PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – The ride from the Golf Channel compound to the stage, which borders the eighth fairway, takes about 25 minutes, give or take a pack of pedestrians. You get a pretty good look at the course on the way, a pretty good feel for the conditions, and I’m somewhat shocked that knowledgeable people (NBC analyst Gary Koch, for one) are surprised about the scoring. Anything at even par or better will amount to an excellent round today. There is a lot more breeze than the television might indicate, and the greens are approaching scary.
When I heard the over/under on Tiger Woods’ first round was at 68.5, I almost wished I were a betting man. Golf can be a very difficult game to handicap, but this is the U.S. Open, folks. The 2010 U.S. Open, not the 2000 version.
