Goose bumps in bid to retain title

EUROPE’S wait for a first winner of the US Open since 1970 was always certain to continue when Lee Westwood and Peter Hedblom made just the starts they were hoping to avoid at Pinehurst yesterday.

In joint seventh place overnight, both double-bogeyed the 469-yard second to fall eight adrift of leader and faltering champion Retief Goosen, on course for a third victory in the event in five years.

Westwood and Hedblom, the Swede who came through the qualifier at Walton Heath two weeks ago by playing the last four holes in five under par, were not alone in losing ground.

When Colin Montgomerie had a triple bogey on a par three, John Daly shot 76, two others had 80s and not one of the first 33 players to finish could break par, the warning signs had been there for Goosen and all those still entertaining hopes of catching him. The last lap was going to be fraught with danger.

Montgomerie, already nine over when he resumed, hit his approach to three feet for an opening birdie, but came to grief on the 175-yard ninth.

Ernie Els managed an outward 34, but having resumed nine over is keen to get the week over with and get into a lay-off which he says now could be right until the British Open in the middle of next month.

Els is considering giving the Scottish Open at Loch Lomond a miss this year so that he is in the best possible frame of mind for St Andrews.

“I’ve not decided yet, but I need a good break,” said the world number three. “I love the Scottish, but we will see how it goes.”

Els, second to Tiger Woods in the 2000 Open at St Andrews, won at Loch Lomond the previous week and was champion there again in 2003.

Goosen, given a rough time by some fans as he beat Phil Mickelson to the US Open title a year ago, knew he had no hope of being the crowd favourite again as he battled to hold onto his three-shot lead from the start of the day.

Playing with the South African, was the larger-than-life and jovial character of 17-stone Jason Gore, a player many of the spectators would not even have heard of a week ago: defending champion against the world number 818.

To put into context his achievement, Daly was 168th when he “came from nowhere” as the ninth reserve to win the 1991 US PGA. That is 650 places higher than Gore is now.

Since the world rankings began in 1986 the most unlikely winner of a major was Ben Curtis at the Open two years ago. But he was “only” 396th.

Gore, a member of the 1997 Walker Cup team is not even a member of the US Tour at present and has not even had a top 10 finish on the “second division” Nationwide circuit.

Olin Browne, lying joint second with him with a round to go and ranked 300th himself, scored a 59 in his, while New Zealander Campbell, joint fourth with Australian Mark Hensby, birdied the last hole of his at Walton Heath to avoid a play-off.

But they are both tour winners. Gore is trying to earn more in one day - first prize is €965,144 - than in his entire career.

“It’s easy to say how calm we’re going to be,” he said, “but we’re all freaking out inside.”

As a 31-year-old who was an amateur star he is well-known to 29-year-old fellow Californian Woods, whom he led by three shots. “He’s got all the talent in the world,” said Woods. “He’s always been a long hitter. It’s just a matter of fine-tuning his swing and he’s done that.”