Weir feels his game is ready for U.S. Open

Most years there is more than one golfer with local ties playing at the U.S. Open. But this year, Mike Weir will be the only player with Utah ties at Bethpage Black in New York.

Weir's college teammate at BYU, Dean Wilson, has played in the past three U.S. Opens, but he just missed qualifying, losing in a sudden-death playoff last week. He was an alternate, but wasn't in the field as of Wednesday.

Weir, who lived in Draper for more than a decade before recently moving to Sandy, tees off in the fifth-to-last group today at 11:58 a.m. MDT with fellow Canadian Stephen Ames and Stewart Cink. On Friday, the group goes off at 6:28 a.m.

"My game feels pretty good right now," Weir said on his Web site. "I feel confident that I'm mentally prepared to play in the U.S. Open, which to me is half the battle. This tournament tests you mentally probably more than any other, so you have to stay calm and even for all 72 holes. I feel that after playing in 10 Opens, I know what to expect."

So far, Weir is having a decent year with $1.5 million in earnings. He has made 11 of 13 cuts with a second-place finish at the AT&T Pro-Am at Pebble Beach and ranks 27th in the FedEx Cup standings. He ranks No. 21 in the latest World golf rankings.

"I'm happy with the way I'm swinging the club," Weir added. "I think playing those three weeks leading up to Memorial helped me get in a rhythm, and I've been working hard with (teaching pro) Mike Wilson to shore up all the parts of my game for this week. I'm hoping that everything will come together for a good U.S. Open."

Weir has made the cut in eight of his 10 U.S. Open appearances, with his best finish coming in a tie for third in 2003. Last year at Torrey Pines, he finished in a tie for 20th place.

In the past, as many as six golfers with Utah ties played in the U.S. Open. As recently as 2000, five golfers with Utah ties played in the Open at Pebble Beach, where Weir was joined by Richard Zokol, Keith Clearwater, Bobby Clampett and Mike Borich.

The last time as many as three golfers with Utah ties played in the Open was 2004, when Provo's Dan Forsman and BYU golfer Oscar Alvarez joined Weir.

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