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Can't see Tiger in the crowd? Try a Sportscope.
FARMINGDALE, N.Y. -- Picture this. You fly in from out of town to go to the 109th U.S. Open. You get out to soggy Bethpage State Park and trek through the swamp to watch Tiger Woods hit a few golf shots. But, alas, you are not alone.
Depending on how early you got up to make the trip to the course, you are one of hundreds of people trying to get a glimpse of the best golfers in the world. And if that is the case, good luck getting to see Tiger from the back of a 10-deep crowd lining the green, fairway or tee box.
So, instead, you just run along with the pack and react second-hand after hearing the cheers or jeers from the crowd in front of you.
Golf fans, there are other ways!
Plenty of people at Bethpage got a better view of the action, no matter how far back in the crowd they were.
First, you can stake out positions ahead of time and wait for Tiger to arrive. On a day like Saturday, when he did not tee off until 10:06 a.m. ET, this does not require you to get up at the crack of dawn.
Mike Elton and Tara Calton, both from Baltimore, enacted this plan. They arrived at Bethpage at 9:30 and headed straight out to the far reaches of the course. Tiger was starting on No. 10, one of the farthest points from the clubhouse, so they allowed time for the walk.
"We thought about stopping at [the 14th hole] but came to 12 because we figured it was far enough ahead of him," Elton said.
They were right. They had the grandstand to themselves and watched as, within half an hour, the seats around them were filled.
But the plan worked. They had front-row seats as Tiger came up on the par-4 12th, and they watched him save par.
When asked, as they were running ahead to try to do it all over again, if it was worth it for that one hole, they both said, "Absolutely."
Second, you can visit the American Express Championship Experience tent near the practice tee and walk away with a device that can bring the tournament to the palm of your hand. As a card member, you just sign up and get a hand-held TV to use for the day, free.
Instead of craning his neck or standing on his tiptoes, Pat Carroll of Kings Park, N.Y., hung out away from the crowd behind the 12th green and watched on TV what Elton and Calton saw first-hand.
But why would you come all the way out to the golf course and watch on TV what you could try to see with your own eyes?
"Because it was free," Carroll said. "But, also, I can see a lot more with this than I could on my own."
Finally, if watching a hand-held TV robs you of the experience of actually being at the course, then the Sportscope is for you.
Manufactured by the Mickelson Group, Inc. (yeah, that Mickelson; well, his father) the Sportscope is a metal, hand-held periscope that sticks straight up in the air, and is used to see over crowds like, say, ones you would have at a golf tournament.
Mary Lopuszynski, the director of licensing of the USGA and U.S. Open Merchandising, said that they usually sell between 600-800 scopes per Open. Last year, at Torrey Pines, mostly thanks to the Tiger-Phil pairing in Rounds 1 and 2, between 1100 and 1200 Sportscopes were sold. Phil's dad even spends time in the merchandise tent selling his product.
On the course, the customer reviews were unanimous.
"We didn't miss a shot," Janis Gemma of Las Vegas said of watching Woods play Friday morning.
She and her husband, Joe, have been using the Sportscopes since 2003, when they bought their first at the Bank of America Colonial in Fort Worth, Texas. They swear by it, particularly when they want to see Tiger.
"With him, there's no other way," Joe Gemma said. "In my opinion, he's the best athlete in our generation, and I wouldn't be able to see him without this."
The Gemmas are golf enthusiasts. For other fans, like Ron Ferguson of Clementon, N.J., who were at their first tournament, the Sportscope was a novel idea.
"I bought it today because I couldn't see [Woods] earlier [in the week]," Ferguson explained. "I was too short!"
Ferguson tried to watch the world No. 1 on Friday, but it was hard to catch a glimpse of him. Unless you're 6-6, it is nearly impossible to see over the crowds. The Sportscope takes care of all that, and with its ability to zoom, fans can watch players come up an entire hole, like, for example, the 605-yard, par-5 13th on the Black Course, where Ferguson was stationed Saturday morning.
So, do not despair when faced with a large gallery between you and the action. Stake out a grandstand, use a portable TV, try the Sportscope or come up with something new. Do whatever it takes to get a glimpse of Tiger.