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By The Numbers

Henrik Stenson was one of the 156 players at the start who had to deal with rain, which softened the course and attributed to the Black Course being 'easier.' (Steven Gibbons/USGA)

If you think all the rain has made Bethpage Black totally toothless, think again, and do the math

By Phillip Howley

Farmingdale, N.Y. - Days are running into each other on Long Island this week. One round of golf is a little difficult to distinguish from the next. The U.S. Open has been an open-ended affair, with a staggered start and an uncertain conclusion.

But one thing remains consistent in this Open, regardless of weather, course conditions, days on the calendar. The longer you play in the national championship, the more difficult it gets.

Certainly, Bethpage Black tests the thesis. Scoring records are being matched and broken left and right at this championship. They include the lowest 18-hole score for an amateur, the lowest score after 36 holes by a competitor, double figures under par by a leader. The numbers have an Olympia Fields (2003) kind of feel.

The fairways and greens - wet, soft and absorbent – have rolled out the red carpet. But as the third round of the championship concluded late Sunday afternoon, the sledding at Bethpage was getting more taxing. One thing doesn't change -- no matter what the scores are in relation to par, the pressure builds.

“I think it's just like anything,” said Tiger Woods. “Sometimes it's a little more difficult to get out there than people think.”

How difficult? At one point during the third round on Sunday, Ricky Barnes looked like he was running away with the championship. When Barnes made eagle at the par-5 4th, he went to 11 under par and joined three other players – Gil Morgan (1992), Tiger Woods (2000) and Jim Furyk (2003) - as the only players to get to double figures under par in Open history.

Just like that, the 28-year old Barnes had an eight-shot lead and you don't have to be Dick Van Patten to believe that “Eight Is Enough.”

That said, by the end of the third round, Barnes was eight under and looking at a one-shot lead over Lucas Glover – the same margin with which he started the day. After all that rain on Sunday morning, is it possible the course was playing harder? Depends on how you define the terms.

The numbers aren't overwhelming. The average score for the second round was 72.028; the average for the third was 72.666, or half a stroke higher. Keep in mind the third round included 60 players instead of 156, meaning the worst 96 players of the week were thrown out.

The second round included 32 scores in the 60s, which represented roughly 20 percent of all the scores. The third round had eight scores in the 60s, which was 13 percent of those turned in.

“You can make birdie, but you can make bogeys on one bad shot,” said Hunter Mahan, who had 68s in both the second and third rounds. “You have to be patient and hit a lot of good shots.”

Certainly, Azuma Yano thought the third round was harder – he had a 65 in the second round, a 77 in the third trip. Bubba Watson would beg to differ, he went from a second-round 70 to a third-round 67. Seven of the 60 cut-makers had better cards in their third rounds, 47 had worse.

“U.S. Opens are always weird because they are always tough conditions,” Watson said. “But this one is a little bit weirder. I guess you would say because it's a hard thing. It's hard to stop and get started and start your round. It's just hard to do, concentrating on a hard golf course.

“But, just what the good Lord gives us is what we're going to have to deal with.”

The numbers can be debated, but consider the leaderboard as the final round proceeds. Besides Watson, only Phil Mickelson made progress. “Lefty” dropped a bomb for birdie on the 18th green to finish a 69, one stroke better than his second-round score.

But there was no 64, as there was on Saturday, no 65s or 66s.

Barnes's 65 on Saturday was followed by 70 on Sunday. Glover went from a 64 in the second round to a 70 in the third. Mike Weir continued a steady descent, from a 64 on Friday, to a 70 in the second round, to a 74 in the third.

The golf course is still wet and receptive, the opportunities are still there. But intensity is on the rise. Each shot becomes more critical, each moment becomes more compelling, each glance at the scoreboards more meaningful.

“Any major sets up that way,” Glover said. “It tests every part of your game. Physically, it's just walking and playing golf. Mentally, it's a long day, short day, don't know what's going to happen with the weather ... and now I'm in the hunt. Yeah, it's tough.”

And it only figures to get tougher.

Phillip Howley is a freelance writer whose work has appeared previously on usopen.com.

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