It's only Wednesday but walking around Torrey Pines is already getting tough because of all the fans who are turning out for the 108th U.S. Open. I walked over to the driving range, chipping area and putting green in search of former Pepperdine standout Jason Gore. He is a great guy, who has had his ups and downs over the last few years but I'm hoping he plays well this week and gets some positive momentum going for himself. It's interesting to see how different players handle fans. Aaron Baddeley stood and signed autographs for 10 minutes. Rich Beem was walking past and someone asked and he responded he needed to go find a "hot meal and a cold beer." Gore was still signing autographs as his group was ready to tee off for their 2:30 practice round. As Jason signed, his buddy Pat Perez yelled, "Hey Hollywood, you're on the tee."
I opted to go over to the merchandise tent to see if I could find matching golf shirts for me and my 2-year-old son Shaun. The tent covers three football fields, but they failed to have an exact match in both the kids and men's shirts. It's a bummer.
The weather continues to be cool but it's sunny, so the course should be firmer by tomorrow. The USGA officials had their press conference today and said the course is right where they want it. As Johnny Miller mentioned at the putting green this morning, it's going to be a heck of a test.