FanHouse US Open

How big a concern is Tiger Woods' knee injury heading into this weekend's U.S. Open? So big that he's only a 5-2 favorite at the U.S. Open.

Of course, if it were anyone other than Woods, we'd be talking about those odds (listed at Bodog) as making him an overwhelming favorite -- it's extremely rare in any sporting event with dozens of athletes for one competitor to be that big a favorite. But since we're talking about Woods, we have to note that those are longer odds than he faced at the Masters, and longer odds than he faced for the U.S. Open before we knew about his knee injury.

Here's the funny thing about Ian Poulter: Look at the red shirt and the plaid pants he wore in today's first round of the U.S. Open, and then keep in mind that this is tame compared to his usual attire. Do a Google Images search on Poulter's name and you won't be disappointed.

Ken Klavon, who's blogging at the U.S. Open's official web site, gives Poulter's style a thumbs up, and I'd have to agree. There comes a point when you have to respect anyone who is fearless enough to dress so ridiculously.

Oh, and he played pretty well today, too. He finished 2-over for the day, which ties him for 21st, but he was in excellent shape until a double-bogey on his 17th hole. I'm already looking forward to seeing him tomorrow.

The Debriefing is a column that runs every weekday at 9:00 a.m. here on FanHouse. It goes deep into one issue and then bounces around to a plethora of smaller ones ... and does it all in a way that will make you feel like the prettiest girl at the cotillion. Bookmark this page, and visit daily.



The USGA really outdid themselves this time. They usually make a hell of an effort every year to make the U.S. Open course as difficult as it can be ... they move the tees back, they dry out the greens, narrow the fairways, and let the length grow to roughly the same length as Anderson Varejao's hair.

But his year at Oakmont, they've taken things a step farther. In addition to the 300-yard par 3, the fairways as wide as bowling lanes, the world-famous church-pew bunkers, the wrist-breaking rough, and the greens like greased glass, they've also added live alligators on every tee box, replaced all greenside bunkers with sarlacc pits, and have stationed unshowered escaped convicts off of every green, ready to rape and murder the entire family of every player who makes bogey or worse.

Personally, I think that last one is going a little bit too far.