A couple of years back Tiger Woods was trying to describe how hard the set up for the US Open was and said something to the affect of “A single digit player couldn’t break 90.” He was simply making an observation but he unleashed endless debate, and as a result, for the last two years, Golf Digest magazine has offered its US Open Challenge, pitting better celebrity golfers and one member of the public against Tiger’s opinion.
This year Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger went low, shooting an impressive 81, with help from his even better caddie, Rocco Mediate. Perennial golf course celebrity Michael Jordan answered with 86, and annoying Justin Timberlake 88.
The common people were represented by Arizona police officer Larry Giebelhausen, who barely missed his double digit goal by making it through Bethpage Black in a still very respectable 101.
So next year it could be your turn as the Open returns to the vaunted Pebble Beach Golf Links. All you have to do is beat out tens of thousands of other golfers in a very short and sweet essay contest.
And I really mean short: you get a whopping six words to explain why you deserve this opportunity, and last year nearly 74,000 people submitted entries. These are vetted by a panel, narrowed down, and then turned over to online public voting.
I’m thinking the winner could be “I’m Larry. I lose many balls.”
You have from November 10, 2009 – January 31, 2010 to take stab at this. Submission details will be available at both the magazine and USGA websites starting in November.
How did Giebelhausen earn the honor of playing with the stars? He wrote the following:
“I’m a Cop, I’ll Shoot Low.”
