Woodland dream comes to life
by Mark Hayes on Pebble Beach
(thanks to USGA / JD Cuban)
If you thought Gary Woodland would be crushed by the pressure to lead a big championship, you were wrong.
Woodland won his first US Open today at Pebble Beach – but he was so composed that you would have sworn he had won a dozen.
The 35-year-old remained serene in his own game despite the fact that many of the biggest players from the pack were on the prowl to chase, only to fall by the side.
The longest and strongest of those challenges came from dual defending champion Brooks Koepka, who only became the fourth person in the history of US Open to shoot four sub-parrots in reaching an exemplary 10 substandard
It is noteworthy, however, that Woodland became the fifth in the 13th under-shooting 10 minutes later – the second-lowest US Open total that remained behind Rory McIlroy & # 39; s -16 at Congress in 2011.
It seemed every challenge that Pebble Beach threw to Woodland, he had the answer.
He played great pictures of sandy divots in the middle of three fairways and played a spotless chip shot with his ball on the green of the 71st hole because he had practiced it beforehand with coach Pete Cowen.
He and Cowen had worked hard on tips for him to diagnose the middle-round problems that arose during a hiccup in the third round.
And it was also the Englishman who gave him the wise words that sounded in his ears during an epic Sunday performance.
"Pete just knows what to say and when to say it. He sent me an incredible text this morning that had nothing to do with my golf swing or technique. He said: & # 39; Every man dies, but not everyone lives – and you live for the moment & # 39 ;, "Woodland told his champion's press conference.
"I thought a lot about that today. It was great for me, but I think we're just on the tip of the iceberg.
"We were busy with short game recordings, but (he said):" No, I don't think you can do that under pressure. Let's go back and do it this way, let's simplify things & # 39 ;.
"That's huge, having him here. I didn't do well on Thursday. I went straight to reach and we worked a long time to find out.
"And that is great to have him here (in) enormous moments and to guide me along the way. It is a work in progress. We have only been in full swing since December (as a combination). I am getting as good as I ever am I did. "
Woodland, a collegiate basketball player at Washburn University before switching to golf at the University of Kansas the following year, said that hoops lessons had helped him become a better golfer
"The moment was really forced on me. I always believed that if basketball didn't work, I could fall back on golf," he said about the switch.
"In my first game, we played Kansas at the University of Kansas. They were ranked No. 1 in Division I, and we were ranked No. 2 in Division II.
"And that decision was quickly forced on me. I guarded (future NBA star) Kirk Hinrich, and said & # 39; Ok, I need to find something else, because this is not going to work & he said.
"And that was my first game in college. I was a double state champion, all-state, bla, bla, bla, but that was a different level.
"And so the next year when I switched to golf, that was the first time in my life that I focused solely on golf.
"It cost me a little, but I came here a year after school on the PGA TOUR in 2009. It is now 11 years later out here.
"I don't think my game is where it should be, but it will be there.
"I am becoming a more complete player, I have more shots. I can trust my putting more, trust my short game. Things I couldn't do even last year.
"We worked hard this year to become a more complete player. I can play different golf courses.
"People (once) probably said that I would not like a US Open, because I am a tall batter, I am a bomber. And if you come to Pebble Beach, it is also a shorter golf course.
"But I went out and proved, I think of everyone, what I always believed – that I'm pretty good."
