Kevin Ralbovsky, golf coach for Tadd Fujikawa, is writing a journal for The Advertiser on the 15-year-old's U.S. Open experience.

Ralbovsky did not caddy yesterday for Fujikawa — the youngest ever to play in the Open — but was in the gallery. Ralbovsky said about 200 to 300 people followed Fujikawa, who was energized by the crowd.

Tadd had a real nice warmup session. I was trying to not get technical with him, just keep him loose and laughing.

We were joking around on the range. As time got near (he) did some putting and chipping then walked over to tee.

That was one of the most amazing moments — the response of the crowd to Tadd was incredible ... gave me goosebumps.

He just walked to tee and the stands erupted into an ovation, shouting his name and lots of cheering for about three minutes.

Tadd hit a really nice tee shot down the middle, (the ball) rolled into first cut.

He seemed very relaxed and calm and extremely composed, which are Tadd's strengths.

It looked just like another round of golf, (but) it was a very difficult golf course from first hole, especially on the greens.

Tadd did exactly what he was supposed to do on the first hole — he kept the ball below the hole.

He had a 35-foot putt uphill over a ridge; the first one he didn't hit hard enough and the ball got to the top of the ridge, paused for a second, and rolled back down. The second time he hit it too soft as well. It barely went over the ridge, hung up and stayed. He then had a seven-footer and missed that one.

I think he was obviously disappointed, but didn't seem too irritated.

He hit a perfect tee shot on the next hole and a very good second shot from about 220 yards to the middle of the green. (He) two-putted that real confidently.

He then hit a good shot at No. 3. He was a little bit in the rough and got up and down from six feet for par — a confidence booster.

At No. 5 (par-5) he had a good birdie chance, he reached the greenside bunker in two, it was a very fast green and the pin position was close to the bunker so the bunker shot ran away and he didn't have a short putt so he made par there.

He made a silly double (bogey) at No. 6 by pulling his tee shot left — one of his worst drives of the day.

He put himself in a really bad spot (rough); He tried to blast it out and actually got it to the short greenside bunker, but it was a long bunker shot and he caught it a little thin and went over the green.

He had another difficult flop shot from there with no green to work with, hit to 15 feet and missed that.

But again the composure was there and he was not rattled

On the next hole — a par 3 —he hit it really close, to like eight feet.

Again the crowd support on that green from the grandstands was just enormous. As he walked up, they were yelling, 'Go Tadd.' It was amazing to hear.

He missed that putt though.

I thought if he had made that putt the round would have turned out differently. He would have saved the momentum and got something going.

There is just not a lot of chance for birdies out here with the pins on the edges and greens firming up, so the ball is not stopping.

It can land on the green and release to the rough, and the ball comes out of the rough so funny it's unpredictable. You can't gauge how hard to hit chip shots.

The key to this course is to keep it in the fairway while hitting your iron shots to the front or middle of the greens and playing for par, and once in awhile get a close putt for birdie.

If you're not driving it in the fairway, it doesn't give you a lot of opportunity for par.

It was kind of a funny day. Early in the morning, it was raining and a little chilly. Then it cleared up and was nice when Tadd teed off.

When he was making the turn the wind picked up to about 15 mph and it was a different direction from practice rounds.

Everybody started struggling to hit the fairway. Then the wind died down a little in the afternoon.

The wind is what changed the dynamics of the course. It is not forecast for tomorrow (Friday).

Judging by the scores — only one score under par (Colin Montgomerie) with the best players in world — that's indicative of an extremely severe course setup.

It was a great, great experience for Tadd and one he needs to be involved with for the future, especially the upcoming U.S. Amateur.

When he finished, he spent probably 45 minutes with the media.

After, they signed cards. There was an area where they congregated to talk to him.

Then he signed some autographs.

Then he ate lunch in the players' hospitality tent.

Kenny Springer (Hokuli'a) caddied for him because he had been there for practice rounds. He filled me in on the nuances of the course. He told me Tadd played really well and just didn't get rewarded for his shots.

When I did see Tadd afterward we went to the range and tightened up his swing a little bit. He seems real happy with the way he hit his shots. Everybody had a few bad shots out here.

I think he'll play much better tomorrow. He'll have much more of a handle on the greens and he'll be more determined to go out there and shoot a good number.

The first day of this type of competition you don't know what to expect. The mindset is not as focused on a good score, it's more focused on what this is like rather than hitting shots.

Tomorrow, he'll be a lot more determined; he can shoot even par out here; he's going to have to make no silly mistakes, but he can do it. He's got the mental frame where he won't get rattled. And the quality of his ball-striking is definitely there.

He just has to get some putts to drop. Today, he had no momentum going.

Tadd handled everything great. He was giving everybody an autograph, signing hats and programs and balls. You name it.

He was reveling in this sort of celebrity status.

For a young man that has got to be very exciting. It's something he'll always remember.

Hopefully this will be the first of many to come. The biggest surprise was the support of the gallery in general. I was in the gallery today and the reaction on so many tees when he walked up was like, "That is the little Hawaiian boy, look how small he is. Yeah, he's only 5 foot 1 ... and when Tadd would hit the drive it was like, 'My goodness, what a shot. I can't believe he can hit it like that.' "

There was a lot of support for him. He's winning over a lot of fans. He gives people hope that anybody can do this. People see a young man who has already overcome a lot of obstacles being able to perform in this arena with the best players in the world. It gives everybody hope.