London, UK -- (SBWIRE) -- 06/04/2013 -- On 13th June the East Course of the Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, Pennsylvania will have its time to shine. Three of the four par threes are over 225 yards, so keeping the ball on the fairway will be vital for success. The 2013 US Open is the 113th renewal of the illustrious major and unlike the US Masters it moves around the country to give some of the other courses their turn in the sun.
Four-time US Open winner Jack Nicklaus has spoken on how to have any chance of glory, the players must be adept with the driver. Adam Scott has already been playing the course and has reiterated Nicklaus’ view by stating that he’ll be ‘hitting six or seven drivers’.
Scott has set a strong precedent for his fellow countrymen ahead of a massive summer of sport by winning the Masters and posting only two rounds over par in stroke play golf this year. The Australian has reportedly spent hours strutting around his home dressed in his Green Jacket and he even had one made for his young kid.
He may even turn up in Pennsylvania wearing it as he looks to try repeat Bobby Jones’ feat of holding all four majors at once. Tiger Woods held all four over two calendar years and his Players Championship triumph means he unsurprisingly arrives as the standout favourite.
Of course Tiger’s victory at Sawgrass will also be remembered for Sergio Garcia’s meltdown on the 17th with a tie of the lead and his subsequent inappropriate dinner party invite. Woods has won four of the six PGA stroke play events he has played in this year and is top of the money list and FedEx Cup rankings.
Woods headed off to Augusta National as favourite where he threatened but never really challenged on the final day dressed in red. It’s now been five years since Woods got his hands on one of the big four prizes.
There are a number of other Sporting Index trends that suggest that Woods may add to his major haul given that three of the last five US Open tournaments have been claimed by Americans. Webb Simpson walked off with the trophy last year after a scorecard of 1 delivered him the title. Before Woods’ US Open win at Torrey Pines, the Americans hadn’t won for five successive years and nobody has defended their title since Curtis Strange in 1988-89.
Since David Graham’s 1981 victory at Merion with -7, only three other US Open winning scores have been lower. They were carded by Tiger Woods in 2000, Jim Furyk in 2003 and Rory McIlroy in 2011.
Woods’ talent is such that he has claimed this trophy on three occasions since 2000. His most recent win came at Torrey Pines with a score of -1.
Rory McIlroy missed the cut at the BMW Championship at Wentworth as his tricky start to the year continued. He did finish inside the top ten at the Texas Open, Players Championship and the Wells Fargo over the past few weeks to suggest that he’s finally getting to grips with his Nike clubs.
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