Usually, third place at the US Open is a pretty enviable spot. Not quite as much when you’re nine shots back.
“I look back at my first two rounds and think if I had played my best golf I could be at 7 or 8 under par max and (Rory McIlroy) would have beat me by four,” Snedeker said “and I’m sure he left some out there at some point.”
Firing a pair of 70s to open his 2011 US Open, Snedeker is on his way to another major top 10. He has finished top 10 at the US Open in two of his last three attempts (T-8 in 2010 and T-9 in 2008 with an MC in between).
After his round, Snedeker was happy about the state of his game, but he was greeted with more questions about what the 22-year-old Irishman had done in the morning.
“I think everybody would agree he’s probably got more talent in his pinky than I have in my whole body,” Snedeker said. “Once he matures and starts being out here for a while and being in these kind of situations, I think he’s only going to get harder to beat. It’s fun to kind of watch him grow up.
“I hope he can kind of keep it going for the weekend,” Snedeker said of McIlroy. “As a fan of golf I’d love to see him win this week. As a competitor I’d love to see myself win. We’ll see how it goes.”
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