Big names, unknowns compete for U.S. Open spots

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Lee Janzen (left) has to qualify for the 2009 U.S. Open along with Davis Love III (top right), Jonathan Byrd and Jerry Kelly.

Update: U.S. Open sectional qualifying results

Jerry Kelly had a tee time Monday morning after a solid week at the Memorial Tournament. Jonathan Byrd dueled with Tiger Woods down the stretch on Sunday and teed it up on Monday as well. So did Matt Bettencourt and Mark Wilson, the two players who held the 54-hole lead at Jack's tournament but couldn't hold off Woods. By the way, Woods has the day off if he would like it.

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There are a handful of 36-hole qualifiers throughout the country on Monday for those players wishing to play in the U.S. Open next week at Bethpage Black. The largest of these marathon Monday outings occurs in Columbus, Ohio at Brookside Golf and Country Club and the Lakes Golf and Country Club. There are 121 players vying for an estimated 16 spots, and nearly half of them are card-carrying members of the PGA TOUR.

Winning a tournament on the PGA TOUR isn't even enough to get you into the U.S. Open -- you have to win two events between championships to get into the field. Just ask Davis Love III, Kelly and Wilson, who have all won once on the PGA TOUR since Torrey Pines hosted last year's national open. Kelly is already in next year's Masters and is in the PGA Championship later this year, but he will have to beat an impressive field to earn a spot at Bethpage Black.

There are plenty of other ways to get into the U.S. Open. A high finish the previous year in one of the other majors will do it, as will being ranked in the top 50 in the Official World Golf Ranking three weeks before the championship if you are not otherwise eligible.

Then there's the qualifying system, which has been in place for years and creates a lot of romantic notions. The idea that Harry Rudolph, a one-time college All-American and Nationwide Tour player, could come out of the kitchen and play with the game's best gives the early rounds of the U.S. Open a different feel from the other majors. Harry survived the local qualifier in spite of the long hours that he puts in at Harry's Coffee Shop in La Jolla, Calif. Whether he qualifies or not, Harry will be there Tuesday morning serving the best breakfast in southern California.

But guys like Harry only win the U.S. Open in Hollywood. Oh wait, Tin Cup didn't win the Open either. Even Hollywood doesn't think that these guys have a chance, but the USGA wants to give them the opportunity to try -- even if that effort comes at the expense of their field strength. After all, they've already ensured that all the biggest names from the world rankings will be there.

But Nos. 51 to 100 are pretty good, too. Good enough, in fact, to win the Open, but many of them won't be there because of the process. Guys like me had a chance -- a brief and fleeting chance, but a chance none the less. Two-time U.S. Open champion Lee Janzen has a chance, too, but he has to tee it up in Ohio. So do Tom Lehman and Jose Maria Olazabal. They are in the same field with lesser-known players like Stephen Gangluff and Rod Spittle, who are both quite capable of shooting a pair of 69s and earning a spot.

The funny thing is that you don't hear Love or Kelly or even Janzen complaining about their plight. There are a couple of reasons for this. They knew the process and will be the first to tell you that they could have played better and avoided the 36-hole nuisance. But secondly, and probably more importantly, every one of them remembers. They remember being a college kid or even a high school kid and sending in their check to try to play in the U.S. Open. They remember looking forward to the qualifier as one of the biggest days of golf in the summer. Even the most grizzled veteran remembers dreaming about becoming an unknown U.S. Open champion.

For one day out of the year, some players whose schedules are otherwise set for the rest of the year experience something different. When they are finished with 36 holes, the hopefuls stand around to watch the scoreboard and see if their number is good enough. There is no computer scoring or any post-round interviews, except maybe with the local beat writer.

It is old-school, a sign and attest your scorecard then see how you stack up kind of day. That is the way that the USGA wants it, and who is to argue? Sure, some of the bigger names in the game won't be at Bethpage Black next week, but there will be others playing for the first -- and maybe the only -- time in their lives. And that is what the U.S. Open is all about.

John Maginnes is a columnist for PGATOUR.COM. His views do not necessarily represent the views of the PGA TOUR.