Pairings For 109th U.S. Open Announced; Woods To Tee Off With Reigning Champs

June 12, 2009 3:01 p.m. EST

Farmingdale, NY (AHN) - The United States Golf Association announced Thursday the pairings for next week's U.S. Open with defending champion Tiger Woods being paired with big stars in the opening round groups.

Woods, the current world No.1 in the world will tee off at Bethpage Black with Ireland's Padraig Harrington, winner of the British Open and PGA Championship in his absence last year and Argentina's Angel Cabrera, who captured The Masters in April.

The current pairings is a departure from the format adapted last year at Torrey Pines where the first-and second-round pairings were based on the Official World Golf Rankings.

This time, the USGA opted to go with the three reigning major champions.

Sentimental favorite and world No. 2 Phil "Lefty" Mickelson will tee off with previous competitors Ernie Els and Retief Goosen, both from South Africa.

At the 2004 Masters, Mickelson edged Els by one shot for his first major victory, while Goosen defeated him at the U.S. Open, staged on Long Island also on the same year.

Mickelson, whose wife is currently battling cancer, decided to play the U.S. Open last week.

The rest of the groupings in the 152-player field features interesting denominators like mixture of countries and even identical surnames.

In one grouping, Fiji's Vijay Singh was paired with India's Jeev Milka Singh (no relation) and South Korea's K.J. Choi.

Spain's Miguel Angel Jimenez will tee off with Argentina's Eduardo Romero and another Argentine, Andres Romero (no relation).

Denmark's Soren Kjeldsen was put in a group with fellow countryman Soren Hansen and Sweden's Peter Hanson.

Thomas Levet, Jean-Francois Lucquin and Raphael Jacquelin, meanwhile, comprise the All-France threesome.

The long hitters were also lumped in a group with Nick Watney joining J.B. Holmes and Alvaro Quiros

Sergio Garcia joins good friends Camilo Villegas and Adam Scott in a group.

Last year's runner Rocco Mediate, who lost the 19th hole playoff to eventual champion Woods, will play the first two rounds with Kenny Perry and Tom Lehman, both of whom missed last year's Open.