U.S. OPEN ROUNDUP \News and notes

Scott happy with opening round: The “other guy” in the marquee threesome was happy with his opening round, considering he’s playing with a broken bone near his right pinkie. Adam Scott, ranked No. 3 in the world, shot a 2-over 73 at Torrey Pines’ South Course. His playing partners were Tiger Woods, who shot a 72, and Phil Mickelson, who had a 71. Scott’s injury was the top topic after his round in front of a huge gallery at the clifftop course overlooking the Pacific Ocean. “Well, it’s broken,” he said. “It’s not my finger anyway; it’s my hand. It doesn’t really affect my golf swing, so I’m pretty lucky to be playing.” Scott, a six-time winner on the PGA Tour, said he broke the bone when a friend slammed his hand in a car door in London in mid-May. “It’s pretty miserable,” he said. Scott enjoyed being part of the featured threesome, which will play together again today. “I played with Phil a lot in majors,” Scott said. “It seems like I get drawn with him a lot. But I enjoy playing with Tiger as well. I find it a lot easier to focus because I think I’ve got to be a little more disciplined. And I felt like I played really well out there today and I really didn’t make any putts.”

Oh no, Angel: Angel Cabrera opened the defense of his Open title with a thud. He was 9-over through 12 and didn’t make his first birdie until the par-5 13th.

Remembering a friend: When he reached the part of Torrey Pines’ South Course that is closest to the Pacific Ocean, Eric Axley couldn’t help but think of his former caddie, Steve Duplantis. Axley was playing Torrey Pines for the first time since Duplantis was killed when he was hit by a car in nearby Del Mar just before the Buick Invitational in January. “Kind of walking along the water there and looking out, I did think about him some,” Axley said. Axley also shot his best round in his four U.S. Open appearances, a 2-under 69 highlighted by an eagle.

Junior charity: The San Diego County Junior Golf Association, which helped develop players such as Mickelson, Scott Simpson, Craig Stadler and Pat Perez, hopes to get a bit of financial relief from the Scoresheets for Charities Program at the U.S. Open. The group had hoped to raise up to $500,000 from a gala Saturday night that was to be hosted by Jay Leno on the USS Midway, which is anchored in San Diego Bay as a museum. But the group canceled it a few weeks ago due to lack of ticket sales. Casey Dillabaugh, the SDJGA’s charity programs coordinator, said the group would be happy if it can make between $25,000 and $30,000 by auctioning off the scoresheets and round-by-round summary sheets that are posted on the public scoreboard and on a scoreboard in the media center.

Associated Press