FanHouse KJChoi

Before Phil Mickelson broke through at the 2004 Masters, Lefty held the ultimate "kissing your sister" title. Phil was the "best player to never have won a major championship." Sure, Phil had made waves in majors, nearly taking the title at the 1999 U.S. Open and the 2001 PGA Championship, but he couldn't break through. Once the infamous birdie leap occurred at Augusta National in '04, Mickelson passed that title off to someone. The thing is, nobody has really grabbed it as feverishly as Phil did. He was the major-less face. Now, according to Forbes, it isn't Sergio Garcia.

We keep grinding these out, part three of your FanHouse Media Guide.

• Angel Cabrera (above, right) -- WON -- Now here's a guy I can get on board with. Last year he smoked like a used Suburban, worked out as much as the Lincoln Memorial and still wins the toughest test in golf? Whaaa? Also, he was named Olimpia de Oro for Argentina's sportsperson of the year in 2007, adding to a group that includes such elite names as Las Leonas, Deigo Degano and Nora Vega.

• Mark Calcavecchia -- 14 -- This is pretty bananas -- Calc has been playing in the U.S. Open, somewhat consistently, since 1986 and has only made 10 cuts. Also, Mark was once late for his wedding after a round of 78, the worst round of his year, where he thought his caddy wrote "100" on his golf ball instead of "I DO." Those golfers and their crazy stories.

• Michael Campbell (above, left) -- WON -- Talk about a random 2005. Campbell wins the U.S. Open, finished in a tie for fifth at the Open and a tie for sixth at the PGA Championship. Other than that, he has one top ten finish ever in a major.

• Paul Casey -- t-10 -- Just as much as Casey hates America, the country's tournament hates him back. One top ten and two missed cuts with a WD for good measure.

• Chad Campbell -- t-35 -- Campbell is one of those guys Bill Simmons talks about that was once so underrated by everyone that he's now overrated. He hasn't had a ton of success at the U.S. Open, mainly because he carries a heavy putter around and I don't mean the brand.

• Garrett Chaussard -- DNP -- A little abnormal, Chaussard has only made one cut this year on the Gateway Tour before qualifying for the Open. Even wilder, since April 2 the University of Illinois graduate has shot more rounds in the 80s than in the 60s. I'm going to get a little wacky here and say he probably didn't see his coming.

• Jay Choi -- DNP -- An excellent golfer at the University of New Mexico, Choi qualified with a birdie on his second playoff hole in sectional qualifying. A native of Korea, Choi didn't play golf from November 2006 to August 2007 because of a weight problem that saw him lose 65 pounds!

• K.J. Choi -- t-15 -- For a guy with as much game as Choi, it's interesting he's never cracked the top-15 at this event. Of the seven tour events Choi has won, none have been on the west coast.

• Daniel Chopra -- t-24 -- He's only played in one U.S. Open, so a top-25 in your first marathon is fairly impressive. Also, he's half Swedish, half Indian, which I find a touch more interesting than that first sentence.

• Stewart Cink -- 3 -- If there has ever been a definitive "it's not over till it's over" moment in golf, it has to be Cink's three-putt on the last hole at Southern Hills in the 2001 U.S. Open. Just trying to get out of Retief Goosen's way, Cink hurried and missed both the par putt and a spot in the Monday playoff.

These days, a golf tournament without Tiger Woods is like a Las Vegas trip in a hotel off the Strip.

Sure it will be fun, I'm sure you will round up your fair share of stories, but it will always be missing that little something.

Jack Nicklaus and the crew at Muirfield Village Golf Club are set to host the Memorial Tournament two weeks before the U.S. Open and as tradition, are hearing it from the players about the rough around the course.

Defending champion K.J. Choi, among others, has said the rough is "twice as thick" at some spots around the greens and thinks it will very tough if you miss shots around the putting surface.

Deep rough isn't fun for anyone, but what better way to prepare for a U.S. Open than play an elite golf tournament with thick cabbage that puts a premium on hitting the ball in the fairway. Isn't the best way to practice for a Limbo competition to actually do the limbo?

Recently, I wrote how last year's Shell Houston Open was a terrific preparation for the Masters the following week given how many of its participants made the final weekend at Augusta.

Friday was the deadline to enter the SHO, five of the top ten ranked players in the world will be there. (Phil Mickelson #2, Steve Stricker #4, Adam Scott #6, K.J. Choi #7, Geoff Ogilvy #10). Ernie Els had planned to attend but withdrew today due to a lingering virus.

Someone told me that there was a Tiger Woods sighting at Houston's River Oaks Country Club on Friday. I'm guessing he was one of the private jet rich guys in town to see Stanford play Texas in the Sweet Sixteen, as Woods is continuing his traditional prep of not playing a tournament the week before a major.

I'm not rich guy private jetting to Augusta for the Masters, but will be attending the SHO next week. I will try to give you a flavor of the tournament that you don't see on TV. The course is in beautiful shape, and I've been told that the greens are already very fast. Even without Tiger, it should have a great field and be worth watching, especially if you are participating in a Masters office pool.

Phil Mickelson likes to play the week before the Masters as part of his preparation. In contrast, like some other elite golfers, Tiger Woods enjoys going to his Fortress of Solitude, Bat Cave, or whatever secret preparation he does the week before.

Last year, Mickelson skipped playing the tournament before the Masters because it was held at the Shell Houston Open instead of the AT&T Classic (formerly the BellSouth). Some observers suggested last year that the SHO wasn't a good prep for the hilly, fast greens of Augusta.

Well they would be wrong. As I noted last year after the Masters, the players who prepped at the SHO did very well at the Masters. Out of the 23 golfers who played both tournaments, 20 of them made the cut at Augusta. Five who played both tournaments made the top 16 at the Masters, even though the SHO last year didn't have an abundance of highly ranked players.

Just something to keep in mind for those of you who do Masters pools. And perhaps something that Phil Mickelson noticed too.