Kenny and Co. reveal Open window at the Memorial
Before this week, you probably didn't give Kenny Perry a second look when considering U.S. Open favorites. After Sunday, you'd be crazy not to put him on the short list.
Perry's record-setting victory at the Colonial last week was overshadowed by Annika Sorenstam's foray on the PGA Tour, but it's hard to ignore what he's done the last 14 days: two wins, $1.8 million, 32-under-par.
But Perry wasn't the only one making waves in the last big event before the U.S. Open in two weeks. With most of the world's top players sitting out the upcoming Capital Open to prepare for Olympia Fields, the Memorial was the last real testing ground before the year's second major. And from the look of the leaderboard Sunday afternoon, we could be in for a competitive Open.
This week's top 10 finishers have combined to win 17 major championships. Here's a closer look at the Memorial's memorable performers, and what their weekend exploits might mean for the 103rd U.S. Open.:
| Around the tours ... | |
 This week: Memorial Tournament Site: Dublin, Ohio Course: Muirfield Village Golf Club (7,224 yards, par 72) Top finishers: 1 Kenny Perry 2 Lee Janzen 3 Mike Weir T4 Tiger Woods T4 Vijay Singh
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| Perry |
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| Janzen |
2. Lee Janzen (11-under, 277): What a time for Janzen to turn it around. His second-place showing this week was his best since winning the second of his two U.S. Open titles in 1998. He chipped in three times on the weekend, and while it's way too soon to be calling Janzen a contender at Olympia Fields, a runner-up finish at a high-profile event like the Memorial at least brings him into the conversation.
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| Weir |
3. Mike Weir (10-under, 278): After a steady start (72-70-71), Weir exploded for a 7-under 65 Sunday, tied with Tiger Woods for the best score of the day, four shots better than anyone else. The Masters champ has only played twice since Augusta, and abandoned his original plan to play in the Capital Open as well.
He'll likely take Olympia Fields for a test drive early this week before preparing for the Open on his own terms. Remember, Weir is the only one who still has a shot at the Grand Slam in 2003.
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| Woods |
T4. Tiger Woods (9-under, 279): After three straight finishes out of the top-10 and starting Sunday 11 strokes back of Perry, Woods needed to do something special in the final round to quiet the critics. And, in typical Tiger fashion, that's exactly what he did.
Woods matched Weir's 7-under 65 in his best round since Bay Hill. It was also 11 strokes better than the 4-over 76 he shot the day before. The defending Open champ said he would have been happy with his game even if he hadn't gone so low, but a 71 doesn't send quite the same message as a 65.
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| Singh |
T4. Vijay Singh (9-under, 279): He's been at par or better in his last 11 rounds, and has three straight finishes in the top 5, including his second win of the season at the Byron Nelson two weeks ago. He's never won an Open, but he's been in the top 10 three of the last four years. You can bet he'll be in the hunt at Olympia Fields.
T7. Retief Goosen; 10. Jose Maria Olazabal; T13. Padraig Harrington; T13. Ernie Els: These four head the international contingent intent on taking the U.S. Open title across the Atlantic. They've got six major championships between them, including three U.S. Opens. Els and Harrington are probably the biggest threats, with a combined six wins and three runner-up finishes worldwide in 2003.
Up next ...
U.S. Open qualifying (June 2-3)
Chad Campbell is one of the PGA Tour players on the outside looking in on the U.S. Open. He and more than 700 other professionals and amateurs will make a last-ditch effort to qualify for the Open at one of 12 sites around the country.
PGA Tour: Capital Open
Davis Love III is the only one among the top 10 on the money list playing at the TPC at Avenel this week, the rest are preparing for the U.S. Open.
LPGA Tour: McDonald's LPGA Championship
Annika Sorenstam said one of the reasons she played the Colonial last week was to prepare her game for the pressure of the LPGA's majors. She gets to test that theory this week at the second major of the year, and one of the two still missing from her resume. Se Ri Pak, Sorenstam's chief rival, is the defending champion.
Champions Tour: Senior PGA Championship
The senior circuit gets serious this week for the first of the year's five major championships. Four of those five will be played in the next six weeks. The Champions Tour still doesn't have a repeat winner in 2003. Jim Ahern's victory Sunday made it 14 different champs in 14 events.
European Tour: British Masters
Justin Rose defends his title against a weakened field that includes Colin Montgomerie, Darren Clarke and Lee Westwood.
Nationwide Tour: LaSalle Open
The junior circuit gets back to work this week after last week's Henrico County Open was rained out. They hope to make up the Richmond-area event in July.
David Lefort is ESPN.com's golf editor, and can be reached at david.m.lefort@espn3.com.
