Maxwell Moldovan, Harold Varner III, Corey Conners, MacKenzie Hughes are in 2022 U.S. Open

Akron Beacon Journal
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The Akron-Canton-Kent area will be well represented when the 122nd U.S. Open begins Thursday morning.

Green High School graduate Maxwell Moldovan — who just finished his sophomore season at Ohio State — is one of 15 amateurs in the field. He qualified a week ago and is making his debut in one of golf's four major championships.

Moldovan is also one of four players in the U.S. Open field with ties to the area.

Ohio State's Maxwell Moldovan, a Green High School graduate, is one of four golfers with area ties in the field for the U.S. Open.
Ohio State's Maxwell Moldovan, a Green High School graduate, is one of four golfers with area ties in the field for the U.S. Open.

Moldovan is being joined in the U.S. Open field by Akron native Harold Varner III and two former Kent State standouts — Corey Conners and MacKenzie Hughes.

Varner is in the U.S. Open for the first time since 2018, when he did not make the cut after two rounds. He also played in the 2013 U.S. Open and missed the cut there, too, just one year after graduating from East Carolina.

The 31-year-old who moved from Akron at age 6 to Gastonia, N.C., has three top 10 finishes this season on the PGA Tour and 16 in his career. This past week, he tied for 13th at the Canadian Open, shooting 8-under for the tournament.

Akron native Harold Varner III gestures to the crowd after making a birdie putt on the 15th hole during the third round of the RBC Heritage golf tournament on April 16 in Hilton Head Island, S.C. Varner is one of four players with area ties competing in the U.S. Open this week. [Stephen B. Morton/Associated Press]
Akron native Harold Varner III gestures to the crowd after making a birdie putt on the 15th hole during the third round of the RBC Heritage golf tournament on April 16 in Hilton Head Island, S.C. Varner is one of four players with area ties competing in the U.S. Open this week. [Stephen B. Morton/Associated Press]

Conners and Hughes, who are both from Canada, also each have three top 10 finishes on the PGA Tour this season. They also each have one career win on the Tour.

Former Kent State star and Corey Conners, a native of Canada, reacts to his putt on the second green during the second round of The Masters. Conners is one of four players with area ties competing in the U.S. Open this week. [Rob Schumacher/USA TODAY Sports]
Former Kent State star and Corey Conners, a native of Canada, reacts to his putt on the second green during the second round of The Masters. Conners is one of four players with area ties competing in the U.S. Open this week. [Rob Schumacher/USA TODAY Sports]

Conners, 30, finished sixth at the Canadian Open last week, shooting 12-under. He also tied for sixth in April at The Masters when he shot 3-under.

Hughes, 31, shot 4-under to finish tied for 28th at the Canadian Open. His season highlight is finishing second at the RSM Classic.

Former Kent State standout Mackenzie Hughes, a native of Canada, celebrates after sinking a birdie putt on the 17th hole during the final round of the Honda Classic in March.
Former Kent State standout Mackenzie Hughes, a native of Canada, celebrates after sinking a birdie putt on the 17th hole during the final round of the Honda Classic in March.

Also in the field from Northeast Ohio is Jason Kokrak, a Warren JFK graduate.

Kokrak is playing his fourth U.S. Open, and finished 17th in the event a year ago. He won the Houston Open last fall, his third career PGA Tour victory.

Here's what else you need to know about this year's U.S. Open, including tee times as well as TV and streaming info:

Apr 6, 2022; Augusta, Georgia, USA; Jason Kokrak and his son, Declan, 5, run to the cup on the no. 4 green to retrieve his ace during the Par 3 Contest at The Masters golf tournament at Augusta National Golf Club.
Apr 6, 2022; Augusta, Georgia, USA; Jason Kokrak and his son, Declan, 5, run to the cup on the no. 4 green to retrieve his ace during the Par 3 Contest at The Masters golf tournament at Augusta National Golf Club.

Brookline hosting its third U.S. Open

The event is being played at The Country Club in Brookline, which is near Boston. It's the third time the course has hosted the U.S. Open, the last coming in 1988.

Who won the 2021 U.S. Open?

Jon Rahm is the defending U.S. Open champion. He tees off at 7:18 Thursday morning.

Jon Rahm, of Spain, kisses the champions trophy for photographers after the final round of the U.S. Open Golf Championship, Sunday, June 20, 2021, at Torrey Pines Golf Course in San Diego.
Jon Rahm, of Spain, kisses the champions trophy for photographers after the final round of the U.S. Open Golf Championship, Sunday, June 20, 2021, at Torrey Pines Golf Course in San Diego.

Masters, PGA champions also in the field

The field for the third men’s golf major of the year also includes world No. 1 and Masters champion Scottie Scheffler and PGA champion Justin Thomas. Scheffler is the world's No. 1 ranked player. The winner of last week’s Canadian Open, Rory McIlroy, also is in the field. Last week's win was his 21st on the PGA Tour.

Are LIV Golf players allowed to play in the U.S. Open?

The field will include several players who participated in the controversial Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Golf Invitational Series event in London last week, including Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson and Louis Oosthuizen. Those three and others have been suspended from the PGA Tour, but the U.S. Open is operated by the USGA. The USGA announced last week that LIV competitors would be eligible to play in the U.S. Open.

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Is Tiger Woods playing in the U.S. Open?

Three-time champion Tiger Woods will not play this week. He hopes to play at the 150th British Open at St. Andrews next month.

Thursday tee times for U.S. Open's first round

Hole No. 1

6:45 a.m. (a) Michael Thorbjornsen, Erik Barnes, Matt McCarty

6:56 a.m. Matthew NeSmith, Patrick Rodgers, (a) Travis Vick

7:07 a.m. Troy Merritt, (a) William Mouw, Andrew Putnam

7:18 a.m. Collin Morikawa, James Piot, Jon Rahm

7:29 a.m. Jordan Spieth, Adam Scott, Max Homa

7:40 a.m. Billy Horschel, Patrick Cantlay, Daniel Berger

7:51 a.m. Harold Varner III, Sebastián Muñoz, Alex Norén

Harold Varner III smiles at his caddie, Chris Rice, on the seventh green during the second round of The Masters on Friday in Augusta, Ga.
Harold Varner III smiles at his caddie, Chris Rice, on the seventh green during the second round of The Masters on Friday in Augusta, Ga.

8:02 a.m. Joaquin Niemann, Cameron Young, Will Zalatoris

8:13 a.m. Adam Schenk, (a) Stewart Hagestad, Grayson Murray

8:24 a.m. Guido Migliozzi, Branden Grace, Mackenzie Hughes

Mackenzie Hughes, of Canada, tees off the third hole during the first round of the Travelers Championship last week.
Mackenzie Hughes, of Canada, tees off the third hole during the first round of the Travelers Championship last week.

8:35 a.m. Beau Hossler, Kalle Samooja, Satoshi Kodaira

8:46 a.m. Richard Mansell, Tomoyasu Sugiyama, Roger Sloan

8:57 a.m. (a) Caleb Manuel, Keith Greene, Ben Silverman

12:30 p.m. Kevin Chappell, Chase Seiffert, Andrew Novak

12:41 p.m. Thorbjørn Olesen, Brian Stuard, Nick Hardy

12:52 p.m. Sam Horsfield, Cameron Tringale, Shaun Norris

1:03 p.m. Sungjae Im, Mito Pereira, Erik van Rooyen

1:14 p.m. Justin Thomas, Viktor Hovland, Tony Finau

1:25 p.m. Joohyung Kim, Séamus Power, Min Woo Lee

1:36 p.m. Matt Fitzpatrick, Webb Simpson, Dustin Johnson

1:47 p.m. Phil Mickelson, Shane Lowry, Louis Oosthuizen

1:58 p.m. Danny Lee, (a) Keita Nakajima, Nick Taylor

2:09 p.m. Jim Furyk, (a) Nick Dunlap, Adam Hadwin

2:20 p.m. Richard Bland, Rikuya Hoshino, Ryan Fox

2:31 p.m. Jonas Blixt, Bo Hoag, Todd Sinnott

2:42 p.m. Isaiah Salinda, Sean Jacklin, (a) Charles Reiter

Hole No. 10

6:45 a.m. Fran Quinn, Callum Tarren, Hayden Buckley

6:56 a.m. Kurt Kitayama, Denny McCarthy, (a) Sam Bennett

7:07 a.m. Wyndham Clark, Brandon Matthews, Wil Besseling

7:18 a.m. David Lingmerth, Sepp Straka, Si Woo Kim

7:29 a.m. Scott Stallings, Davis Riley, Victor Perez

7:40 a.m. Rory McIlroy, Hideki Matsuyama, Xander Schauffele

Rory McIlroy collected his 21st PGA Tour win at the RBC Canadian Open.
Rory McIlroy collected his 21st PGA Tour win at the RBC Canadian Open.

7:51 a.m. Kevin Kisner, Russell Henley, Brian Harman

8:02 a.m. Keegan Bradley, Marc Leishman, Aaron Wise

8:13 a.m. Francesco Molinari, (a) Laird Shepherd, Stewart Cink

8:24 a.m. Marcel Schneider, Chan Kim, Joseph Bramlett

8:35 a.m. Lanto Griffin, Joel Dahmen, Jinichiro Kozuma

8:46 a.m. Chris Gotterup, (a) Fred Biondi, Harry Hall

8:57 a.m. Chris Naegel, Andrew Beckler, Luke Gannon

12:30 p.m. Jed Morgan, Taylor Montgomery, Sean Crocker

12:41 p.m. (a) Maxwell Moldovan, Yannik Paul, M.J. Daffue

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Ohio State's Maxwell Moldovan participates in the NCAA Golf Regionals on Monday, May 16, 2022 at the Ohio State Golf Club in Columbus, Ohio.
Ohio State's Maxwell Moldovan participates in the NCAA Golf Regionals on Monday, May 16, 2022 at the Ohio State Golf Club in Columbus, Ohio.

12:52 p.m. Talor Gooch, Adri Arnaus, Tom Hoge

1:03 p.m. Kevin Na, Sergio Garcia, Tyrrell Hatton

1:14 p.m. Sam Burns, Abraham Ancer, Thomas Pieters

1:25 p.m. Brooks Koepka, Cameron Smith, Scottie Scheffler

1:36 p.m. Luke List, (a) Austin Greaser, Corey Conners

June 2, 2022; Dublin, Ohio, USA; Corey Conners warms up at the first hole during the second round of the Memorial Tournament held at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio, on Friday, June 3, 2022. Mandatory Credit: Barbara J. Perenic/Columbus Dispatch
June 2, 2022; Dublin, Ohio, USA; Corey Conners warms up at the first hole during the second round of the Memorial Tournament held at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio, on Friday, June 3, 2022. Mandatory Credit: Barbara J. Perenic/Columbus Dispatch

1:47 p.m. Gary Woodland, Justin Rose, Bryson DeChambeau

1:58 p.m. K.H. Lee, Tommy Fleetwood, Patrick Reed

2:09 p.m. Jason Kokrak, Harris English, Lucas Herbert

2:20 p.m. Sam Stevens, (a) Ben Lorenz, Davis Shore

2:31 p.m. Daijiro Izumida, (a) Adrien Dumont de Chassart, Sebastian Söderberg

2:42 p.m. Ryan Gerard, Brady Calkins, Jesse Mueller

How to watch the 2022 U.S Open on TV

Coverage of the first round begins at 9:30 a.m. on USA Network and runs through 2 p.m. NBC takes over coverage from 2 to 5 p.m., with USA picking it back up from 5-7 p.m.

Friday, USA has it from 9:30 a.m.-4 p.m., with NBC taking over from 4-7 p.m..

Saturday, NBC will have the broadcast from noon to 8 p.m.

Sunday, USA has the coverage from 10 a.m. to noon before NBC takes over from noon to 7 p.m.

Harold Varner III watches his tee shot on the third hole during the third round of the Charles Schwab Challenge golf tournament at the Colonial Country Club, Saturday, May 28, 2022, in Fort Worth, Texas. (AP Photo/Emil Lippe)
Harold Varner III watches his tee shot on the third hole during the third round of the Charles Schwab Challenge golf tournament at the Colonial Country Club, Saturday, May 28, 2022, in Fort Worth, Texas. (AP Photo/Emil Lippe)

How to livestream the 2022 U.S. Open

Peacock will be streaming the tournament, starting at 6:45 a.m., Thursday. Its live coverage will run through 8 p.m. and include featured groups and featured holes at different points during the round.

The same schedule will follow for Friday.

Saturday's streaming schedule on Peacock is 10 a.m.-7 p.m.

Sunday's streaming begins at 9 a.m. and continues live through 6 p.m.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Harold Varner III and Corey Conners among Ohio U.S. Open golfers