Rose withers, Romo withdraws, Lehman qualifies for U.S. Open

New York: Former major winners Tom Lehman, Ben Curtis and Davis Love III qualified on Monday for next week`s US Open, but one day after taking his first US Tour victory Briton Justin Rose withered in the 36-hole qualifier.

Rose, who finished 18-under-par to win the Memorial Tournament in Dublin, Ohio by three strokes, posted four-under 140 in nearby Columbus and joined Memorial runner-up Rickie Fowler outside of a group of 15 who qualified for Pebble Beach.A total of 60 berths for the U.S. Open were on offer in 13 sectional qualifying tournaments. Former British Open champions Lehman and Curtis both posted 135, while 1997 PGA Championship winner Love just hit the mark at 137 as did 2008 Open runner-up Rocco Mediate, who lost a 19-hole playoff to Tiger Woods at Torrey Pines. Australians Aaron Baddeley and Stuart Appleby were also among Columbus qualifiers, with Appleby finishing second on 134, a distant seven shots behind Eric Axley. Andres Romero of Argentina (141), Jeev Milkha Singh of India (143) and U.S. Ryder Cup player JB Holmes (144) also failed to qualify from the 120-man event in Columbus. Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo also missed out when he withdrew after a second weather delay at The Woodlands near Houston forced suspension of the second round until Tuesday. Romo, who shot one-under 71 in the first round and opened his second round with a quadruple bogey, said he could not return on Tuesday because of commitments to his NFL team. The quarterback was among 36 players competing for two spots. Brian Davis, who called a penalty on himself this season during a playoff against Jim Furyk at the Verizon Heritage, was rewarded with a trip to Pebble Beach by shooting nine-under 131 to claim one of three berths on offer at Springfield, Ohio. U.S. Ryder Cup captain Corey Pavin missed out on matching European Ryder counterpart Colin Montgomerie, who qualified on Monday for the British Open.Pavin, the 1995 Open winner, finished fourth at Woodstock, Illinois, where the top two players advanced. Tom Kite was denied a return to the scene of his lone major triumph at the 1992 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, when he finished third at Littleton, Colorado, where two spots were available. Bureau Report