Becoming Open-Minded

Jason Semelsberger has played countless rounds of golf in the past 12 years, but on June 2 he played two rounds in one day that changed his life.

On that sweltering spring afternoon at El Caballero Country Club in Tarzana, Semelsberger’s final putt fell and clinched a spot for the 18-year-old Newhall native in the U.S. Open--arguably the world’s most prestigious and difficult golf tournament.

He scrambled to rearrange his final exams at UCLA, where he is nearing the end of his freshman year. He had to pull out of several tournaments this summer and scheduled others, such as the U.S. Amateur, because U.S. Open qualifiers gain exemptions into them.

He sought advice from friends, family and coaches to prepare for the U.S. Open experience. But no amount of preparation groomed the 1996 Hart High graduate for his arrival at Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Md.

“It’s just amazing,” Semelsberger said from a pay phone near the clubhouse at Congressional. “I’ve dreamed about being here, but actually being here is unreal. I was hitting balls next to Tom Watson, Frank Nobilo and Payne Stewart and in between shots I would pretend I was working on something and just watch them hit.”

Semelsberger, one of six amateurs playing in the Open and the youngest in the 156-player field, will tee off at 12:10 p.m. PDT. He is paired with little-known professionals Anthony Aguilar and Perry Parker, which should help him from getting too star struck. But he has plenty of other things to deal with.

An Internet company requested him for a one-hour, on-line chat session. A security guard took several looks at Semelsberger’s player badge before asking if it was real. Fans request his autograph on hats, balls and programs--then ask his name. And a group of 15-year-old girls took a liking to the handsome young man and trailed him for much of his practice round Tuesday.

Semelsberger hooked up with UCLA alumnus Corey Pavin’s practice group, which included Scott Simpson, the 1987 U.S. Open champion, and Larry Mize, who won the 1987 Masters. Pavin won the 1995 U.S. Open.

“I was so nervous I hooked my first drive and duffed my second shot,” Semelsberger said. “I’m not quite used to all this. I don’t quite feel in sync with the system yet.”

But he will.

Those close to Semelsberger had no doubts he would become a successful golfer, but most had projected a different timeline.

“I envisioned he would make the tour someday, but I did not expect anything this soon,” said Hart golf Coach Dennis Ford, who coached Semelsberger last year.

Ford said this could be the break that sends Semelsberger’s career sailing down the center of the fairway.

“If this doesn’t do a load for his confidence, then something’s wrong,” Ford said. “It usually takes one great success to set someone off--one thing and they’re off to the races.”

UCLA Coach Brad Sherfy said Semelsberger’s ability to handle the disruptive environment at a major tournament separates him from his peers.

“It’s going to be different than he’s ever seen,” said Sherfy, who has played in four U.S. Opens. “But he’s the type of guy who can handle it. He’s not immune to the pressures, but he has a tendency to play up to the competition. He can focus and he’s a very talented young man.”

Semelsberger is even beginning to convince a skeptic.

“He would always talk about becoming a pro golfer and I’d just say ‘Yeah, yeah, yeah.’ ” said Sherrie Semelsberger, Jason’s mother. “But with this U.S. Open thing, I’m starting to have new ideas.”

When Jason called home to tell his parents he had qualified, Sherrie still didn’t believe him.

“I was still incredulous until the paper came out the next day,” she said, laughing. “Not that I doubted his ability. It just seemed like such an impossibility.”

Aside from getting lost several times on the Washington, D.C., freeways, Semelsberger said he is adjusting to the spotlight.

“I’m just trying to be myself,” he said.

Semelsberger’s goal for the week is to shoot par for the tournament, a modest goal on the surface, but not so modest when you consider that Congressional will be the longest course in U.S. Open history (7,213 yards) and is a par-70.

Par is always a good score in the U.S. Open and players are already saying that par might win this year’s tournament.

“I just want to play smart and not try to do anything special,” Semelsberger said. “If I have an opportunity for a birdie then hopefully I can take advantage of it. If I focus on anything other than my game plan then it will take me out of my game.”

It is not out of the question that a qualifier will win the U.S. Open--last year’s champion, Steve Jones, was a qualifier. And Semelsberger has been shooting par more often than not recently. So, what if he wins?

“Just think about how much my life would change then,” Semelsberger said.