US Open: Kenneth Ferrie reflects on a memorable week at Winged Foot in 2006
"Being paired with Phil in the final group in Sunday was the icing on the cake. He was clearly a massive favourite in New York, especially playing with an unheralded two-time winner on the European Tour"
By Keith Jackson
Last Updated: 15/09/20 4:11pm
The remarkable finish to the 2006 US Open may be remembered mostly for the mishaps of Colin Montgomerie and Phil Mickelson, but who had forgotten that Kenneth Ferrie was the 54-hole leader?
The headlines that followed a memorable Sunday at Winged Foot tended to be dominated by Monty and Mickelson both making double-bogey sixes at the 72nd hole to gift the title to Geoff Ogilvy, but for Ferrie, it was all about relishing the experience of playing in the final pairing of the final round alongside a firm fan-favourite with the New Yorkers.
"It's something I get reminded about on a weekly basis, whether it's somebody at the golf club, or just someone I might bump into while out and about," Ferrie told Sky Sports Golf ahead of this week's return to Winged Foot for the 120th US Open.
"It might be over 14 years ago now and that seems like a lifetime, but the memories are still pretty fresh for me."
Ferrie liked the look of the course from the moment he arrived for his US Open debut, and scores of 71, 70 and 71 were arguably three of the finest rounds of his career despite not being under par for each of them. But being two over par was enough to earn a share of the lead with Mickelson on one of the toughest layouts on the rota.
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The Englishman had the knack of finding an extra gear on the big stage, as proved by his win the previous year in the European Open at the K Club, and although his results leading into the second major of the year suggest otherwise, he was happy with his form in the build-up.
"Going into that US Open, I had been playing alright, but my scoring hadn't reflected how I'd been playing. I felt most of my career was like that, to be honest. I was always decent from tee to green, but I did struggle on the greens at times and putting was the weakest part of my game. Obviously if you don't putt well, then you can't score well.
"But I got there and found something. I always enjoyed playing in the bigger events, and many of my best results were in the more high-profile tournaments.
"It was the first time I'd seen Winged Foot, and I really liked it straight away. It suited my eye. It wasn't that long and it was pretty dry from what I remember, so we could get plenty of run on the fairways. The rough was incredibly penal, so it was a proper US Open. Hit the fairways, hit the greens and pars were your friend.
"That's kind of the way I grew up playing golf, I wasn't exactly one of the modern-era big hitters. I describe myself as a 'crossover' player. I learned the game with persimmon, and always valued accuracy over power. My game was all about keeping it on the short grass, hit as many greens as I could, and try to hole a few putts.
"And that's what a typical US Open demands. I shot 70, 71 and 70 - three of my best rounds ever and I didn't break par in any of them! I had got into the world's top 100 the year before, and once you do that you sometimes expect to shoot in the mid-to-low 60s every week.
"But Winged Foot for a US Open was a totally different examination. I wasn't known for my patience, I was certainly a little hot-headed at times on the course. But when I played on a tough golf course like that, I felt I could afford to miss a few putts and not let it rattle me.
"I always felt more pressure when you had to score very well to contend, while at the US Open, I knew if I just holed my fair share of chances, then I'd be okay."
The excitement of playing with Mickelson
Ferrie's third-round 71 was a shot better than playing-partner Ogilvy, and a quick glance at the huge leaderboard overlooking the 18th green confirmed that he could look forward to a Sunday pairing with Mickelson, winner of the previous two majors and the best player in the world at the time.
"I had met him a few times before, albeit briefly at the Scottish Open, which he'd come over and play every year the week before The Open," added Ferrie. "Obviously, I knew who he was, but I doubt he would have had any idea who I was!
"It was clearly a big deal for me to be in Sunday's final pairing for a US Open, particularly with Phil, but I honestly never really got nervous, no matter how big the occasion. It was more about the anticipation and the excitement, and I had a good record playing in front of big crowds in big events.
"I won the European Open at the K Club the year before, and that was one of the biggest tournaments in Europe at that time. I played well in the French Open many times, and the Scottish Open, and I wasn't bad at Wentworth either. I felt like playing in front of a larger gallery on the big stage gave me the chance to show off, to show how good I was.
"I always had the confidence to keep up with the best players in the world. To play in the US Open was a massive thrill, and to make the cut and be in contention at the top of the leaderboard was even bigger. And being paired with Phil in the final group in Sunday was just the icing on the cake. He was clearly a massive favourite in New York, especially playing with an unheralded two-time winner on the European Tour!"
Relishing the magnitude of the occasion rather than being fearful and overwhelmed, Ferrie made a steady start with six straight pars, although he did miss good chances for birdies at the fifth and sixth before a three-putt bogey at the seventh began a run of four dropped shots in five holes.
"The records say I shot a six-over 76 on that final day, and many just looked at my score and assumed I just panicked and got overwhelmed by the enormity of the occasion," said Ferrie, who was one of only a handful of players to par the 18th as he finished in a tie for sixth - three shots behind Ogilvy.
"That annoyed me, because that honestly wasn't the case. I really didn't do much wrong at all. I holed a good putt on the second for par, and I parred the first six holes to stay in contention. But then I three-putted the seventh and eighth, although I did par nine, which was probably the toughest hole on the course.
"I was only two over at the turn, with two three-putts, and I had missed really good birdie chances at the fifth and sixth. I hit my first bad shot at the par-three 10th, and I actually did well to make bogey there, and I missed the fairway at 11 and could only hack it back into play.
"So I've suddenly made four bogeys in five holes, and the tee shot at 10 was the only really bad shot I hit. Even at 11, I was only a yard or two off the fairway, so it wasn't like I was spraying it all over the golf course and scrambling hard on every hole.
"It was a steady round of golf, but it just wasn't meant to be. I was actually happy with how I played, but this was a US Open - the margins are so fine and a yard wide of a fairway or a green can be so costly. Sometimes you get the rub of the green, but I just didn't on that Sunday.
"At least I was one of very few players to make a par at the 18th, and that was just one of those things. With all the carnage going on at the finishing hole, I ripped a driver down the middle, hit nine-iron to 15 feet and two-putted for par. So for me, that hole was an absolute doddle!
"When you reflect on the finish, the double-bogeys at 18 from Monty and Phil were probably the most prominent moments, Padraig Harrington was two under for the round but then bogeyed the last three, and it was Ogilvy who got up and down at the last for par and the win.
"Do I feel like the forgotten man of that US Open Sunday? Well, yes and no. In my mind, I should have been a golfing superstar and a household name, and I should have been paid way more money than I did and won multiple majors! I'm a footnote in what was a memorable tournament. With the names that were up there in contention, not many people really gave me a chance even though I was tied for the lead after 54 holes.
"But there have been many players over the years who have had decent careers, but they've never been a footnote in a major. People remember what they want to remember, and it doesn't bother me.
"I've got my memories, and I was happy to be a part of the story."
