Mighty Oakmont (Part two)

The triumph in Orlando lifted Mickelson back above Jim Furyk to number two in the world rankings, and the 2003 US Open champion is the only other American in the top 10.

Furyk is the last home player to win the title and the last three have gone to an Australian (Ogilvy), a New Zealander (Michael Campbell) and a South African (Retief Goosen).

Goosen also prevailed six years ago at Southern Hills while his compatriot, Ernie Els, will have the fondest memories of the course having won the last time the championship took place here in 1994.

Another US Open followed three years later but it is now nearly five years since the 'Big Easy' captured a big one and his confidence will hardly have been boosted by missing the weekend action at Augusta.

On paper, Adam Scott is the fourth best player in the world but his record in the championship is not the best with three missed cuts and a highest showing of a share of 21st last year. This year he has prospered in Houston but, otherwise, has been steady rather than spectacular.

And what of his countryman and the defending champion Ogilvy? Many will remember last year for the problems at 18 but what should not be forgotten are Ogilvy's brace of superb chips on the last holes as the pressure mounted.

First, at 17, he coaxed his ball into the hole from left of the green before showing remarkable nerve at the last to knock it close from a tight lie and then hole a five-footer.

Since then his game has continued on an upward spiral and he almost defended his WGC Accenture Match Play title only to go down to Henrik Stenson at the 35th hole.

And so to the standard question going in to a Major - can a European finally break the mould? Had Montgomerie not hit one of the worst shots of his career from the middle of the fairway then we could all move on - but he didn't so we're stuck with it.

Going into Winged Foot, nobody really gave the Scot a chance and he so nearly proved everybody wrong. He also came within a whisker here 13 years ago when losing out in a play-off to Els. But maybe, sadly, that was his last chance to compete so we should be looking to the younger generation and the likes of Luke Donald, Sergio Garcia and Stenson as well as the more tried-and-tested Harrington.

Donald will always be earmarked for this event given his ability to hit fairways and, in three attempts, is yet to miss a cut in the championship. The Spaniard contended at Bethpage, tied for third at Pinehurst and closed with rounds of 67 and 66 to finish runner-up at Sawgrass behind Mickelson.

The question that needs answering is whether he can hole enough putts, particularly when the pressure is on, and Oakmont is the toughest place in the world to do that.

As for Stenson, is he cut out for the rigours of a US Open? Well, he made his debut at Winged Foot last year and encouragingly tied for 26th. Harrington is certainly a contender. The Dubliner thrives on being rewarded for scrambling and has four top-10s in this event over the last seven years.

The list of European possibles, annoyingly, is endless. Zach Johnson, and Ben Curtis, Shaun Micheel and Todd Hamilton before him, proved you don't have to be a world beater to win one. What will be required for four days is a very steady putting stroke and if it's even half as dramatic as 12 months ago then we are in for a cracking weekend in Pennsylvania.