Rory McIlroy heads to Chambers Bay via Whistling Straits targeting another big summer
Rory McIlroy headed to Chambers Bay via Whistling Straits last night insisting he can repeat his heroics of last summer.
The world No 1 might have missed his last two cuts but as he stopped in Wisconsin for a media day for August's PGA Championship, he revealed that he's rested after nearly two weeks off and gunning for more major glory.
"I didn't touch a golf club last week. I had played five weeks in a row, and mentally, I was ready to have a little break," McIlroy said. "I just got away from it, did some other things I enjoy, got back to Florida on Sunday and started to practice."
He will play first practice round a Chambers Bay on Saturday feeling his game is in "great shape."
And having won The Open, the WGC Bridgestone Invitational and the US PGA last summer and he's looking for something similar this year.
"I'm rested after the Irish Open and I've had a good few days of practice back home in Florida," he said at Whistling Straits. "I'm gearing up for the second major of the year next week at Chambers Bay and feel the game's in really good shape and feel I can have another summer not to dissimilar to last year."
As for Chambers Bay, he said: "It's a bit of an unknown for everyone. From what I've heard, it's going to be sort of different. At the end of the day, I'm competing against the same players I've been able to beat before. Hopefully, I get there again."
After the US. Open, McIlroy is playing two courses he knows well for majors, with The Open heading back to St Andrews followed by a return to Whistling Straits where he contended for his first major in 2010 but missed the playoff by a shot.
"They were courses I played well on, course I had fond memories of," he said. "Maybe you put a little bit more pressure on yourself for those, but over the course of the season, I build myself up for those four big ones. I feel like I still have three good chances to add to my major tally.
"I've won four. I'd love to win a fifth, and hopefully when I do win a fifth, I'd love to win a sixth. I don't want to put any sort of burden on myself of giving myself a number. If I set myself a target, and I don't get there, but I still have one of the best careers of all time, does that mean I'm a failure?"
The USGA published the US Open tee times on Friday with McIlroy grouped with defending champion Martin Kaymer and US Amateur champion Gunn Yang of Korea.
Graeme McDowell is with Japan's Hideki Matsuyama and Matt Kuchar; Shane Lowry with Ben Martin and Stephen Gallacher, and Darren Clarke with two-time former US Open winner Lee Janzen and amateur sensation Oliver Schniederjans.
Pádraig harrington missed the cut in the FedEx St Jude Classic and failed to qualify for the US Open for the second year running.
All Times PDT
Thursday (June 18), hole #1 / Friday (June 19), hole #10
7 a.m. / 1 p.m. – Michael Putnam, University Place, Wash.; Marcus Fraser, Australia; TBD
7:11 a.m. / 1:11 p.m. – Garth Mulroy, South Africa; Richard Lee, Scottsdale, Ariz.; Lucas Bjerregaard, Denmark
7:22 a.m. / 1:22 p.m. – Jason Allred, Scottsdale, Ariz.; (a) Kyle Jones, Snowflake, Ariz.; Cody Gribble, Dallas, Texas
7:33 a.m. / 1:33 p.m. – Phil Mickelson, Rancho Santa Fe, Calif.; Bubba Watson, Bagdad, Fla.; Angel Cabrera, Argentina
7:44 a.m. / 1:44 p.m. – Wen-Chong Liang, People's Republic of China; David Hearn, Canada; Hiroyuki Fujita, Japan
7:55 a.m. / 1:55 p.m. – Robert Streb, Shawnee, Kan.; (a) Lee McCoy, Athens, Ga.; TBD
8:06 a.m. / 2:06 p.m. – George McNeill, Fort Myers, Fla.; Masahiro Kawamura, Japan; Cameron Tringale, Mission Viejo, Calif.
8:17 a.m. / 2:17 p.m. – Henrik Stenson, Sweden; Francesco Molinari, Italy; Brandt Snedeker, Nashville, Tenn.
8:28 a.m. / 2:28 p.m. – Jim Furyk, Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.; Miguel Angel Jimenez, Spain; Colin Montgomerie, Scotland
8:39 a.m. / 2:39 p.m. – Brooks Koepka, West Palm Beach, Fla.; Russell Henley, Macon, Ga.; Byeong-Hun An, Republic of Korea
8:50 a.m. / 2:50 p.m. – Jason Dufner, Cleveland, Ohio; Marc Warren, Scotland; Matt Every, Jacksonville, Fla.
9:01 a.m. / 3:01 p.m. – Brandon Hagy, Los Angeles, Calif.; (a) Matthew NeSmith, North Augusta, S.C.; Sebastian Cappelen, Denmark
9:12 a.m. / 3:12 p.m. – (a) Nick Hardy, Northbrook, Ill.; Alex Kim, Fullerton, Calif.; Rich Berberian Jr., Derry, N.H.
Thursday (June 18), hole #10 / Friday (June 19), hole #1
7 a.m. / 1 p.m. – Troy Kelly, Lakewood, Wash.; Seuk Hyun Baek, Republic of Korea; Cameron Smith, Australia
7:11 a.m. / 1:11 p.m. – John Parry, England; TBD; (a) Jack Maguire, St. Petersburg, Fla.
7:22 a.m. / 1:22 p.m. – Timothy O'Neal, Savannah, Ga.; Stephan Jaeger, Chattanooga, Tenn.; Kurt Barnes, Australia
7:33 a.m. / 1:33 p.m. – Gary Woodland, Topeka, Kan.; Victor Dubuisson, France; John Senden, Australia
7:44 a.m. / 1:44 p.m. – TBD; Morgan Hoffmann, Jupiter, Fla.; Bernd Wiesberger, Austria
7:55 a.m. / 1:55 p.m. – Marcel Siem, Germany; Alexander Levy, France; Brian Harman, St. Simons Island, Ga.
8:06 a.m. / 2:06 p.m. – Hideki Matsuyama, Japan; Graeme McDowell, Northern Ireland; Matt Kuchar, St. Simons Island, Ga.
8:17 a.m. / 2:17 p.m. – Dustin Johnson, Myrtle Beach, S.C.; Adam Scott, Australia; Sergio Garcia, Spain
8:28 a.m. / 2:28 p.m. – Martin Kaymer, Germany; (a) Gunn Yang, Republic of Korea; Rory McIlroy, Northern Ireland
8:39 a.m. / 2:39 p.m. – Patrick Reed, Houston, Texas; Chris Kirk, Milton, Ga.; Jamie Donaldson, Wales
8:50 a.m. / 2:50 p.m. – Webb Simpson, Charlotte, N.C.; Keegan Bradley, Scottsdale, Ariz.; Kevin Na, Diamond Bar, Calif.
9:01 a.m. / 3:01 p.m. – (a) Sam Horsfield, England; Shunsuke Sonoda, Japan; Oliver Farr, Wales
9:12 a.m. / 3:12 p.m. – Kevin Lucas, Folsom, Calif.; Pat Wilson, Andover, N.J.; (a) Cole Hammer, Houston, Texas
Thursday (June 18), hole #1 / Friday (June 19), hole #10
1 p.m. / 7 a.m. – Jason Palmer, England; Roberto Castro, Atlanta, Ga.; Andres Romero, Argentina
1:11 p.m. / 7:11 a.m. – (a) Denny McCarthy, Rockville, Md.; D.A. Points, Windermere, Fla.; Shiv Kapur, India
1:22 p.m. / 7:22 a.m. – (a) Bryson DeChambeau, Clovis, Calif.; Blayne Barber, Auburn, Ala.; Billy Hurley III, Annapolis, Md.
1:33 p.m. / 7:33 a.m. – Geoff Ogilvy, Australia; Ernie Els, South Africa; Retief Goosen, South Africa
1:44 p.m. / 7:44 a.m. – Bo Van Pelt, Jenks, Okla.; Charlie Beljan, Mesa, Ariz.; Tony Finau, Lehi, Utah
1:55 p.m. / 7:55 a.m. – Lee Janzen, Orlando, Fla.; (a) Oliver Schniederjans, Powder Springs, Ga.; Darren Clarke, Northern Ireland
2:06 p.m. / 8:06 a.m. – Daniel Summerhays, Fruit Heights, Utah; Thomas Aiken, South Africa; Danny Lee, New Zealand
2:17 p.m. / 8:17 a.m. – Jordan Spieth, Dallas, Texas; Jason Day, Australia; Justin Rose, England
2:28 p.m. / 8:28 a.m. – Tiger Woods, Hobe Sound, Fla.; Rickie Fowler, Murrieta, Calif.; Louis Oosthuizen, South Africa
2:39 p.m. / 8:39 a.m. – Jimmy Walker, Boerne, Texas; Zach Johnson, Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Ian Poulter, England
2:50 p.m. / 8:50 a.m. – Ryan Moore, Las Vegas, Nev.; Anirban Lahiri, India; Erik Compton, Coral Gables, Fla.
3:01 p.m. / 9:01 a.m. – (a) Jake Knapp, Costa Mesa, Calif.; Tyler Duncan, Columbus, Ind.; Matt Mabrey, Little Rock, Ark.
3:12 p.m. / 9:12 a.m. – Michael Davan, Hoopeston, Ill.; (a) Davis Riley, Hattiesburg, Miss.; Andrew Pope, Orlando, Fla.
Thursday (June 18), hole #10 / Friday (June 19), hole #1
1 p.m. / 7 a.m. – Tom Hoge, Fort Worth, Texas; Brad Fritsch, Holly Springs, N.C.; Tjaart van der Walt, South Africa
1:11 p.m. / 7:11 a.m. – Brad Elder, Dallas, Texas; (a) Beau Hossler, Mission Viejo, Calif.; Jamie Lovemark, Scottsdale, Ariz.
1:22 p.m. / 7:22 a.m. – Ryo Ishikawa, Japan; Luke Donald, England; J.B. Holmes, Campbellsville, Ky.
1:33 p.m. / 7:33 a.m. – Lucas Glover, Tequesta, Fla.; (a) Bradley Neil, Scotland; Marc Leishman, Australia
1:44 p.m. / 7:44 a.m. – Ryan Palmer, Colleyville, Texas; Joost Luiten, Netherlands; Danny Willett, England
1:55 p.m. / 7:55 a.m. – TBD; George Coetzee, South Africa; Alexander Noren, Sweden
2:06 p.m. / 8:06 a.m. – Brendon Todd, Atlanta, Ga.; Branden Grace, South Africa; Thongchai Jaidee, Thailand
2:17 p.m. / 8:17 a.m. – Billy Horschel, Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.; Paul Casey, England; Lee Westwood, England
2:28 p.m. / 8:28 a.m. – Bill Haas, Greenville, S.C.; Charl Schwartzel, South Africa; Hunter Mahan, Dallas, Texas
2:39 p.m. / 8:39 a.m. – Shane Lowry, Republic of Ireland; Ben Martin, Greenville, S.C.; Stephen Gallacher, Scotland
2:50 p.m. / 8:50 a.m. – Charley Hoffman, Las Vegas, Nev.; Camilo Villegas, Colombia; Tommy Fleetwood, England
3:01 p.m. / 9:01 a.m. – Mark Silvers, Thunderbolt, Ga.; (a) Brian Campbell, Irvine, Calif.; Cheng-Tsung Pan, Chinese Taipei
3:12 p.m. / 9:12 a.m. – TBD; Jared Becher, Reno, Nev.; Samuel Saunders, Fort Collins, Colo.
(a): amateur
2015 U.S. Open Championship – Par & Yardage
Chambers Bay will set up between 7,200 and 7,600 yards and will play to a par of 36-34--70 when No. 1 is a par 5 and No. 18 is a par 4.
The course will play to a par of 35-35--70 when No. 1 is a par 4 and No. 18 is a par 5.
Chambers Bay Hole By Hole
Hole 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Total
Par 5/4 4 3 4 4 4 4 5 3 36/35
Yardage 598/496 399 198/163 495 488 495 508 614 224/217
Hole 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Total
Par 4 4 4 4 4 3 4 3 4/5 34/35
Yardage 468/436 537/500 311/281 534 546/521 246/167/123 423 218/172 525/60
