For Tiger Woods, who won his 14th major championship after Monday’s 108th U.S. Open playoff, competing at golf’s highest level is such a regular occurrence that it has become commonplace. For Garrett Chaussard, however, it was hard to stay focused when playing one of the nation’s most grueling courses in front of huge galleries. The former Illinois standout took part in his first ever U.S. Open last week at Torrey Pines, and the 24-year-old gained invaluable experience despite missing the cut with rounds of 80 on Thursday and 82 on Friday. The Daily Illini spoke with Chaussard as his trip to the U.S. Open came to a close.

• Daily Illini: So how would you sum up your week at Torrey Pines?

  Garrett Chaussard: Just amazing. Looking back now, it went by way too fast. All the cool things that I got to experience and do, it was just incredible. Even though I didn’t golf like I would’ve wanted to, I learned a lot and really did a pretty good job of enjoying it.

• DI: It seems that every year, the way the USGA (United States Golf Association) sets up the course is closely scrutinized. What did you think of the conditions?

  GC: I thought, for the most part, it was really fair. If you hit good shots, you were rewarded. They give the players some chances to score a little bit instead of making it a brutal survival test. It’s not really creative to have it so you have to hack it out sideways. You can be aggressive. The first couple of cuts of rough were very playable. Overall, it was just set up very fair.

  It’s still very tough; it’s one of the hardest golf courses I’ve ever played conditions-wise.

• DI: Torrey Pines, along with a lot of southern California courses, has plenty of scenic vistas. Were you taking in the view out there?

  GC: Standing on the third tee (a downhill par 3), that’s just an incredible deal. The green is sitting right there, with the cliff and the ocean in the background. That stretch of the third and (par 4) fourth hole was just beautiful.

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  It was funny, I didn’t even realize I was walking up the fourth fairway – I was staring off into the ocean. I didn’t realize that the NBC cameras were actually following our group, walking right next to us. I was just staring at the blimp and the ocean.

• DI: Did you have any dialogue with D.A. Points and Steve Stricker (fellow Illinois alumni in the field) during the week?

  GC: I had lunch with D.A. – I can’t remember which day – and I talked with him on the putting green after his first round. I talked to Strick early in the week, just to say hello. I asked about setting up a practice round, and it didn’t work out in the end, but talking with them was neat.

• DI: What are your future plans for your professional career?

  GC: My whole plan was going to be to take this year, practice as much as possible, and prepare for Q School (the PGA Tour’s qualifying tournament) in the fall. Then something like this happens, and it changes things a little bit.

  Overall, I’m just going to keep doing the things I’ve been doing, and if I can get into a couple more events because I qualified for the Open, then I’ll take advantage of those opportunities. Obviously, the goal is going to be to eventually play the Nationwide Tour and PGA Tour and stay at the level I was at this week.

• DI: Favorite moment from the week?

  GC: It’s funny, There was a highlight on ESPN of when I chipped in on 9. I just saw it like ten minutes ago for the first time. That was kind of a good moment between (caddie) Tony (Sciandri) and I because I struggled all day until there. I stepped up on the back of the green, and Tony looked at me and was like, ‘You make this kind of shot a lot,’ and I happened to make it. It was a nice moment for the two of us.

  The other thing I’ll always remember is my range of emotions on the first hole. Teeing off at the Open is something I’ve always thought about, and to actually see that come true was really, really cool. I hit my first shot right at my target, right in the middle of the fairway, then I pulled my next shot into the bleachers left and made bogey. It’s an interesting range of emotions between excited and (thinking), ‘Alright, this is a tournament, let’s go play.’