Lake Minnetonka Resident Still in the Hunt at U.S. Open

Lake Minnetonka's own Tim Herron shot a 74 yesterday in the first round of the 112th U.S. Open at the Olympic Club in San Francisco.

Herron enters today's second round tied for 52nd place in the field of more than 150 golfers and eight strokes behind leader Michael Thompson. His +4 bested scores of household names such as Phil Mickelson, Bubba Wattson and Ratief Goosen.

Beginning his round on the back nine, Herron was +1 through his first six holes before bogeying both No. 15 and 16. He hit the green off the tee on the par-three 15 and capitalized for a birdie. He also parred hole No. 1, perhaps the hardest hole in golf. 

Known as "Lumpy" to fans and friends, Herron hit 8-of-14 fairways and averaged just under 1.75 putts per hole while averaging 275 yards off the tee.

Herron, along with Jeff Ogilvie and Stephen Ames, started his round on the back nine behind the group of Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and Bubba Wattson. Herron will again group with Ogilvie and Ames during second round play, and the trio is scheduled to tee of today at 1:29 p.m. Television coverage begins at 11 a.m. on ESPN.

This is Herron's 10th U.S. Open since turning pro in 1993. In 1999 the Lake Minnetonka resident finished 6th at Pinehurst, seven strokes behind champion Payne Stewart. Four months later Stewart died in an airplane accident.

Herron's best U.S. Open round came in 2004 at Shinnecock Hills when he shot a 66 in the second round. He went on to finish tied for 14th place—two strokes better than Tiger Woods and good enough for a $119,000 payday.

Herron, a Wayzata High School graduate and current resident of Deephaven, placed second and shot a -10 during qualifying last weekend at the Village Links of Glen Ellyn outside of Chicago 

Herron, 42, has racked up more than $325,000 in earnings this season. He has earned more than $1 million six times in his career and has raked in nearly $18 million in winnings during his 20-year career. He is currently ranked No. 256 in the world and 112th in the 2012 FedEx Cup Race.

Herron attended the University of New Mexico and turned pro in 1993. He has four PGA Tour victories on his resume, the last coming in 2006, and finished in the top-five three times during the 2011 season to go along with 14 in-the-money finishes out of 28 tournament entries. Most recently he shot a 67 in the third round of this year's Byron Nelson Championship.

Both Herron's father (1963) and grandfather (1934) played in U.S. Opens.