The United States Open Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Open, is the annual open golf tournament of the United States. It is the second of the four major championships in golf, and is on the official schedule of both the PGA Tour and the European Tour. It is staged by the United States Golf Association (USGA) in mid-June, scheduled so that, if there are no weather delays, the final round is played on the third Sunday, which is Father's Day.

The U.S. Open is staged at a variety of courses, set up in such a way that scoring is very difficult with a premium placed on accurate driving. U.S. Open play is characterized by tight scoring at or around par by the leaders, with the winner usually emerging at around even par. A U.S. Open course is seldom beaten severely, and there have been many over-par wins (in part because par is usually set at 70 except for the very longest courses). Normally, an Open course is quite long and will have a high cut of primary rough (termed "Open rough" by the American press and fans), undulating greens (such as at Pinehurst No. 2 in 2005, which was described by Johnny Miller of NBC as "like trying to hit a ball on top of a VW Beetle"), and pinched fairways (especially on what are expected to be less difficult holes). Some courses that are attempting to get into the rotation for the U.S. Open will undergo renovations to develop these features. Rees Jones is the most notable of the "Open Doctors" who take on these projects; his father Robert Trent Jones had filled that role earlier. As with any professional golf tournament, the available space surrounding the course (for spectators, among other considerations) and local infrastructure also factor into deciding which courses will host the event.

Philip Alfred Mickelson (born June 16, 1970) is an American professional golfer. He has won four major championships and a total of 40 events on the PGA Tour. He has reached a career high world ranking of 2nd in multiple years. He is nicknamed "Lefty" for his left-handed swing, even though he is otherwise right-handed. Mickelson was elected into the World Golf Hall of Fame in November 2011 and was inducted in May 2012.

Mickelson was born in San Diego, California, to parents Phil Mickelson Sr. (an airline pilot and former naval aviator) and Mary Mickelson. He was raised there and in Scottsdale, Arizona. Although right-handed otherwise, he plays golf left-handed, as he learned by watching his right-handed father swing and mirroring it. Mickelson began golf under his father's instruction before starting school. Phil Sr.'s work schedule as a commercial pilot allowed them to play together several times a week and an extensive practice area in their San Diego backyard allowed young Phil to hone his creative short game. Mickelson graduated from the University of San Diego High School in 1988.

William Thomas Andrade (born January 25, 1964) is an American professional golfer.

Andrade was born in Bristol, Rhode Island. He attended Wake Forest University where he helped lead the Demon Deacons to the 1986 NCAA Championship. He played on the U.S. team in the 1987 Walker Cup, and turned professional in the same year. He has four wins on the PGA Tour: the 1991 Kemper Open and Buick Classic, the 1998 Bell Canadian Open, and the 2000 Invensys Classic. He has been featured in the top 50 of the Official World Golf Rankings.

Andrade is also an active contributor to charity. He and fellow PGA Tour professional Brad Faxon received the Golf Writers of America's 1999 Charlie Bartlett Award for their "unselfish contributions to society", and the American Heart Association's 2002 Gold Heart Award in recognition of their charity efforts. Also in 2002, Andrade and Faxon were named winners of the 2002 Ambassadors of Golf Award. Together, they run Billy Andrade/Brad Faxon Charities for Children, Inc., a non-profit organization that, as of 2005, has donated over $3 million to needy children in Rhode Island and southern Massachusetts. Since 1999, Andrade and Faxon have also served as hosts of the CVS Charity Classic, a golf tournament held at the Rhode Island Country Club each June, whose proceeds benefit the two players' charity.

Lee Buck Trevino (born December 1, 1939) is a Mexican American professional golfer. He is an icon for Mexican Americans, and is often referred to as "The Merry Mex" and "Supermex". He won six major championships over the course of his career.

Trevino was born in Dallas, Texas into a family of Mexican ancestry. He was raised by his mother, Juanita Trevino, and his grandfather, Joe Trevino, a gravedigger. Trevino never knew his father, Joseph Trevino, who left when his son was small. Trevino's childhood consisted of attending school occasionally and working to earn money for the family. At age five, he started working in the cotton fields.

Trevino was introduced to golf when his uncle gave him a few golf balls and an old golf club. He then spent his free time sneaking into nearby country clubs to practice, and began as a caddy at the Dallas Athletic Club. He soon began caddying full-time. Trevino had to leave school at 14 to go to work. He earned $30 a week as a caddy and a shoeshiner. He was also able to practice golf, since the caddies had three short holes behind their shack. After work, he would hit at least 300 balls. Trevino has claimed to have earned extra money by challenging competitors to rounds of golf where he used only a shovel and taped-up 32-ounce glass Dr. Pepper bottle.