Shingo a No Show

This one is a little older then I would have liked, but still signifigant. Plus, I like to think that you get your golf news primarily from this site so maybe you haven't heard.

From ESPN:

Shingo Katayama of Japan has withdrawn from the U.S. Open because of an injury to his upper back.
Katayama is No. 39 in the world ranking, and finished fourth at the Masters in April, two shots out of a playoff. He is the fourth player to withdraw from the U.S. Open, which starts Thursday at Bethpage Black.
He was replaced in the field by 19-year-old David Erdy of Indiana, the first alternate from sectional qualifying in Dayton, Ohio.
Erdy is the 16th amateur in the field, the most amateurs in more than a decade.

This is too bad. I was really impressed with the way Shingo played in the last major event (The Masters), I would have liked to have seen him and his cowboy hat at Bethpage this week. I also find the ammount of amateur's in the field intrieging. Now, do I think that any of them will be in the hunt on Sunday? No. But wouldn't it be a great story if someone was, ala Jack Nicklaus in the early 60's.

Also, in other injury news...

Former Masters champion Trevor Immelman has withdrawn from the U.S. Open because of tendinitis in his left wrist and elbow.
Immelman is the second player from the top 50 in the world to pull out of the U.S. Open, which starts Thursday at Bethpage Black. Robert Karlsson of Sweden withdrew last week because of an eye infection.
Immelman was replaced by Clinton Jensen, the first alternate from sectional qualifying in Florida.

Jordan Lauterbach