SAMAMMISH – On a day when Sahalee Country Club’s narrow fairways and firm greens frustrated some of golf’s most accomplished players, a 53-year-old former firefighter who never won on the PGA Tour seized control of the U.S. Senior Open.
And he was as surprised as anybody else.
“I’m more shocked than anything,” said Bruce Vaughan after shooting a 4-under-par 66 Thursday morning. “… I did everything you’re supposed to do, it wasn’t nothing crazy. I hit a lot of fairways, a few greens and made some putts.”
Sounds easy, but by the end of the day Vaughan sat atop the leaderboard, two strokes ahead of Loren Roberts and amateur Tim Jackson.
The course played so tough – only eight players breaking par – that newly minted Senior British Open champ Bernhard Langer called some holes “borderline unfair.”
While the hard greens kept golfers from taking aggressive shots at the pin for fear their balls would roll off the green, Vaughan benefited from an 8:45 a.m. tee time.
With dew making the greens a bit softer, Vaughan birdied the two hardest holes on the course – the par-4 sixth and par-4 18th.
“Two of the hardest holes on the golf course and I make birdie on them,” Vaughan said. “That’s like picking up three or four shots on everybody.”
While Vaughan said the greens seemed nearly as firm Thursday morning as they did during his afternoon practice rounds, morning tee times were clearly an advantage. Of the eight players who broke par only two had afternoon tee times. Langer and Mark Calcavecchia both posted 1-under rounds of 69.
The course beat up defending champ Fred Funk, who finished second at Sahalee in the 2002 NEC Championship. Funk set a U.S. Senior Open record by shooting 20-under par last year at Indiana’s Crooked Stick. On Thursday, Funk finished 6-over par.
Jay Haas, a 56-year-old winner of 14 Champions Tour events, said the course was brutal and he was happy to score an even-par round.
“I can’t remember in years past anything as tough as this,” Haas said. “So this is probably the toughest U.S. Senior Open that I’ve played in.”
Calcavecchia agreed, saying, “They must have thought the top 100 in the world were here, not 156 old guys. Seriously, I think it was the hardest set of pin placements I’ve seen in years.”
If the firm greens weren’t frustrating enough, the ball-swatting evergreen giants lining the fairways made things even tougher.
“Disaster lurks on every shot,” Jackson said.
Tom Lehman, Michael Allen and Joe Ozaki joined Langer and Calcavecchia at 1-under 69.
Fan favorite Fred Couples, who grew up in Seattle’s Beacon Hill neighborhood, salvaged an even-par round of 70. After bogeying three of four holes midway through his round he birdied holes 4-6 on his back nine. The fans roared approval after he saved par from a bunker on his final hole.
Playing partner Tom Watson, an eight-time major winner, also carded a 70 after missing a short par putt on the final hole. They are tied for ninth with Haas and Scott Simpson.
“Freddy made a good comeback today,” said Watson, who was 3-under par after 12 holes. “He didn’t play very well at all on the front nine.”
All were impressed by Vaughan’s round, although they weren’t surprised.
While Vaughan never won on the PGA Tour, the self-proclaimed “country boy from Western Kansas” broke out on the Champions Tour in 2008 when he won the Senior British Open.
After high school Vaughan worked as a firefighter in Hutchinson, Kan., where he still resides. He worked 21/2 days a week, so he was eager to fill his time. He was such a natural at golf that he turned pro in 1990.
He played mini-tours, winning twice on the Nationwide Tour and once on South Africa’s Sunshine Tour.
He qualified for the PGA Tour in 1995, but didn’t keep his card.
“I had some bad knee problems, so I couldn’t play for several years and just waited until I turned 50,” Vaughan said.
Vaughan is 36th on the Champions Tour money list with $204,831 this season.
Vaughan could find the going a challenge when he tees off at 2 p.m. today. The 78 players who teed off Thursday morning get afternoon tee times today.
Hopefully, it will be easier to score in the morning, Haas said.
“I don’t want it to be cold and cloudy in the morning but the greens are softer when it’s like that,” he said.
Craig Hill: 253-597-8497 craig.hill@thenewstribune.com
SENIOR OPEN
Sahalee, Today-Sunday
Today’s featured matchups
7:45 a.m. (No. 1): Mark Calcavecchia, Bernhard Langer
1 p.m. (No. 1): Fred Couples, Tom Watson and Eduardo Romero
2 p.m. (No. 1): Bruce Vaughan, leader after first round
Tickets: Online at 2010ussenioropen.com, by phone (877-281-6736) or local Fred Meyer store.
