Kroichick: U.S. Open wrap, tell Tiger to shut up

Some final U.S. Open observations while tripping over fallen golfers on our way out of Del Monte Forest:

-- Tiger Woods remains the game's most riveting show, even in defeat. No player routinely seizes the moment the way he did again Saturday, when he finished with three consecutive birdies -- punctuated by his breathtaking 3-wood shot around one tree, along the coastline and onto the 18th green (the shot of the tournament).

Woods when he opens his mouth: Not so riveting. Not so appealing, either.

First he called Pebble Beach's greens "awful" after his opening-round 74 -- even if other players agreed, it came off as shameless excuse making. Then, after his final-round 75, he dropped hints of discontent with caddie Steve Williams and whiffed on an obvious chance to commend winner Graeme McDowell.

Woods suggested he had the wrong club on the No. 6 tee (3-wood instead of 2-iron or 3-iron) and explained his bogey on No. 10 by saying he shouldn't have fired his approach shot at the flagstick, but "Steve said take dead aim right at it, and in my heart I said no. There was no chance."

At least he acknowledged he took an "awful swing." But by bringing Williams into the conversation, Woods made it sound as if he were shifting blame, an enduring habit.

One last point: When Woods was asked if he was surprised a more marquee player didn't win the Open, the gracious move would have included congratulating McDowell. Phil Mickelson fielded virtually the same question by saying McDowell is a solid player and his peers weren't surprised he won.

Woods pointed to the USGA's Mike Davis as giving "more guys the chance to win. It's more open now, with the graduated rough and being firm and fast like this."

He's right, but would it have been so hard to mention McDowell?

-- No offense to the new champion -- who handled his crowning moment with grace and good humor -- but can you even imagine the buzz-less atmosphere and empty grandstands if McDowell and Gregory Havret had an 18-hole playoff Monday? NBC might have set a new low in television ratings.

And the argument for abandoning the USGA playoff format -- in favor of sudden death or a same-day, three-hole playoff -- would have gained fresh momentum.

-- Speaking of TV ratings, Sunday's numbers were 35 percent higher than last year's Sunday telecast from Bethpage (where rain pushed the ending to Monday). This year's final round stretched deeper into prime time in the East, and it obviously helped to have Woods, Mickelson and Ernie Els all in the hunt on the back nine.

-- The outbreak of triple bogeys on No. 14, after a rash of quadruple bogeys at the AT&T in February, makes it clear: Pebble Beach officials need to blow up that green and start over.

-- If Dustin Johnson never wins a major -- hard to picture, given his length off the tee -- he will forever regret his final-round meltdown at Pebble. He would have won by shooting 76 and forced a playoff by shooting 77. Instead, he shot 82 and didn't even have a chance coming down the stretch. Yikes.

-- Three players posted rounds of 66 -- and the winning score still landed at even par. And McDowell didn't even shoot any of those 66s.

-- Four of the past five major champions have been first-timers, from Lucas Glover (2009 U.S. Open) and Stewart Cink ('09 British Open), to Y.E. Yang ('09 PGA) and McDowell. This shows golf's ever-expanding depth -- there are a lot of good players out there -- and offers another obstacle to Woods as he tries to surpass Jack Nicklaus' record of 18 major titles.

-- On that subject, Sir Eldrick now has gone two years without a major. If he fails to win next month's British Open at St. Andrews, it will be natural to wonder if Nicklaus' record is safe.

The call here: Woods wins at St. Andrews. And if he doesn't, he can always blame his caddie.

E-mail Ron Kroichick at rkroichick(at)sfchronicle.com.

(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)

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