File photo of 15-time major winner and thrice US Open champion Tiger Woods who will play his 23rd national Open in June. Image courtesy PGA Tour.
By Rahul Banerji
Following a less-than-ideal Masters outing, Tiger Woods appears on track to play all the year’s four majors having accepted a special invitation to the US Open in June.
It will be his 23rd appearance at the year’s third major and he is also in the field for the PGA Championship at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville later this month.
A three-time US Open winner, Tiger Woods has accepted a special exemption from the USGA into the 124th edition from June 13 to 16 on Pinehurst Resort and Country Club’s Course No. 2, in North Carolina, a statement said.
Woods finished 60th and last in the Masters at Augusta National where his 72-hole aggregate was a career high 304 strokes. He did, however, achieve two milestones — making a record 24 straight cuts and completing his 100th round at Augusta National.
The 48-year-old won the 2000, 2002 and 2008 US Open Championships in addition to 12 other major championships and 82 PGA Tour victories in all so far, the USGA said.
His nine USGA titles, matched only by Bob Jones, include three consecutive US Junior Amateurs (1991-1993) followed by three straight US Amateurs (1994-1996) and an overall USGA match play record of 42-3.
Special event
“The US Open, our national championship, is a truly special event for our game and one that has helped define my career,” the USGA statement said quoting Woods.
“I’m honoured to receive this exemption and could not be more excited for the opportunity to compete in this year’s US Open, especially at Pinehurst, a venue that means so much to the game.”
One of golf’s five winners of the career grand slam, Woods ranks behind eight-time USGA champion Jack Nicklaus (18) with his 15 major titles.
They include three wins at The Open, four at the PGA Championship and five at the Masters. Most recently, he triumphed at Augusta National in 2019 to bookend an 11-year stretch between major titles.
This year will be the third time Tiger is plying the US Open at Pinehurst and the first since 2020 at Winged Foot Golf Club. He finished runner-up to New Zealand’s Michael Campbell in the 2005 US Open at Pinehurst.
“The story of the US Open could not be written without Tiger Woods,” said USGA chief championships officer John Bodenhamer in the statement.
“From his 15-stroke victory at Pebble Beach in 2000 to his inspiring win on a broken leg at Torrey Pines in 2008, this championship is simply better when Tiger is in the field, and his accomplishments in the game undoubtedly made this an easy decision for our special exemption committee.”
Wyndham Clark will defend his 2023 title at the 124th US Open.
Late last month, Woods’ son Charlie could not make the grade into the US Open at the 18-hole local qualifier in Florida where the top five advanced to Final Qualifying next month.
In all 109 such qualifying events are held in April and May ahead of 13 Final Qualifying events later this month and early June. Qualifiers play 36 holes to try and earn a berth at the US Open.
Also read: Three share Masters lead as Woods resets consecutive cut mark
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