Beau Hossler, just 17 years old, opens with even par 70 at the U.S. Open
SAN FRANCISCO — Every year it seems like there are one or two players on the first round leaderboard at the U.S. Open that raise some eyebrows.
Thursday at Olympic Club was no different, as 17-year-old Beau Hossler went out in the first group off No. 1 and carded an impressive even-par 70 that had him sitting inside the top 10 after Day 1.
Even though you might not know the name, Hossler isn't new to the major championship scene. Just last year he played in his first U.S. Open at Congressional and shot 76-77 at the age of 16.
While one major championship obviously won't turn a boy into a man, Hossler's game appears to have matured by leaps and bounds in the last year. The kid was so confident with his swing coming into the week, in fact, he admitted after his round that he expected to go out and post a solid score.
"I've been playing really well lately," Hossler said. "I expected myself to go out there and get a lot out of my round. I still left a few out there, but you have to accept that, it's the U.S. Open. It's going to happen."
At the age of 17 he's already starting to sound like a grizzled veteran who's been around the block a few times. Even better for Hossler was that he bested his favorite golfer, Phil Mickelson (76), by six shots on Thursday. Now that, friends, is how you make a good day even better.
Tiger Woods and Michael Thompson may have been the big stories of the day, but there's no question Hossler deserves a lot of credit for going out and putting together one of the best rounds of the day.
With two major championship starts under his belt as a soon-to-be senior at Santa Margarita High School, there's a good chance he's going to get even better in the future. No doubt about it, the kid is going places.
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