Local Teen to Play in U.S. Open Golf Tournament

He is only 16. A sophomore at Santa Margarita Catholic. He plays golf on his school team, and he was good enough to be on the Orange County Register's All-County team. Not the first team, the second team.

But Beau Hossler is The Man this week—and next—because of what he did on Monday. He earned one of five qualifying berths available in a Sectional Qualifier at Oakmont Country Club in Glendale. With his performance, he has played his way into the U.S. Open at Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, MD.

It's a tournament that annually focuses on degree of difficulty, the kind that has pro golfers cursing the course and not always under their breath. No matter where it is played, it is notorious for being challenging.

The Open is the event championship for the United States Golf Assn., and about half the field is made up of players who must qualify; the others are made up of highly ranked professionals and money winners, and recent champions—players such as Phil Mickelson and Rory McIlroy (Tiger Woods isn't playing because of injuries).

Hossler's last day of school is Friday. He tees it up at the U.S. Open six days later, on June 16.

Hossler tied for third place in the qualifier at Oakmont. Over 36 holes, which were completed Monday, he shot a four-under par 138. There were 88 golfers, and the two who finished ahead of Hossler were Steve Irwin, son of three-time U.S. Open champion Hale Irwin, and Scott Pickney, a graduate of Arizona State who played for its golf team.

To put the Mission Viejo teenager's performance in perspective, he finished higher than Charlie Wi, who is ranked 107th in the world. A PGA Tour regular, Wi carded a 143, five strokes more than Hossler.

Around the country, at the 11 qualifiers played nationwide, there were some really big names in the sport that didn't qualify: former U.S. Open champions Steve Jones, Tom Kite and Lee Janzen, as well as notable major winners David Duval and Justin Leonard.

All Hossler wanted to do this year was to play in the U.S. Junior and U.S. Amateur tournaments. Instead, he's going to be playing with the big boys in an event that is one the sport's four major tournaments. The others are the Masters, the British Open (also known as the Open Championship) and the PGA Championship.

Now, Hossler will get a once in a lifetime opportunity to swing on a national stage.

Unless, of course, it's the first of several lifetime opportunities. He has a lot of golf ahead of him.