Charl Schwartzel watched his tee shot at the 15th hole bounce barely into the rough during last Thursday's opening round of the U.S. Open. Barely into the rough? At Oakmont, that was the golfing equivalent of Texas Hold 'Em's all-in. Hit a shot anywhere in the deep stuff, and you had a problem. "It was the worst lie I've seen in my life," Schwartzel said, laughing one of those it wasn't-actually-funny laughs. The upshot? "I hit a full-blooded lob wedge that went about 10 yards."
That was Schwartzel's unofficial Welcome to Oakmont moment, when the course first landed a blow that drew blood. And the 15th, which was Schwartzel's sixth hole of the day because he started on 10, wasn't through with him. After he hit his third shot to the middle of the green, about 25 feet from the hole, his par- saving putt all but waved bye-bye as it picked up speed and raced 15 feet past the cup.
What happened? "I left my sunglasses on," said an embarrassed Schwartzel. "I didn't see the slope well and hit it completely the wrong speed."
He missed the comebacker, making a double bogey that put him four over par. That's not how you want to start the U.S. Open, especially when you're the guy many aficionados predict will be the game's Next Big Thing. From that point on, however, Schwartzel played like a budding star, salvaging a five-over 75 and then shooting a 73 on Friday to make the cut with two shots to spare. "It's nice to make the cut in the Open," he said, "but that's not my goal." Schwartzel kept battling on the weekend with rounds of 73 and 76, and finished 30th, second among the South Africans, behind Tim Clark (17th) but ahead of Ernie Els and Rory Sabbatini (who were tied at 51st).
A shy, soft-spoken Johannesburg native who turned pro almost five years ago, the 22-year-old Schwartzel has drawn comparisons with Els. Although Els is three inches taller and at least 50 pounds heavier than the rail-thin, six foot- tall Schwartzel, both players have classic, flowing swings and easygoing personalities and have had successful seasons in Europe. Schwartzel remains in stealth mode in the U.S. even though he won the Spanish Open in April and climbed to 46th in the World Ranking, which qualified him for the Players Championship (a 58th-place finish), the Memorial (62nd), next month's British Open and the Bridgestone Invitational in August. He passed on the Accenture Match Play in February —Schwartzel would've drawn Els in the first round.to return to South Africa and lock up his third straight money title on the Sunshine tour, where he has two career victories.
