The 2019 U.S. Open is complete -- congratulations to Gary Woodland on his 3-shot win over Brooks Koepka at Pebble Beach -- and that means we are now less than two years from the return of golf's national championship to Torrey Pines.
After a stop in New York next year at Winged Foot, the Torrey Pines South Course will host its second U.S. Open in 2021, and I'm already getting excited.
I realize it's going to be hard to top the 2008 U.S. Open, when Tiger Woods hobbled around all week on what turned out to be a broken leg, only to dramatically birdie the 72nd hole to force a Monday playoff against Rocco Mediate, which he won in 19 dramatic holes.
That Open at Torrey ranks right near the top of the list of sporting events I've attended in person, including the 1984 and 1998 World Series, the 1985 NBA Finals between the Lakers and Celtics at the Boston Garden, and Park View's Little League World Series championship in 2009.
I worked the first few days of the tournament for Channel 10, but got a chance to attend the Monday playoff as a fan -- and it was unlike anything I've ever seen. There were only two golfers on the course...and thousands upon thousands of fans trying their best to squeeze up to the ropes and get a glimpse of play - which was a major challenge in its own right. Essentially, you'd have to walk two or three holes ahead, get in position to see one shot, and then walk another 2 to 3 holes ahead again and repeat the process.
By the end of the day, I think my wife Sheli and I had only witnessed about four shots by each player in person. As Tiger and Rocco came up to the 18th tee, I knew a sudden-death playoff hole was a distinct possibility, and I remembered a factoid from earlier in the week...if the U.S. Open needed a 19th hole on Monday, they wouldn't head to #1 or back to #18, but rather would tee off at #7, which was located right behind the left grandstand along the 18th fairway.
Along with a few other in-the-know fans, we took a shot and headed toward the 7th green, hoping Tiger would once again force an extra hole. He didn't disappoint, and that's how my wife and I ended up just a few yards away as Tiger Woods sank his final putt for par to win his 14th major title. Little did we know that #15 wouldn't come until the 2019 Masters. Back then, it seemed like a foregone conclusion that Tiger would blow past Jack Nicklaus' record of 18 and maybe even flirt with 25 or 30 majors before his career was over.
Now, if his surgically repaired back stays in decent shape, I fully expect Tiger Woods to be a factor at Torrey Pines in 2021, and I hope I'm still around with an opportunity to witness golf history again.