Fryatt turns in fine Open performance

Monday, Oct. 20, 1997 | 9:23 a.m.

Ever since he turned pro three years ago following a stellar career at UNLV, Edward Fryatt has maintained that he belongs on the PGA Tour. Over the course of four days at Congressional Country Club, Fryatt went out and proved it.

Playing in his first U.S. Open, the 26-year-old Fryatt closed with a 1-under-par 69 and finished tied for 24th place -- and earned $24,174 -- in the 97th U.S. Open at Bethesda, Md.

By beating some of the game's dominant players, such as Justin Leonard, Phil Mickelson, Nick Faldo and Fred Couples, on a difficult course, Fryatt said the experience will serve as a big boost to his confidence.

"This gives me quite a bit of confidence because I played with (Frank) Nobilo (on Saturday) and Paul Broadhurst, who are pretty well-known and good players, and just to see that I can hit it with them and pretty much play with them from tee to green," Fryatt said.

"It's just a matter of getting up to the greens and making some putts now. I just need to get out there and start playing with those guys on a regular basis now. It was definitely a confidence boost to go to the Open and play well -- and not even play your best -- and still have a good finish."

Fryatt's four-round total of 7-over-par 287 was 11 shots off Ernie Els' winning score of 276 and his final-round 69 was the second-lowest score of the day.

"It was not a bad day today but it could have been a lot better," Fryatt said of Sunday's final round. "I had three putts coming in, the last three holes, that could have gone in from about 10 feet. An under-par score in the Open is a pretty good score but the chances were there to shoot lower -- in every round. But that was a good way to finish."

Fryatt, who has finished second on the money list on the Asian PGA Tour the past two years, said the difference between his game and that of, say, Els or runner-up Colin Montgomerie lies in his putter.

"I just need to putt better," the Chaparral High graduate said. "I looked at my stats afterward and my greens in regulation were in the top 10 compared with the rest of the field, as well and my fairways hit ... the putts were where I fell back against the rest of the field.

"It's good, but to get to a higher level it needs to be a little better. I think that's what keeps me from (earning my PGA Tour card) -- that's what I see just in this week. This week was almost like a synopsis of how the last few years have gone through Tour school."