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EVENTS
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U.S. Open Notebook Hard-luck Gangluff won't give up after Open
Updated: Sunday June 17, 2001 10:51 PM
TULSA, Okla. (AP) -- Stephen Gangluff has a broken-down car in his driveway, a hotel bill he can't afford and a U.S. Open under his belt. "I'm happy to be here, and I'm glad it's over," said Gangluff, a struggling pro who helped pay his way to the Open by hefting golf bags for $6 an hour at a Virginia country club. Gangluff shot a 7-over 77 Sunday to finish his first Open 21 over. He just made the cut Saturday with a 146 but never found his swing after that. The minimum payout is about $8,000, more than enough for Gangluff to get back home to Marysville, Ohio. But after a week of sharing a locker room with millionaires, he'll be back on the job as bag boy soon. There are more tournaments to pay for. "I'm never going to give up," he said. "It's just a matter of being out there full time."
Garcia finds trouble in the treesSergio Garcia fell off the leaderboard with a thud Sunday.Garcia began the day 4 under and in fourth place but soon found himself playing pinball in the trees. He made six bogeys and a double-bogey to finish 7 over for the day. His 3-over 283 landed him in a four-way tie for 12th place. Garcia's round began to unravel with his drive on the second hole. "I thought I hit a tree, but they said I hit somebody, and the ball -- it could have gone left, but it went way right into the trees," he said. "And then I hit it over the tree and then I hit a little branch, and I hit it right again." On No. 5, his drive bounced in the middle of the fairway and then rolled into a bunker. "If it goes the other way, I par No. 2 and maybe birdie No. 5 and it's three shots better," he said. "It's those little things that you need to have in a major this week." The 21-year-old returns to Castellon, Spain, counting the Open as good experience. "It's hard because I wanted to win," he said. "You learn things. You learn how to handle yourself in a major on the last day and be there if you play half-decent."
Not so easyErnie Els sighed as he cleaned out his locker and headed out the door after a surprisingly poor U.S. Open.The Big Easy finished with a 72, and at 294 was close to the bottom. "I'm mentally gone," said Els, a two-time Open champion. A year ago, Els became the first player to be runner-up in three straight majors, although he finished 15 strokes behind Tiger Woods in the U.S. Open and eight back in the British Open. After those tournaments, Els talked about raising his game to meet the challenge. That no longer appears to be the case. "I've got no fight," Els said. "I hate to say something like that, but that's what it is. I don't feel like I've got any energy. I want to feel like I want to play. Right now, it's just not fun." What will it take? "I need a month off," he said with a smile, although he wasn't entirely kidding. The only thing in Els' favor are the places he is going. The Buick Classic is next week, where Els is a two-time winner. Next month he defends his title at Loch Lomond, followed by the British Open at Royal Lytham & St. Annes, where he tied for second in 1996. Then again, maybe not. "When I'm playing well, I can play any place," he said. "The way I'm playing now, I don't think I would even play Lytham good."
18 RevisitedTom Kite hopes the concerns about the 18th hole aren't an issue if Southern Hills is chosen as the site of a future U.S. Open.Players questioned the severity of the sloping green early in the week. By the time the tournament started Thursday, the U.S. Golf Association let the grass grow to make it easier to hold shots on the green. "They should have known they had a problem five years ago when they announced the U.S. Open was going to be here, certainly when they changed the grasses over," Kite said. "They corrected it by not mowing the greens for a week. But hopefully if they ever come back to Southern Hills for the U.S. Open or a PGA, that will be a green that will be rectified."
Name playerOf the 33 players making their first appearance in the U.S. Open, 13 made the cut. Among them was Briny Baird, the son of Butch Baird, a longtime PGA Tour member who now is on the Senior Tour."This is all new stuff for me," Baird said after his third round, an even-par 70. He had missed the cut in seven of his 16 starts this year. DIVOTS: Hale Irwin has completed all 72 holes in 27 Open championships. That ties him for second on the career list with Sam Snead. Jack Nicklaus holds the record with 35. ... Tim Herron went into the last round leading the tournament in hitting greens in regulation. But he was last in putting.
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