Now, All Eyes Are on Ricky Barnes

Tiger Woods is done for the first two rounds and is +3 overall and a full eleven shots out of the lead of Ricky Barnes.  Woods will tee off relatively early in round three as soon as round two play completes and the cut is made.

To sum up the magnitude of Ricky Barnes' career as a professional - he has never even played in the PGA Championship.  Now, he leads the US Open by a shot and his scoring mark is tied for the best 36 hole score in relationship to par in US Open history.  And he knew that he had it in him.

"Could I have predicted I would shoot 132? No," Barnes said.  "Did I know I had it in me? Yeah. I'm starting to play well. Working hard on my game on and off the golf course."

Ricky Barnes has obviously never led a major before in his career, but he does have major championship experience. 

Remember the splash that he made in 2003 at the Masters as the US Amateur champion?  Barnes finished as low amateur in that tournament and lost to Tiger Woods by just a single stroke.  Paired with Woods again over the first two days at Olympia Fields in the US Open later that summer, he finished T59 as Jim Furyk marched to victory.

Beyond that, Ricky Barnes has not had much luck in majors.  He missed the cut in his other three US Opens, including his last appearance at Oakmont in 2007.

Outside of the two made cuts in 2003 at majors, Ricky Barnes has not made a cut in a major since.  Considering that he was labeled the next big thing after he turned professional later that year, Barnes was upset for several seasons that his potential did not materialize into results.

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't really pissed off the first two or three years. And seeing other guys that you played with getting out there and playing well.  I just thought I'd be on the PGA TOUR a few more times. This is my fifth Open which would probably have suited me about right but I thought I'd just be more of a full-time exempt player on the PGA TOUR."

All told, he seems pretty comfortable with the position in which he has thrusted himself through his play.  "If you would have told me I would have been 8-under and only one shot lead, I would have said, 'You're kidding me,' but I'll take it. It was solid play. And I'm happy with in the position I'm at."