Casey Martin, left, watches as Tiger Woods uses Martin's putter on the fifth hole during a practice round for the U.S. Open Championship golf tournament Tuesday, June 12, 2012, at The Olympic Club in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
June 12, 2012 - 3:09 PM
SAN FRANCISCO - Tiger Woods can't stop talking about how the U.S. Open presents the toughest test of the year.
If that's the case, then how he fares at The Olympic Club could go a long way in helping him figure out how close he is to returning to the top of golf.
Woods is coming off his second win of the year at the Memorial, where he rallied from a four-shot deficit in the final round. That made him the betting favourite to win his fourth U.S. Open title. Then again, Woods was coming off a win in his last start before the Masters, and he was never a factor.
He will be playing with Phil Mickelson and Masters champion Bubba Watson when the championship starts Thursday.
News from © The Associated Press, 2012