Sky 25 Drone: A flyover of The Country Club in Brookline Sky 25 Drone: Final preparations underway for the 2022 Us Open at The Country Club in Brookline

By Frank O'Laughlin, Boston 25 News Staff

BROOKLINE, Mass. — The 2022 U.S. Open Championship kicks off at The Country Club in Brookline on Thursday with a slew of star golfers teeing it up on the pristine course.

Rory McIlroy, just days removed from a victory at the RBC Canadian Open, headlines the field, along with defending champion John Rahm, Masters winner Scottie Scheffler, and PGA Championship winner Justin Thomas.

Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson are also in the field. They are among a group of suspended PGA Tour players who recently made the jump to the Saudi-backed LIV Golf Series.

RELATED: Mickelson ‘excited’ to be back in Mass. for U.S. Open amid outrage over decision to join LIV Golf

Groups of three golfers will tee off on hole 1 and hole 10 in rounds one and two on Thursday and Friday.

The list below highlights all the pairings:

Thursday (June 16), Hole #1 / Friday (June 17), Hole #10

6:45 a.m./12:30 p.m. – (a) Michael Thorbjornsen, Wellesley, Mass.; Erik Barnes, Marion, Ind.; Matt McCarty, Scottsdale, Ariz.

6:56 a.m./12:41 p.m. – Matthew NeSmith, Aiken, S.C.; Patrick Rodgers, Jupiter, Fla.; (a) Travis Vick, Hunters Creek Village, Texas

7:07 a.m./12:52 p.m. – Troy Merritt, Eagle, Idaho; (a) William Mouw, Chino, Calif.; Andrew Putnam, University Place, Wash.

7:18 a.m./1:03 p.m. – Collin Morikawa, La Canada, Calif.; James Piot, Canton, Mich.; Jon Rahm, Spain

7:29 a.m./1:14 p.m. – Jordan Spieth, Dallas, Texas; Adam Scott, Australia; Max Homa, Valencia, Calif.

7:40 a.m./1:25 p.m. – Billy Horschel, Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.; Patrick Cantlay, Jupiter, Fla.; Daniel Berger, Jupiter, Fla.

7:51 a.m./1:36 p.m. – Harold Varner III, Gastonia, N.C.; Sebastián Muñoz, Colombia; Alex Norén, Sweden

8:02 a.m./1:47 p.m. – Joaquin Niemann, Chile; Cameron Young, Scarsborough, N.Y.; Will Zalatoris, Dallas, Texas

8:13 a.m./1:58 p.m. – Adam Schenk, Vincennes, Ind.; (a) Stewart Hagestad, Newport Beach, Calif.; Grayson Murray, Raleigh, N.C.

8:24 a.m./2:09 p.m. – Guido Migliozzi, Italy; Branden Grace, South Africa; Mackenzie Hughes, Canada

8:35 a.m./2:20 p.m. – Beau Hossler, Mission Viejo, Calif.; Kalle Samooja, Finland; Satoshi Kodaira, Japan

8:46 a.m./2:31 p.m. – Richard Mansell, England; Tomoyasu Sugiyama, Japan; Roger Sloan, Canada

8:57 a.m./2:42 p.m. – (a) Caleb Manuel, Topsham, Maine; Keith Greene, DeBary, Fla.; Ben Silverman, Juno Beach, Fla.

Thursday (June 16), Hole #10 / Friday (June 17), Hole #1

6:45 a.m./12:30 p.m. – Fran Quinn, Holden, Mass.; Callum Tarren, England; Hayden Buckley, Tupelo, Miss.

6:56 a.m./12:41 p.m. – Kurt Kitayama, Las Vegas, Nev.; Denny McCarthy, Rockville, Md.; (a) Sam Bennett, Madisonville, Texas

7:07 a.m./12:52 p.m. – Wyndham Clark, Denver, Colo.; Brandon Matthews, Dupont, Pa.; Wil Besseling, Netherlands

7:18 a.m./1:03 p.m. – David Lingmerth, Sweden; Sepp Straka, Austria; Si Woo Kim, Republic of Korea

7:29 a.m./1:14 p.m. – Scott Stallings, Worcester, Mass.; Davis Riley, Hattiesburg, Miss.; Victor Perez, France

7:40 a.m./1:25 p.m. – Rory McIlroy, Northern Ireland; Hideki Matsuyama, Japan; Xander Schauffele, San Diego, Calif.

7:51 a.m./1:36 p.m. – Kevin Kisner, Aiken, S.C.; Russell Henley, Columbus, Ga.; Brian Harman, Sea Island, Ga.

8:02 a.m./1:47 p.m. – Keegan Bradley, Woodstock, Vt.; Marc Leishman, Australia; Aaron Wise, Jupiter, Fla.

8:13 a.m./1:58 p.m. – Francesco Molinari, Italy; (a) Laird Shepherd, England; Stewart Cink, Atlanta, Ga.

8:24 a.m./2:09 p.m. – Marcel Schneider, Germany; Chan Kim, Gilbert, Ariz.; Joseph Bramlett, Las Vegas, Nev.

8:35 a.m./2:20 p.m. – Lanto Griffin, Blacksburg, Va.; Joel Dahmen, Clarkston, Wash.; Jinichiro Kozuma, Japan

8:46 a.m./2:31 p.m. – Chris Gotterup, Little Silver, N.J.; (a) Fred Biondi, Brazil; Harry Hall, England

8:57 a.m./2:42 p.m. – Chris Naegel, Wildwood, Mo.; Andrew Beckler, Topeka, Kan.; Luke Gannon, Wichita, Kan.

Thursday (June 16), Hole #1 / Friday (June 17), Hole #10

12:30 p.m./6:45 a.m. – Kevin Chappell, Scottsdale, Ariz.; Chase Seiffert, Panama City Beach, Fla.; Andrew Novak, St. Simons Island, Ga.

12:41 p.m./6:56 a.m. – Thorbjørn Olesen, Denmark; Brian Stuard, Jackson, Mich.; Nick Hardy, Northbrook, Ill.

12:52 p.m./7:07 a.m. – Sam Horsfield, England; Cameron Tringale, Juno Beach, Fla.; Shaun Norris, South Africa

1:03 p.m./7:18 a.m. – Sungjae Im, Republic of Korea; Mito Pereira, Chile; Erik van Rooyen, South Africa

1:14 p.m./7:29 a.m. – Justin Thomas, Louisville, Ky.; Viktor Hovland, Norway; Tony Finau, Salt Lake City, Utah

1:25 p.m./7:40 a.m. – Joohyung Kim, Republic of Korea; Séamus Power, Republic of Ireland; Min Woo Lee, Australia

1:36 p.m./7:51 a.m. – Matt Fitzpatrick, England; Webb Simpson, Charlotte, N.C.; Dustin Johnson, Jupiter, Fla.

1:47 p.m./8:02 a.m. – Phil Mickelson, Rancho Santa Fe, Calif.; Shane Lowry, Republic of Ireland; Louis Oosthuizen, South Africa

1:58 p.m./8:13 a.m. – Danny Lee, New Zealand; (a) Keita Nakajima, Japan; Nick Taylor, Canada

2:09 p.m./8:24 a.m. – Jim Furyk, Jacksonville, Fla.; (a) Nick Dunlap, Huntsville, Ala.; Adam Hadwin, Canada

2:20 p.m./8:35 a.m. – Richard Bland, England; Rikuya Hoshino, Japan; Ryan Fox, New Zealand

2:31 p.m./8:46 a.m. – Jonas Blixt, Sweden; Bo Hoag, Columbus, Ohio; Todd Sinnott, Australia

2:42 p.m./8:57 a.m. – Isaiah Salinda, South San Francisco, Calif.; Sean Jacklin, Scotland; (a) Charles Reiter, Palm Desert, Calif.

Thursday (June 16), Hole #10 / Friday (June 17), Hole #1

12:30 p.m./6:45 a.m. – Jed Morgan, Australia; Taylor Montgomery, Las Vegas, Nev.; Sean Crocker, Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.

12:41 p.m./6:56 a.m. – (a) Maxwell Moldovan, Uniontown, Ohio; Yannik Paul, Germany; M.J. Daffue, South Africa

12:52 p.m./7:07 a.m. – Talor Gooch, Edmond, Okla.; Adri Arnaus, Spain; Tom Hoge, Fargo, N.D.

1:03 p.m./7:18 a.m. – Kevin Na, Las Vegas, Nev.; Sergio Garcia, Spain; Tyrrell Hatton, England

1:14 p.m./7:29 a.m. – Sam Burns, Shreveport, La.; Abraham Ancer, Mexico; Thomas Pieters, Belgium

1:25 p.m./7:40 a.m. – Brooks Koepka, West Palm Beach, Fla.; Cameron Smith, Australia; Scottie Scheffler, Dallas, Texas

1:36 p.m./7:51 a.m. – Luke List, Augusta, Ga.; (a) Austin Greaser, Vandalia, Ohio; Corey Conners, Canada

1:47 p.m./8:02 a.m. – Gary Woodland, Topeka, Kan.; Justin Rose, England; Bryson DeChambeau, Dallas, Texas

1:58 p.m./8:13 a.m. – K.H. Lee, Republic of Korea; Tommy Fleetwood, England; Patrick Reed, The Woodlands, Texas

2:09 p.m./8:24 a.m. – Jason Kokrak, Hudson, Ohio; Harris English, Sea Island, Ga.; Lucas Herbert, Australia

2:20 p.m./8:35 a.m. – Sam Stevens, Wichita, Kan.; (a) Ben Lorenz, Peoria, Ariz.; Davis Shore, Knoxville, Tenn.

2:31 p.m./8:46 a.m. – Daijiro Izumida, Japan; (a) Adrien Dumont de Chassart, Belgium; Sebastian Söderberg, Sweden

2:42 p.m./8:57 a.m. – Ryan Gerard, Raleigh, N.C.; Brady Calkins, Chehalis, Wash.; Jesse Mueller, Phoenix, Ariz.

To see a list of road closures, traffic detours, and parking options in and around Brookline, click here.

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Residents of Beefield on James Island want their community placed on the Charleston County Historic District.

JAMES ISLAND, S.C. (WCSC) - The Beefield community on James Island is small, but the people make up a tight-knit and passionate neighborhood with a lot of stories.

Community president George Richardson says between the military events, a sense of community and peaceful nature, it’s more important than ever to preserve Beefield’s history. To that end, he and his neighbors came out to a county meeting Tuesday night to make their voice heard.

“Because when you start walking the dirt road, we’re all in the woods or the trees. It’s almost like you’re in another world. And just beyond that, the Folly Road we’re all in traffic running up and down Folly Beach, you forget all about that is like stepping into another time is peaceful. And that’s what my community loves,” Richardson says.

The “Bee Tract” is almost 60 acres of land on James Island off Folly Road at Battery Island Drive. Richardson says it is the site of important Civil War history including the 1862 Battle of Secessionville and an 1864 third Assault on James Island.

It is also part of an African American remnant freedman community.

“You drive down battery Island drive, which is along the stream, you’ll notice that every house has at least two oak trees in the front yard, and they’re draped in one straight line from one end to the other end,” he says. “You know, and we like that. We sit on our porch and we yell over to each other and that kind of thing.”

The South Carolina Battleground Preservation Trust says the archeological significance from battles is there and has been well preserved so far. Most of the land has been passed down to family members since they bought it in 1872.

Justin Schwebler, property manager for the Historic Charleston Foundation, says the status is an extra layer of protection and recognition for the people and their land.

“Basically, what that does is creating a process properties boundary around these original parcels of the historic district gives them an extra layer of protection against inappropriate development, things like that. So if anybody wants to come into the community change uses build a highway or something or build a hotel or restaurants,” Schwebler says.

The planning and public works committee will have a meeting about the Beefield land on April 21 and a proposal will come back for Charleston County Council to consider on April 26.

Copyright 2022 WCSC. All rights reserved.

Come Thursday at the U.S. Open, the reality of golf’s new world order will play out at The Country Club. Eleven golfers who participated in the debut last week of the LIV Golf Invitational series—including former U.S. Open winner Dustin Johnson and six-time runner-up Phil Mickelson—will be competing at Brookline, the USGA deciding to let them play even as seven of them have been suspended from competing on the PGA Tour. The potential for awkwardness is high.

In turn, the question many have is how will the USGA handle threesome pairings as the renegades return. Who will Mickelson play with as he makes his first appearance in a PGA Tour-sanctioned event since February? Will James Piot, the U.S. Amateur champion who has turned pro and played over in London last week, find himself in a traditional threesome with Jon Rahm and Collin Morikawa, the reigning U.S. Open and Open Championship winners? Or is something else in store?

Interestingly, the USGA often has made a habit of trying to get creative when it comes to early round tee times. Pairings of past winners of USGA events are frequent, but sometimes officials get even a little more esoteric. In 2013, before the ban on anchored putting, there was a pairing of three major winners who used long putters (Adam Scott, Keegan Bradley and Webb Simpson). Threesomes of long drivers seem to happen every year. College alums or international brethren find a way of being grouped together. And famously when the U.S. Open was previously held at Torrey Pines in 2008, the USGA went ahead and paired the No. 1, 2 and 3 players in the world—Tiger Woods, Mickelson and Adam Scott.

So what’s in store for this year at The Country Club? Tee times have yet to be announced, so we’re waiting to find out. Below is the field as of Sunday, the latest play in being David Lingmerth, who replaced Martin Kaymer when the 2014 U.S. Open winner withdrew on Saturday due to injury.

Players will be competing in threesomes off the first and 10th tees during the first and second rounds next Thursday and Friday. Check back here closer to the championship and we’ll have them posted as soon as they go live.

2: From the 2021 U.S. Open, the 10 lowest scorers and anyone tying for 10th place

5: Winners of the 2021 U.S. Junior Amateur & U.S. Mid-Amateur and the 2021 U.S. Amateur runner-up (must be an amateur)

8: Winners of The Open Championship the last five years (2017-21)

12: Multiple winners of PGA Tour events that award a full-point allocation (June 2021-June 2022)

13: Winner of the 2021 British Amateur (must be an amateur)

14: Winner of the 2021 Mark H. McCormack Medal (top-ranked in WAGR, must be an amateur)

16: From the four-event U.S. Open 2022 European Qualifying Series (Betfred British Masters, Soudal Open, Dutch Open and Porsche European Open), the top 10 aggregate point earners that are not otherwise exempt

17: From the 2020-21 Asian Tour Final Order of Merit, the top finisher who is not otherwise exempt as of May 23

18: From the 2021-22 ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia Final Order of Merit, the top finisher who is not otherwise exempt as of May 23

19: From the 2021-22 Sunshine Tour Order of Merit, the leading player who is not otherwise exempt as of May 23

20: Top-60 point leaders and ties from the current Official World Golf Ranking as of May 23, 2022

21: Top-60 point leaders and ties from the current Official World Golf Ranking as of June 6, 2022

The firing of Monte Lee as Clemson’s head baseball coach last week sent shockwaves through the college baseball world. Among those directly affected are the current members of the program, but also future players that have already signed or verbally committed to the program.

Two players from the Lowcountry are among those who pledged to play for Lee at Clemson. James Island catcher Hogan Garner, who just graduated from high school, already has signed his national letter-of-intent.

Berkeley junior outfielder Jackson Proctor committed to Lee and to Clemson as a freshman and has been patiently waiting for his college opportunity. Proctor helped lead Berkeley to the Class AAAAA state championship last week, hitting seven home runs with 33 RBI in 2022.

“I wasn’t happy about it (the firing),” Proctor said. “One of the main reasons I chose Clemson was coach Lee. I loved the way he coached and he was a player’s coach. The way he reacted with his team, he would lift with them, take batting practice with them. He was a guy I wanted to play for.”

While disappointed with Lee’s firing, Proctor understands that college athletics is a business. He remains committed to Clemson, having grown up a fan of the school’s athletic teams. Things, however, are on pause.

“I have no idea what will happen, if the new coach will even want me,” said Proctor, a Class AAAAA all-state selection this season. “A lot really depends on who the new coach is. I’m keeping an open mind. I am not making a quick decision. I will just wait and see what happens. I know Clemson is the place I want to be. Just be patient and see how it all plays out.”

Garner, like Proctor, committed to Lee and Clemson as a freshman. This past spring, he led James Island in hitting with a .443 average, belting seven home runs with 41 RBI. He also went 6-0 on the mound with one save. Garner is a Class AAAA all-state selection and was chosen to play in the SC select all-star game on June 1-2. He also was named the region 7-AAAA player of the year.

Numerous attempts to reach Garner since Lee’s firing were unsuccessful. He is expected to report to Clemson on June 25.

JAMES ISLAND — The sale is complete for a piece of waterfront property between a suburban subdivision and a collection of marine labs, and there’s high hopes the state could turn the property into a centerpiece park.

In June, a group of lawmakers announced they intended to bid on a 23-acre property at the end of Fort Johnson Road inhabited by the Sisters of Charity of Our Lady of Mercy. The congregation of nuns dates back nearly two centuries in Charleston.

The announcement was a surprise at the time.

State Sen. Chip Campsen, R-Isle of Palms, told The Post and Courier in an interview this week that lawmakers only noticed the property was for sale as the window to bid was rapidly closing, and that the state’s formal offer came after that period had ended.

The state’s offer was not the highest, but it was successful, Campsen said, in part because it came without conditions that a developer might attach — like not closing until building permits are awarded.

Property records indicate the sale closed at the end of July, and the final price was $23.25 million.

The opportunity to preserve the 23-acre waterfront parcel from development, complete with views of Fort Sumter and the rest of Charleston Harbor, was a rare one, Campsen said.

He said the sisters “felt like their legacy and their stewardship of that land would be best protected, best preserved for future generations if the state bought it.”

The property will be owned by the Department of Natural Resources, which runs the marine lab next door, and managed by the Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism, which might one day rent out the convent building on the site.

Campsen said the 24 rooms would probably have to be expanded for future visitors.

Sam Queen, a spokeswoman for PRT, said that a public planning process for the site is expected to begin early next year.

“It definitely is a unique situation and one we’re excited about,” she said.

DNR, meanwhile, had already been doing some work near the site, cooperating with the sisters there to use oyster reefs to stabilize erosion on the waterfront, said Erin Weeks, an agency spokeswoman. Most of the parcel is forested, with a residence building and a chapel on site.

Campsen said he was excited for the planning process to incorporate the existing DNR land, and that the two parcels could be at least partially tied together into one park. It’s a historically significant area — the point at the end of Fort Johnson Road is where the first shots of the Civil War were fired on Fort Sumter.

In the meantime, nothing will change on the land any time soon. As a condition of the sale, the sisters are allowed to stay on the property through at least June 2022, with an option to extend to December 2022.

The nuns were looking to move as their members age and new women don’t join the ranks. Sister Mary Joseph Ritter confirmed that the congregation planned to relocate to the Bishop Gadsden retirement home, but the transition wouldn’t come until next year.

“We’re on the waiting list, just like everybody else,” she said.

The congregation didn’t have any further details on the move, she said, but would have more to say in the coming months about how they hope to preserve their legacy.

Twelve members remain among the Sisters of Charity, a congregation that has ministered in Charleston since 1829. Through its history, the group ran a school for free children of color in the 1840s, cared for both Union and Confederate wounded soldiers during the Civil War, and founded the hospital that would evolve into the Roper-St. Francis health care system.

The sisters moved to their current home on James Island in the 1950s.