Stricker enjoys a round of cheers
State favorite opens with a 1-over 73
TOWN OF ERIN – Steve Stricker walked onto the first tee at Erin Hills to thunderous applause Thursday. He grinned and waved. The applause continued and he tipped his cap. More cheering. He tipped his cap again.
Then he started the first round of the 117th U.S. Open birdie-birdie.
For the lifelong Wisconsin resident, it could not have been much better.
“It was a great start,” Stricker said. “It was the start I was looking at, to play the first couple holes the way I envisioned.” Unfortunately, though the cheering never stopped, Stricker couldn’t produce any more highlights for the homestate crowd.
He bogeyed Nos. 3, 4 and 8, never made another birdie and shot a 1-over-par 73.
“I really didn’t hit a good drive at three,” he said. “I left myself way back there. I tried to hit a 3-wood off a little bit of downhill lie and caught it a little bit on the bottom (of the club). It caught the ridge and shot it right, into the long grass. Made a good bogey. And I felt a little unsettled for the next couple of holes.
“Like I said, it was the start I wanted and it just fell apart pretty quickly.”
Though he wasn’t making birdies, the gallery never wavered in its support. Most were well aware that Stricker, 50, was denied a special exemption by the United States Golf Association and fought his way into the U.S. Open by winning a 36-hole sectional qualifier.
There were shouts of “Go, Edgerton!” (Stricker’s hometown); “Go ILL” (he went to the University of Illinois); “Steve Stricker, you’re my hero”; and even “Love you, babe!”
As he walked off the 18th green, one fan yelled, “Get ’em tomorrow, Strick.”
“Yeah, it was pretty cool,” he said. “Great receptions on almost every green I walked up on. Every tee, in between the greens and the tees. I got a lot of support out there today. It was a lot of fun.
“It definitely keeps you motivated to play well, with a lot of people cheering you on. I saw a lot of familiar faces and friends. It was a great feeling today to go around and play in front of everybody. And they showed me a tremendous amount of support.”
Stricker was tied for 61st place going into the second round Friday and will need a solid round to make the 36-hole cut. He’s scheduled to tee off at 8:35 a.m.
“Well, I’ve got to get it under par,” he said. “I’m 1-over now and I’ve got to get it in the red. The more, the merrier. But like I said, (good scores) are out there and hopefully it continues tomorrow.”