And so it proved to be for the Goose as he slipped from first to a tie for eleventh on eight-over par 288.
A good tournament for SA players
Looking at the outcome objectively, though, it was a very good tournament for South African players and one other with a strong South African
connection.
New Zealand's Michael Campbell claimed the title after he finished on level-par 280. It was quite a story for the Kiwi, who needed to make a six-foot putt in qualifying just to earn a spot in the field. Now he is a major champion.
Tiger Woods finished two shots back on 282, but five off the pace and tied for third was Tim Clark, who has enjoyed three top-five finishes on the US PGA Tour this year, including also a second-place at the Bob Hope Chrysler, and a fourth at the AT & T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
After opening with a six-over par 76, he followed that up with rounds of 69, 70, and 70 to finish as one of only three golfers - the others were Michael Campbell and Davis Love III - to play the final three rounds under par.
Winning the first one
Speaking afterwards, Clark, who earlier in the year won the SAA Open, reckoned the one aim he still has, and one which he believes he is close to reaching, is winning on the PGA
Tour. His strong result in the US Open, he says, has helped his confidence and that will go a long way towards helping him record that first victory.
Durban-born Nick Price finished in a share of ninth-place with Arron Oberholser, on seven-over par 287. Price, always a fan favourite, posted rounds of 72, 71, 72 and 72.
One shot back was a group of four players that included Retief Goosen. It all went wrong early on for the South African star. He double-bogeyed the second, and then three-putted the next two holes to give up the lead. It was an ironic contrast to the brilliant display of putting that secured Goosen his second US Open in 2004 at Shinnecock Hills.
'I had a bad start'
"I had a bad start, and from then on, it was pretty much downhill all the way," he said.
He was able, regardless, to look at his performance with the same calm he exhibits out on the course: "This is nothing serious,"’ said Goosen.
"Nobody has
died, I think, or anything. I had a great Father's Day this morning with the kids, and the family is a lot more important than playing anyone out here today. But it was disappointing. I would have obviously loved to have been up there giving myself a half a chance going down the strip, but next time."
Ernie Els was in the next group, which finished on 288, tied for fifteenth.
'I wasn't hitting enough fairways'
Writing on his website after the tournament, Els said: "That was the main problem for me, especially in the first couple of rounds. I simply wasn't hitting enough fairways. I kind of got away with it in the first round, using all my powers of recovery to scramble my way round in a respectable 71 shots. It wasn't a bad start, really.
"In round two, though, my driving caught up with me. I missed too many fairways and this time I wasn’t able to hang on to a score. Seven bogeys and only the one birdie, for a round of 76. It was
obviously a very disappointing day, because I knew it was a long way back from there."
In round three he went around in two-over par 72, and ended the tournament with a decent level-par 70.
Next, says Els, he needs a rest.
"It's been a tough stretch of tournaments this past month or so and I've just about reached the point where I feel like I need a good break. I've got a couple of weeks off, definitely," he wrote.
The remaining South African in the field, Rory Sabbatini struggled to come to grips with Pinehurst, with his best round being a two-over par 72 as he posted rounds of 72, 74, 76, and 76 to finish on 18-over par 298, in a tie for seventy-first place.
Rankings
Following the tournament, the winner Michael Campbell rose to twenty-third in the world rankings.
Tiger Woods is top of the pile, followed by Vijay Singh and Ernie Els. Phil Mickelson and Retief Goosen complete the top five.
Tim Clark is in
twenty-seventh spot, Rory Sabbatini is ranked forty-first, Nick Price fifty-seventh, and Trevor Immelman sixty-third.
Campbell's win has vaulted him to the top of the European Order of Merit, but Goosen is not far back in second place. Els is in fourth and Trevor Immelman in twenty-fourth position.
On the US PGA's money winners' list Vijay Singh leads the way. Goosen occupies twelfth-place, Els is in sixteenth-place, and Clark in twenty-third with earnings of $1 393 966.
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