The US Open 2016 will featured some fascinating and exciting first round pairings. Here are some of the more notable pairings.
The US Open 2016 will begin on June 16, 2016 at Oakmont Country Club in Plum, Pennsylvania. It should be a very competitive field as Jordan Spieth will be trying to become just the seventh golfer in history to repeat as the US Open champion and become the 22nd golfer ever to win more than one US Open.
Spieth will certainly face some strong competition. Jason Day, Rory McIlroy, Danny Willett, and Rickie Fowler will be among those who should challenge Spieth’s run at history. Here’s a quick look at some first round pairings that are worth watching.
Rickie Fowler, Danny Willett, and Rory McIlroy
They say that competition breeds greatness and that the best tend to shine the brightest when they go against the best. If those two phrases are true, the first round pairing of Fowler, Willett, and McIlroy should be a ton of fun to watch. Golf has long needed to give casual fans a reason to watch golf. The US Open 2016 is doing exactly that by pairing three of the best golfers in the world in one epic trio. It should be interesting to see how they react to playing against each other. They should know what they need to do to stay near the top at all times because at least one of the three will be near the top of the leaderboard, if not at the top itself. The pairing starts at 8:24 AM EST on Thursday and 2:09 PM EST on Friday.
Zach Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, and Jordan Spieth
Spieth is must watch television whenever he plays and could be golf’s heir apparent to Tiger Woods as far as marketability is concerned. He’ll be paired with the underrated Zach Johnson (60/1 odds to win) and the fascinating Bryson DeChambeau (120/1 odds to win). DeChambeau won over the hearts of many with some memorable moments during the 2016 Masters and is a very entertaining guy to watch no matter how well he’s playing. They start at 8:35 AM EST on Thursday and 2:20 PM EST on Friday.
Hideki Matsuyama, Sergio Garcia, Dustin Johnson
Dustin Johnson is one of the more recognizable names in golf and has decent odds (15/1) to win the US Open 2016. He will be paired with veteran fan favorite Sergio Garcia (40/1 odds to win) and dark horse candidate Hideki Matsuyama (30/1 odds to win). Matsuyama came in fifth at the 2015 Masters and has two PGA Tour wins, most recently winning the Waste Management Phoenix Open in February.
Jason Day, Adam Scott, Louis Oosthuizen
This pairing features two of the best golfers in the world and one of the best names to ever tee off on the PGA Tour. Day is the odds-on favorite to win the US Open 2016 (6/1) while Scott has 30/1 odds and Oosthuizen has 50/1 odds. Oosthuizen finished tied for second at the 2015 US Open. Day has quickly risen to the elite tier of golfers with a first place finish at the 2015 PGA Championship. Scott has had success throughout his career in majors, though he has won just one (2013 Masters).
Phil Mickelson, Justin Rose, Henrik Stenson
Mickelson, Rose, and Stenson will form a solid pairing of strong golfers who each have a decent chance of winning the US Open. Rose and Mickelson each have 25/1 odds while Stenson has 30/1 odds. The 35-year-old Rose is no stranger to the US Open, as he won the event in 2013. Mickelson has numerous top three finishes at the US Open, but has never won it.