Return To Winged Foot Means A Recap Of The Zany 2006 U.S. Open

The last time Winged Foot hosted, Geoff Ogilvy won with an incredible up-and-down at 18 to edge a host of players, including Phil Mickelson and Colin Montgomerie. (Geoff joins Andy Johnson on the Fried Egg podcast to discuss that and other topics, as always a great listen.)

At GolfDigest.com, Joel Beall makes a reasonable case that Phil Mickelson cost himself that U.S. Open with plenty of other shots. But let’s be real, it’s the 18th hole still being discussed 14 years later.

This week on an NBC conference call to discuss next week’s tournament, Roger Maltbie offered this about the moment he witnessed firsthand as on-course commentator:

Well, certainly for some period of time it was as talked about as anything that I've ever witnessed, whether it was Tiger's putt two years later in 2008 that Danny called so well at Torrey Pines or -- good or bad, the question that I received over and over again and I obviously have no answer for is, what was he thinking? I don't know. I don't know. Phil carries that bravado and aggressive style of play with him all the time, but there is a real line there as to what is aggressive, what is bold, and what is foolhardy. And I think he ventured on to the side of foolhardy and tried a shot that, hey, it was not the right decision to make and he paid the price, a big price.

And this from Dan Hicks, who helmed the broadcast alongside Johnny Miller and will do so again this year. He’s also a member at Winged Foot and will bring that extra bit of insight to the proceedings:

I think it's amazing how we're still discussing this 14 years removed. I know it was the last U.S. Open there, but that's how powerful that story was, has remained, and will be until we tee this thing off next week.

Every time -- I got to tell you, every time I have played that 18th hole, and it's hundreds of times since then, whether I'm with fellow members or whether I'm with guests -- first of all guests all want to know where Phil hit it. They ask, where did he go? We get to that 18th hole on the West, everybody wants to know that. But I'm telling you, even the members who have seen it and talked about it a million times, they ask me about it, we talk about it, and we just kind of mutter to ourselves down the fairway thinking exactly what Roger said, what the heck happened? How did it happen and how great is it going to be -- I have said it could be one of the all-time great stories of all time if, at the age of 50, he gets into contention. I think it's just, it just would be right up there maybe almost with Francis Ouimet. It would rival what Tom Watson was trying to do at the age of 59 at The Open Championship. So that's going to dominate.

Thanks to The You Tube, you can be reminded how poorly some standard definition ages and watch that crazy 18th hole scene.

Also, Michael Bamberger and Golf.com reviewed the events, walking the 18th hole with Fox Sports producer Mark Loomis, a longtime member at Winged Foot.

And if you have lots of time, this US Open “classic finish” sets up the finale and gives you a good portion of the last day telecast.