Week 24 Approach Shots: U.S. Open

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Tiger Woods returns to the scene of his second U.S. Open title when he tees it up this week at Bethpage State Park's Black Course. Woods won the 2002 U.S. Open at Bethpage, and a year ago he won his third U.S. Open crown when he took a 19-hole playoff victory from Rocco Mediate at Torrey Pines (South Course). This is the second consecutive year that the U.S. Open has been held at a public golf facility.

Quick Facts

WHAT: 26th of 37 regular-season PGA TOUR events WHEN: June 18-21 WHERE: Farmingdale, N.Y. COURSE: Bethpage State Park's Black Course TV: 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. Thurs.-Fri., ESPN; 3 p.m. Thurs.-Fri., on NBC; 2 p.m. on Sat., NBC; 1:30 p.m. on Sun., NBC RADIO: 12 p.m.-9 p.m. ET Thurs.-Fri., PGA TOUR Network (XM 146/SIRIUS 209); 1-10 p.m. on Sat., PGA TOUR Network; 1 p.m.-1 a.m. on Sun., PGA TOUR Network FEDEXCUP POINTS: 600 for winner KEY LINKS: Tee times | Leaderboard | Tournament page VIDEO: Opening Shot

Woods' playoff win over Mediate a year ago was the U.S. Open's first since Retief Goosen defeated Mark Brooks in 2001 at Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Okla. Those two playoffs are the only extra sessions in the last 17 tournaments. There have been 33 playoffs overall.

A PLACE IN HISTORY: Woods is tied for fourth all-time with three U.S. Open victories. He won in 2000, 2002 and 2008. The list of players with three or more wins includes four players with four titles and two with three wins. Those with four are Willie Anderson (1901, 1903-05), Bobby Jones (1923, 1926, 1929-30), Ben Hogan (1948, 1950-1951, 1953) and Jack Nicklaus (1962, 1967, 1972, 1980). Besides Woods, the other player to only win this tournament three times is Hale Irwin, who captured the 1974, 1979 and 1990 tournaments.

HOSTS WITH THE MOST: The USGA announced on Wednesday that Oakmont Country Club will host the 2016 U.S. Open, marking a record ninth time the Pennsylvania layout will host the national championship. Other courses that have hosted the U.S. Open more than three times include: Baltusrol Golf Club (7), Oakland Hills Country Club (6), Winged Foot Golf Club (5), Pebble Beach Golf Links (4, Will host again in 2010), Merion Golf Club (4, will host again in 2013), Shinnecock Hills Golf Club (4), Myopia Hunt Club (4), and Inverness Club (4).

FAMILY TRADITION: Three generations of Alexanders will be able to claim U.S. Open experience when Tyson Alexander, a senior-to-be at the University of Florida, tees it up at Bethpage Black. Alexander qualified for his first U.S. Open by finishing second at last week's 36-hole qualifier at Lake Nona Golf and Country Club in Orlando, Fla. Alexander joins his father, Stewart, the 1986 U.S. Amateur champion and current University of Florida golf coach, who played in the 1987 and 1994 U.S. Opens. Tyson's grandfather, Skip, played in five consecutive U.S. Opens, beginning in 1946. Skip's best finish was an 11th-place showing in 1948 at Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, Calif. The last player to finish the three-in-a-family distinction was Tim Herron, a veteran of 12 U.S. Opens. He was preceded in the event by his grandfather Carson Herron, who played in the 1934 U.S. Open, and his father, Carson Herron, Jr., who competed in the 1963 U.S. Open.

PLAYER NOTES: Six international players finished inside the top 10 a year ago at the U.S. Open. England's Lee Westwood had the top international performance with his third-place finish. Sweden's Robert Karlsson tied for fourth, while Karlsson's fellow countryman, Carl Pettersson, and Spain's Miguel Angel Jimenez tied for sixth. Geoff Ogilvy of Australia and Camilo Villegas of Colombia tied for ninth. Of that group, only Karlsson, out with an injury, is not playing this week. ...

D.J. Trahan returns to the U.S. Open for his third career appearance, coming a year after he turned in his best performance in a major championship. Trahan tied for fourth a year ago, finishing three strokes out of the Tiger Woods-Rocco Mediate playoff. After missing the cut in his first four major championships (2001 and 2008 Masters, 2006 U.S. Open and 2007 PGA Championship), Trahan has made three consecutive major championship cuts. Following his performance at Torrey Pines a year ago, he tied for 31st at the PGA Championship and tied for 44th at this year's Masters Tournament. ...

The low round of the 2002 U.S. Open at Bethpage State Park was a 4-under 66 by Nick Faldo in the third round. He tied for fifth that year. Six players shot a 67 in the tournament. They were Robert Allenby (tied for 12th), Sergio Garcia (fourth), Shigeki Maruyama (tied for 16th), Phil Mickelson (second), Vijay Singh (tied for 30th) and eventual champion Tiger Woods.

Weather forecast for the U.S. Open

THURSDAY, Rd. 1 FRIDAY, Rd. 2 SATURDAY, Rd. 3 SUNDAY, Rd. 4 Rain Temp: 65 high/62 low Few showers Temp: 72 high/65 low Showers Temp: 73 high/64 low T-showers Temp: 70 high/61 low

DTN/Meteorlogix is the official weather provider of the PGA TOUR. For more information, click here

U.S. Open snippets

Tough track: The par-70 Bethpage Black played as the toughest course on the PGA TOUR in 2002, yielding a 74.901 scoring average. At 3-under 277, Woods was the only player in the field to finish with an under-par score, topping Phil Mickelson by three strokes. Golf in the city: Jack Nicklaus will flip the switch to light the Empire State Building on Wednesday evening. To celebrate the U.S. Open, which is being held in Farmingdale, N.Y., the top of the building will shine with red, white and blue lights. Remember Rocco?: Mediate, who fell in a 19-hole playoff at the 2008 U.S. Open to Woods, will be making his 14th career start at a U.S. Open. He has made the cut nine times, with three top-10 finishes. Last year's runner-up showing was his best performance. He also tied for sixth in 2005 and was fourth in 2001. An elite group: Only 15 players have won the Masters and the U.S. Open, including: Gene Sarazen, Byron Nelson, Ralph Guldahl, Craig Wood, Ben Hogan, Cary Middlecoff, Arnold Palmer, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, Billy Casper, Tom Watson, Fuzzy Zoeller, Raymond Floyd, Tiger Woods and Angel Cabrera.

In the spotlight

This week: Tiger Woods

Each week during the 2009 season, PGATOUR.COM will spotlight one key player in the field. For this week's U.S. Open, it's Tiger Woods. Learn more about Tiger

A victory this week earns you ...

• Fully Exempt for five years on the PGA TOUR • 600 FedExCup points • A spot in the following events in order of play: 2010 PLAYERS Championship, '09 AT&T National, '09 World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational, '09 PGA Championship, 2010 SBS Championship and '10 Masters