• Out of Bounds

Time for a young gun to become a major player

A major win for Matteo Manassero would give golf a huge boost © Getty Images

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Following the broadest strokes possible, the 2011 US Open at Congressional will be just like the 110 iterations that preceded it.

Americans will want an American winner of the country's national championship. Europeans will hope for a European winner.

The game of golf, however, really needs a young winner. Their birthplace and nationality is ultimately meaningless (although perhaps an American would be best for the wider health of the game), but they need to be marketable and able to force themselves to the vanguard of the game's next generation of stars.

Golf needs such a player to make himself known, and sooner rather than later.

Tiger Woods will not tee it up at Congressional this week, for those still unaware - sidelined by a knee injury sustained in April (and aggravated in May) that still requires both crutches and a protective boot.

In the immediate aftermath of his formal withdrawal from the US Open, tickets for the event on various re-selling websites in the US plummeted in price almost overnight. The American television audience (and, by proxy, revenue streams for broadcasters and the USGA from that aspect) will likely follow suit from Thursday to Sunday (significantly in the US, marginally elsewhere).

Put simply, golf can't really afford to continue for too long without Tiger Woods as a selling point, yet Woods himself is becoming increasingly unreliable as a selling point - to the stage where he almost isn't one any more (in purely sporting terms, at least).

A new icon needs to be found, someone to offer an alternative to Tiger to excite and attract as large an audience as possible - not to mention draw children to the sport like a certain 21-year-old did at Augusta in 1997.

Some sharp observers will point out that 2011 has already seen a young winner, of course. Masters champion Charl Schwartzel was (well, is) only 26 years old, but that doesn't tell the whole story.

Not only was he a virtual unknown in the US at the time of his victory due to his career loyalty to the European Tour - a fact that hardly raises a profile among anyone but keen observers on that continent - but the South African is unfortunately blessed with far more golfing talent than charisma.

A worthy winner at Augusta National he undoubtedly was, but he will need to win a couple more majors in similarly impressive fashion before he captures either the hearts or minds of the worldwide media.

A win for a Rickie Fowler, a Matteo Manassero or a Rory McIlroy would achieve that almost instantly, however.

Fowler is the Justin Bieber of golf (and no, that lazy comparison isn't a new one either). With a distinctive surf-style haircut that is generally matched with the most garish outfit he can find (but always Dutch national team orange on a Sunday) and a stiff-rimmed baseball hat that looks like it was plucked from a life-size Lego set, you can't miss Fowler out on the golf course.

The 22-year-old is a light-hearted, engaging character that draws the camera. A win for him would give the game a major boost.

McIlroy, Fowler's European equivalent (with greater golfing credentials albeit less sartorial bravery) has shown he has the game to challenge in a major with his performance on the first three days of The Masters this year and three of the four days at last year's Open Championship.

Unfortunately, he has also shown himself capable of shooting a very high number when the spotlight is on him. But if he could overcome that to win in Washington D.C. this week, it would create intrigue to see what he could achieve over the next five-to-ten years.

Then there is Manassero - 'the next Seve', who doesn't quite have the maverick Spaniard's creativity and sparkle in the eye but has a natural swing and level-head quite unlike has been seen for many years in one so young.

A win for Fowler would be exciting - but Jim Furyk is still a more likely contender © Getty Images

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Prodigiously young (just 18 - but with two European Tour wins under his belt already), he has enough of Fowler's boyish charm to ensure he would quickly become a star all over the world.

Unfortunately, all three have question marks against their name. Manassero is a relative major novice (this will be his first US Open appearance), McIlroy has cracked under the pressure before - while Fowler has yet to win at all as a professional, let alone his own national championship.

Expecting any of the three to win this week would be optimistic, if nothing more damning. Instead, the winner is likely to come from a different band - a Steve Stricker, Matt Kuchar or Lee Westwood-type with both experience and skill in abundance.

Wins for those men would be welcomed among their respective fans, but would be unlikely to draw new ones to the game or inspire casual ones enough to stick around for more.

In purely sporting terms, of course, there is absolutely nothing wrong with that - but in commercial terms it is something the powers that be will be desperate to see change.

Golf needs it. Sooner rather than later.

Two holes to decide the US Open

The back nine at Congressional has already attracted despairing comments from professionals, who have admired the setup of the course but are preparing for a bloodbath once they reach the 10th hole on each of the four days. The course has been redesigned significantly since it last hosted the event 14 years ago, and two holes at the heart of that redesign could play decisive roles in crowning the champion on Sunday evening.

10th

The hole: Ernie Els holed out at this hole to win the US Open in 1997, but even he wouldn't recognise it now. Rotated through 180 degrees and moved to the start of the back nine, the par-three is played over water to a green that is wide but very thin, much like the 12th at Augusta National.
The route: A mid-iron into the heart of the green is about the only play worth attempting. Two putts from there will appease most players, what with the water short and bunkers long.
The difficulty:Unlike the 12th at Augusta, this hole is over 200 yards, so the challenge is in some ways magnified. The green slopes back towards the players - meaning any effort short will roll back into the water, while a club too much will leave a pitch downhall back towards the drink that no-one will welcome.

18th

The hole: The 17th hole back in 1997, and the place where Tom Lehman's hopes of victory found a watery grave. A long par-four that doesn't quite play its distance due to a downhill run, the major danger comes from the water that pinches in from the left-hand side of the green and really plays on the mind with the approach shot.
The route: A tee-shot down the right-hand side of the fairway will take advantage of the slope to gain a few yards of run, yet being down the left is arguably better for the approach into the well-guarded green - which has water on the left and sand long and right. A approach short that rolls onto the putting surface is perhaps the best bet.
The difficulty: The slope of the fairway means an even stance for the approach shot is highly unlikely. A ridge in the green makes putting from distance almost impossible, while that water on the left of the green will devour any short that isn't perfectly placed.

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