U.S. Open

Post golf writer Leonard Shapiro was online Wednesday, June 13 at noon ET to take your questions and comments on the eve of the first round of the 2007 U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club.

A transcript follows.

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washingtonpost.com: Leonard will be joining us shortly, sorry for the delay.

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Washington, D.C.: Since U.S. Opens traditionally require accuracy off the tee, does that make this week's U.S. Open the LEAST likely venue for Tiger Woods to claim his 13th major title unless we see a performance reminiscent of his performance last year at the British Open? We all know ABC/ESPN are hoping Tiger is in the hunt come Sunday, but what do you think? With his erratic driving, it just doesn't seem likely. Hitting driver from the rough on Par 5s means less eagle opportunities where Tiger has traditionally dominated...

Leonard Shapiro:

Every Open features tight fairways and deep rough, and Oakmont is no exception. If Woods is scattershooting drives the way he did at The Masters, he'll have a tough time putting. But his game started to come around at Memorial, and you have to pick him to win his third Open and 13th major.

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Washington, D.C.: What do you know about the online coverage of the Open? Specifically, how will The Post and golf Web sites present immediate videos and Web casts of/on the event?

Leonard Shapiro:

There are several Web sites -- usopen.com, nc.com, nbcsports.com, msnb.com. You can probably get info from PGATour.com, as well, and I'll be doing audio reports halfway through the first two rounds and then again at their conclusion on washingtonpost.com.

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Richmond, Va.: Leonard, what does Tiger need to do to win this major? I read elsewhere that the Open is the major that he has won the fewest number of times. He seems to do better at the British Open and at Augusta, evidently. Your comments?

Leonard Shapiro: At the moment, Oakmont is playing fast and hard, much like last year's British open at Hoylake in Liverpool when he never even took the driver out of his bag. I suspect you'll see him have some of that same strategy this week. The big difference between this event is the difficulty of the greens. Oakmont's greens are brutally tough, and you better keep your ball below the hole or risk four-footers downhill that can turn into 20-footers. Should be kind of fun to watch.

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Phil: How's my wrist?

Leonard Shapiro:

Phil's wrist is hurting. he'll wear a brace, he'll get therapy, ice, electric whatever. He won't win. You heard it here first. he may have difficulty making the cut, and if he hits too many in rough, he may have to withdraw.

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Alexandria, Va.: Who is now the proverbial "best player to never win a major." Sergio? Any chance he gets off the list here?

Leonard Shapiro:

It's a cliched title, but Sergio Garcia is right up there, and so is 26-year-old Australian Adam Scott, who blew last week's event in Memphis but seems about due for his major breakthrough. I think he's got more of a temperament to win this week than Garcia, but I'm still picking Tiger, or Jim Furyk, a Pennsylvania lad playing on semi home turf.

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DC: Has it has rained the past few days at Oakmont and is the forecast calling for rain for the Open? I am hoping it is bone dry to see the course at it's hardest.

Leonard Shapiro: They had 1 1/2 inches of rain here on Friday night, and they're calling for precip later today or tonight. But not that much, and the course should stay firm and fast through Sunday.

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Arlington, Va.: Any good dark horses? Does the course help or hurt the odds that a relative unknown will emerge from the pack?

Leonard Shapiro:

No European has won this event since Tony Jacklin in 1970, but they've definitely got some fine players, as the Ryder Cup proves every two years. Padraig Harrington had a good chance last year and may be ready. I also fancy Luke Donald and the big Swede, Henrik Stenson. On the American side, Rory Sabbatini has had a fine first half of the season, and so has Charles Howell III.

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Bethesda, Md.: Could Phil's wrist injury be a blessing in disguise. Knowing that his wrist cannot take too many shots from the rough, he will do whatever it takes to keep it in the fairway.

Although hard fairways can't be good for the injury either.

Leonard Shapiro:

It's no blessing, believe me. He's very concerned about it, says he wouldn't be playing this week unless it was a major and has virtually no practice preparation the last 13 days since he withdrew from Memorial. The blessing will be if he can get through the week without further injury and heal in time for the British at Carnoustie.

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Arlington, Va.: There's speculation that this could be the toughest US Open in the tournament's history. What type of score do you see winning the tournament?

Leonard Shapiro:

Everyone says it's the toughest course in the world, so maybe it will produce an over-par score. Winged Foot a year ago was brutally difficult, and five-over won it. I'd say you shoot 280, 281 you'll have a nice chance to lift the trophy and collect a million.

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D.C. : How does the Open compare to the other Majors, both in the opinion of reporters and golfers? Which is your favorite?

Leonard Shapiro:

The golfers all say it's the one event they love to win and usually hate to play because the USGA makes the set-up so tough. Among the journalists, it's a grand event to cover because it usually provides dramatic stories, just like all the majors. I'm thrilled to be here, and I suspect most of my colleagues will tell you the same. You just hope the USGA doesn't screw it up, as they did at Shinnecock a few years ago when several holes were literally unplayable.

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Arlington, Va.: I know Vijay has not been on his "A" game as of late, however I think he will be on this week and will win. Do you agree with me or is Vijay not playing well enough to win the Open?

Leonard Shapiro:

Vijay usually elevates his game for majors, and he's won three. He's getting a little older, may not be working quite as hard as he did a few years ago, but still is a formidable player. If the man could putt, really putt -- he goes from short to long to short to long the way some of us change our socks -- he'd have won 10 majors by now.

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David Duval: What ever happened to me?

Leonard Shapiro:

David Duval is trying to get his game back, never an easy task. He's made some progress, and is very much a work in progress. But he's a long way from being the No. 1 player in the world before Tiger knocked him off that perch in the late '90s.

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D.C.: How much contempt does Tiger have for Butch Harmon right now, scale of 1-10?

Leonard Shapiro:

I really can't answer that question. I think Tiger recognizes him as a brilliant teacher, just like everyone else. I think their differences had more to do with Butch showing such a public face for so many years, the same reason he probably ditched Mike "Fluff" Cowan as his caddy after two years. Fluff and Tiger remain friends, and I suspect Butch and Tiger have a relatively cordial relationship. Come on, the guy made him into a world class player, and Tiger knows it.

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Minneapolis: How about Zach Johnson becoming the unlikeliest player to sweep the first to majors of the year? He won a U.S. Open-like test at Augusta and has remained on form since.

Leonard Shapiro:

I don't think Zach was an unlikely Masters winner. He made the Ryder Cup team a year ago and has been a consistent player over the last four years. He had a game plan at Augusta -- never go for a par 5 in two -- and I suspect he'll take the same approach here. He's an accurate driver and a good putter, both necessary for Oakmont success.

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Herndon, Va.: Len:

Is the U.S. Open the hardest to win of the four majors? Rate the hardest to "easiest" of the four majors. If Tiger falters, do you have a long shot pick to win? Thanks.

Leonard Shapiro: I'd say in general the Open is the toughest, mostly because of the USGA set-up. Though I must tell you, the '99 British Open was played on the toughest golf course set up I've ever seen at Carnoustie, where players literally could only walk single file down some fairways, they were that tight. Oakmont may not be much different. The Masters is probably the easiest (don't tell the lords of Augusta that, of course) because the fairways are far wide and there's little rough. They have toughened up a bit by adding yardage, but it's nowhere close to winged foot, bethpage black or oakmont in degree of difficulty.

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Arlington, Va.: Isn't Rory Sabbatini from South Africa?

Leonard Shapiro:

Yes, Rory Sabbatini is from south Africa, and has an American wife.

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Greenfield, Mass.: I'm 56 years old and play to a 13.4. Decent ball striker but my short game is suspect (don't practice as often as I should).

In that I will never have the opportunity to play at Oakmont, can we make believe that you and I played a round together. What did I shoot from the members tees? Did I break 100?

Leonard Shapiro:

I'm 60 and play to an 18 (sort of) and would like to think both you and I would break 100 from the members tees. Then again, I'm told of the 300 plus members here, almost 200 are single digit handicappers. But really, playing this course from 6,300 yards would be fun, at least until you got to the greens.

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