Champion decides to defend

In the draw sheet for Thursday's first round of the US Open are two names no one expected to see included.

Both are major champions who have been idle, in the competitive sense, for a number of months, one by choice, the other because of injury. Yet, all going well, David Duval and Jim Furyk will tee it up in the season's second major here and, to be honest, no one knows what fate awaits either of them.

Duval has stayed away from tournament play for seven months, after the worst stretch of his professional career. A former world number one, but now languishing in 434th place, Duval has decided to resume playing at the US Open in conditions that are traditionally the most difficult in golf, with tight fairways, fast greens and penalising rough.

"There'll be 156 players there and I guarantee I'll be the one having the most fun," said Duval. "I'm ready to go play. I would have loved to have played some other tournaments but it just didn't work out. I just didn't want to miss the US Open, I love Shinnecock Hills."

If Duval's return comes as something of a surprise, so too does that of Furyk, the winner at Olympia Fields last year. Less than three months after the wrist surgery that it was felt would keep him out of the game until as late as the Ryder Cup, Furyk arrived on Sunday to play nine holes and again tested the wrist with a full practice round yesterday.

Furyk has not played in a tournament since the March 22nd operation to repair torn cartilage in his left wrist, which forced him to miss the US Masters. At the time, Furyk said he was willing to be patient.

"Well, it is difficult to say that I am ready to play, considering I haven't played for six months and I am going to tee it up at Shinnecock for the US Open. I'm not 'ready to play' by that standard and I don't know when the right time to start is.

"I really thought I would be ready by the Western Open (which takes place in two weeks), and I didn't think this was going to happen. But my practice went really well at home and led me to believe maybe there was a chance.

"The fact that I'm defending champion and that I won't have that opportunity too often made me think. Had it been just another event, I probably would have waited another week or two just to make sure I knew I was fine. Right now, I don't know if it is.

"I'm not going to do anything rash either, or make an unintelligent decision. I know one thing: I'm not going to injure it unless I go in there and do something violent in the long rough, which I'm not going to do," said Furyk.

"I could come out here Wednesday and it could be very painful. That would be the key for me to say, 'hey, it's not the right time to start'. If that's the case, I'll withdraw and give someone else the spot. I have to play it by ear . . . last year I came in trying to win, this year I'm just trying to start - and finish."

Furyk tied the US Open scoring record of 272 when winning by three shots at Olympia Fields last year from Stephen Leaney.