Rahul Banerji
After losing out at the PGA Championship last week, Sergio Garcia secured his place at the US Open with a strong performance in Monday’s final qualifier in Dallas.
The 2017 Masters Champion earned a pair of 66 cards and finished fourth out of 120 competitors as he battled for spots in the next main event of the season at Northwood Club and Bent Tree Country Club in Texas.
This will mark the 24th birthday of the 43-year-old Spaniardp simple performance at the US Open. Last week’s PGA Championship in Rochester is the first major tournament Garcia hasn’t played since the 1999 Open.
Garcia (66-66) finished his run with a birdie on the final hole to join 11 other members of the LIV Golf League on the US Open course, which will be played at the Los Angeles Country Club from June 15-18.
Qualifiers include PGA Champion Brooks Koepka, Bryson DeChambeau, Dustin Johnson, Martin Kaymer, Phil Mickelson, Cameron Smith, Joaquin Niemann, Abraham Ancer, Thomas Pieters, Mito Pereira and Patrick Reed.
Graeme McDowell and Branden Grace, who were among the 120 entered in Dallas, however, failed to pass.
terrible thing
“I played well and knew what I needed,” Garcia later said. “I didn’t want to play in the playoffs. I’ve done it before. It’s pretty scary.
Meanwhile, Tiger Woods, who continues to recover from ankle fusion surgery in April, will not appear at the US Open this year.
The 15-time major winner and three-time US Open champion withdrew from the Augusta National Masters tournament this month and did not play in last week’s PGA Championship.
At Augusta, Tiger withdrew after making a cut in the lane but was unable to continue. He announced a limited schedule for this year and has only played in five tournaments since his February 2021 accident.
“Tiger Woods, who won those championships in 2000, 2002 and 2008, has retired as a discharged player while still recovering from recent surgery,” USGA event organizers said.
This was the final year of Woods’ release from the US Open for winning the Masters in 2019.
The USGA also reported earlier this week that 41 players have qualified for the US Open so far, based on various points lists, including eight who made it through Monday’s qualifiers.
The top 60 in the OWGR after the PGA Championship got waivers from the third main event of the season, including Reed, recent PGA Tour winner Jason Day and England Tyrrell Hatton.
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