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TSN Senior Reporter

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At first, he asked for a spot in the field and when that was turned down, he did it the hard way, through the qualifying.

But no matter how he got here, the end result is that Steve Stricker, a Cheesehead from birth, will tee it up in the first U.S. Open to be held in Wisconsin. And he’s pretty much ecstatic.

“I wasn't sure if I was going to be here,” Stricker said, “but very excited, relieved.”

The reason the 50-year-old is so happy to be in the tournament is that he was born in Edgerton, Wisc., and is perhaps the best-known golfer from the state (Sorry Andy North). He was simply determined to make it to Erin Hills for the year’s second major.

His first approach was to request a spot in the field from the United States Golf Association. The governing body hands out exemptions to its big show on rare occasions. Last year, it gave one to two-time champion Retief Goosen. Prior to that it gave passes to Vijay Singh and Tom Watson in 2010 at Pebble Beach.

Stricker, however, got turned down for the bye and wasn’t really surprised. And so he decided to get into the tournament the hard way – 36 holes of qualifying in a tough field for just a handful of spots.

“I still don't believe I should have got a [pass],” said Stricker of his request for an exemption. “I'm convinced of that, but it would have been nice if they would have. But the way it worked out, I feel much better the way I got here. After the qualifier, that was pretty sweet, because I earned my way in. I feel like I belong here. No one gave me a spot, where if somebody would have given me a sponsor spot, I would have felt like I owed somebody something. So as it all turned out, it was meant to be the way I did it, and I feel better about the way I earned my way in here.”

Gutting it out in a long day of golf to qualify for his 20th U.S. Open is typical of Stricker’s career, which has been hallmarked by a remarkable work ethic. He cut his teeth on the old Canadian Tour, where he won twice during a four-year stint. That was followed by a promotion to the PGA Tour where he won three events in his first few years before hitting a slump in 2004 and losing his Tour card.

However his work ethic never left and he regained his status, winning nine more times and becoming a stalwart on American teams in both the Presidents and Ryder Cups. Despite turning 50 and starting to slide over to the Champions Tour, Stricker is still more than capable. He finished fourth last year at the Open Championship and was tied for sixth at the Masters in April.

Despite being a good Wisconsin golfer, Stricker had to re-familiarize himself with Erin Hills, a course that is just over an hour from his home in Madison. He visited it for the first time about a decade ago at the request of its first owner, Bob Lang, who wanted the opinion of a tour pro as to its suitability for a major.

Although he has played it about half a dozen times, it’s been some time since he last visited and he’s been cramming just like the rest of the field. The only difference is that most players aren’t getting cheered every step of the way around the layout.

“It's overwhelming at times,” he said of the reception, “the amount of people that are coming up to me and wishing me luck. The ovation I got when I went up on 9 yesterday. I got a nice round of applause during the practice round. So, yeah, it's pretty cool. Hopefully I can play well to make it worth it on everybody's part.

“But it's just special to be here. I'm looking to play well. That's the thing. I don't want to stop by just qualifying and being here ceremonial. I want to play well and hopefully get in there.”

It would be a wonderful story if Stricker could get into contention on Sunday but even if he doesn’t he has already given the fans in Wisconsin a lot to cheer about.