ERIN, Wis. (AP) – Steve Stricker was missing a critical piece of equipment when he finished a practice round for the U.S. Open.
He walked under a tunnel off the ninth green at Erin Hills and saw a line of fans on both sides of the rope, bending to the left for another 100 yards or more. He grasped at both back pockets and realized he didn’t have a pen.
Not to worry. He had plenty of friends to bail him out.
Stricker saw them on every hole during nine holes of practice. He heard them, too, with applause greeting him at every green.
“It’s cool,” Stricker said Monday. “It’s special. One of the reasons I wanted to play here is I knew it would be fun to play in front of your home crowd. I don’t get this on a weekly basis. It’s fun to be part of it. It’s our first U.S. Open in the state. I don’t know how many more I have in front of me, so I’m glad I made it.”