First things first. Fifty-year-old Tiger Woods is not playing the U.S. Senior Open at Scioto Country Club. Although registering in March for the July 2-5 national championship for those age 50 and older, Woods is taking a break from golf after undergoing counseling following a DUI arrest in the spring.
Woods’ closest rival during his prime, 56-year-old Phil Mickelson, will also not be playing the event in Upper Arlington. Likewise, 68-year-old Bernhard Langer, a two-time winner of the U.S. Senior Open, will not participate. Nor will fan favorite John Daly.
Still, plenty of recognizable seniors have committed, including five-time PGA Tour major championship winner Ernie Els and defending U.S. Senior Open champion Padraig Harrington. Three-time major champion Vijay Singh and two-time major winners Retief Goosen, Angel Cabrera and Lee Janzen are in the 156-player field, as is Gene Sauers, who won the tournament the last time it was played at Scioto in 2016.
Other participants who own at least one major on the PGA Tour are Davis Love III, Justin Leonard, Stewart Cink, Mark Calcavecchia, Darren Clarke, Henrik Stenson, David Toms, Mike Weir, Y.E. Yang, Shaun Micheel and Michael Campbell.
Scioto, celebrating its 110th anniversary, has hosted six high-end tournaments over the past century: 1926 U.S. Open; 1931 Ryder Cup; 1950 PGA Championship; 1968 U.S. Amateur; 1986 U.S. Senior Open; 2016 U.S. Senior Open.
The field, which stands at 155, with the winner of the June 23-25 Dick’s Open earning the 156th spot, will be cut to the top 60 and ties after 36 holes. The winner collects $800,000 from a purse of $4 million.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: U.S. Senior Open field missing Tiger Woods but 13 major champs playing
Reporting by Rob Oller, Columbus Dispatch / The Columbus Dispatch
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Rob Oller, Columbus Dispatch | USA TODAY Network
