Rockville Centre's Turnesa shoots 76

BETHESDA, Md. -- Every golfer wants to make a splash at the U.S. Open, but not like this. Before he had the chance to take a deep breath in his first U.S. Open, Marc Turnesa of Rockville Centre was submerged. The first shot he ever hit in the national championship, at just after 7 a.m. Thursday, went right into the pond in front of the 10th green.

"It's a brutal hole to start on. Especially in the morning, nobody is looking forward to that tee shot," said the fourth-year PGA Tour pro who, like most golfers, has been looking forward to the Open his entire life. He made double bogey 5 on that first hole.

Turnesa finished much better than he began, playing his second nine (the front nine at Congressional Country Club) in par 36 to complete his first Open day with a 5-over par 76.

"I had fun out there. I got off to a tough start. That took some of the fun out of it, but nevertheless it was a great day," he said.

Because the U.S. Golf Association rerouted Congressional's holes in order to make a dramatic finishing hole, the 10th is now a 218-yard par 3, over a massive water hazard. And because of time considerations, half the field begins on No. 10 every day. Turnesa was in the first group and hit the first of numerous water balls.

Phil Mickelson was among those who had said that beginning on a par 3 is really all that bad, but he also began his day with a rinse and a double bogey.

Turnesa considered hitting a 5-iron, which most players would do later, then chose to hit a 4. "I just tried to loft it up there a little bit. I lofted it up but I just came out of it and missed in the wrong place," he said. He also double-bogeyed 14, made bogey on 18, then played very well after the turn -- nine pars.

So how did that happen? "Because I didn't have any other 210-yard par 3s over water," he said.

His solid finish was appreciated by a veteran club pro in the gallery, his father, Mike Jr. "I'd say it was somewhat nerve wracking, and at the same time I was kind of excited he was playing in his first U.S. Open," said the man who drove back to Long Island late Thursday to host a member-guest at his club, Rockville Links.

"I think in the beginning, he might have been a little uptight, then he settled in and made a ton of pars," Mike Jr. said. "He just had two bad holes. Otherwise, he played nicely."