European tigers ready for a big Open feast

ALL the talk here is of how well Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh and Ernie Els are playing. But, as Pádraig Harrington has argued, the 24 year drought since a European last won the US Open is about to end.

And the man to rob Tony Jacklin (who won at Hazeltine National in 1970) of his unwelcome record could well be either Harrington or Spain's Sergio Garcia, now back in the world top ten after victories in the Byron Nelson and Buick Classics.

By and large, the title has been the preserve of the Americans since Jacklin's triumph with the odd exception Retief Goosen in 2001; Ernie Els in 1997 and '94 and David Graham of Australia in 1981.

However the perception is that the golf course as near to a links as the United States can come up with should suit the visitors. Maybe. But we don't need reminding how often the Yanks come to our side of the Atlantic and plunder the Open Championship on Britain's most traditional links lay-outs.

I'd prefer to believe there can be a European champion for different reasons, not least the fact that Garcia and Harrington are in terrific form. Importantly both appear to be blessed with the characteristics of patience and determination to go along with their innate golfing skills so essential on a quirky course like Shinnecock.

Take the 7th hole. It measures 189 yards, a shortish par 3 by today's standards, but is already favourite to play to the highest average of any hole this week. It's known as the "Redan" and according to the championship programme "it is strategic genius whose origins lie in a far-off land". The original Redan, you see, is the 192 yards 15th at North Berwick in Scotland. Greens back in the 1870s were generally situated on conveniently flat ground but sometimes they occupied the top of a ridge. That was the case at North Berwick where they also had bunkers dug into the face of the ridge, apparently in a bid to protect the green. The putting surface was also set at an angle and sloped from front right to back left.

And that's exactly the situation at Shinnecock's scary seventh.

"You have to hit an absolutely perfect shot to get it on the green," Garcia accepts. "I played with Ernie (Els), Thomas (Bjorn) and Adam Scott and we were joking that if you hit 17 greens you'll hit 100% in greens in regulation because it's almost impossible to hit number seven. Ernie played an unbelievable shot with a four iron to the middle right of the green and finished in the left bunker. You must realise you are going to have to get up and down from the left bunker to make par."

Garcia is also realistic enough to appreciate that it's the same for everybody and is looking forward to a European really figuring over the next four days: "Everybody today can play so well that they all have their chance. But hopefully we can get some Europeans up there and at least threaten. In spite of winning last week, I still don't feel like I'm one of the favourites but I'm playing nicely so that's good for my confidence. But it's going to be a really tough week and you've got to be very patient."

If Garcia fails his test, you have to believe Harrington is the one European who can keep his head while all around are losing theirs. He's a battler, a fighter, a guy who grits his teeth when he gets a bad bounce, keeps his head down and plays himself back into the tournament. Els and the stylish Fijian Vijay Singh are in the same category.

Tiger Woods, as ever, is the favourite and desperately seeking his first major since the 2002 US Open at nearby Bethpage. While Phil Mickelson and 2002 US PGA champion David Toms are also heading the home charge

And yet I prefer to look at a trio of non Americans.

Els, because of how well he played a couple of weeks ago at the Memorial, in his own words "almost as good as I could, when I get on a streak like that, it's as good as it gets. The way I finished the Memorial is the way you want to win golf tournaments, playing good over the week-end."

Garcia suffered a bit of a slump while he was re-modelling his swing but now declares: "I feel my game has been getting better and better since last year's American Express. This year I've done something I've never done in my career and that's finish first or tied for first on greens in regulation. That gives you a lot of confidence."

Singh is frustrated at his failure to displace Tiger Woods as the world's number one golfer and intends to turn the sentiment to his advantage this week: "I just excites you to go out and play Shinnecock. Every hole is tough and you know it's going to be hard. We're all geared up for it and that's the excitement right there."