By Rich Conforti

Bethesda, Md. -- While most kids his age spent their afternoon in a classroom daydreaming of a summer vacation that was on the horizon, Beau Hossler was finishing up his Tuesday practice round with a beautiful approach shot that landed less than 10 feet from the ninth flagstick, his final hole of the afternoon.

Hossler, a 16-year-old qualifier from Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif., feels he belongs at this week's U.S. Open even though he is the youngest competitor in the 156-player field.

"I feel comfortable; I don't feel out of my league here," said Hossler, who just completed his sophomore year at Santa Margarita Catholic High. "You know, all of the guys, they're normal dudes, cool guys who you can have a conversation with and learn from. They're willing to talk to you, teach you and it's good to draw off of them. It makes you more comfortable."

Hossler will be grouped with professionals David May and Chris Wilson for the first two rounds Thursday and Friday. All three are competing in their first U.S. Open and made it to Congressional via local and sectional qualifying. The group is the final threesome to tee off on Thursday at 2:52 p.m. EDT from the par-3 10th hole.

As one would expect, much has changed for Hossler since qualifying for the Open on June 6 with 67-71 (138) at Oakmont Country Club in Glendale, Calif. While he may not have expected to play in the championship this early in his golf career, it's clear that he's up for the challenge.

"It's been pretty hectic, it seems like I have had something going on all of the time," said Hossler, who by making it to the Open also earned exemptions into next month's U.S. Junior Amateur and the U.S. Amateur in August. "A lot of people have been coming up to me and talking to me and it's great to have all of this support. There really is not much down time now, which is good. I'd rather have it that way than the opposite."

Despite being the youngest player, the composed Hossler insists that he came to Congressional with the intention of competing. He seems prepared for whatever tests the challenging layout will throw his way. At the same time, he understands that there will be plenty to take away from this event no matter what happens over the next few days. This level-headed approach should serve him well for future competitions.

"Obviously I'm here to compete just like any other golf tournament. I'm not here to do anything but that while I am here this week," said Hossler, who is aware that the U.S. Open is golf's toughest test.

After finishing up his Tuesday practice round Hossler seemed to have a solid understanding of what he needs to do to play well at Congressional. He discussed the bunkers, which he described as being full of heavy sand that makes it difficult to produce spin on the ball, as one of the many challenges that the golf course will provide. As a teenager who is not as physically developed as some of the championship's longer hitters, the 5'10" Hossler is aware he will need to make certain adjustments to compensate for his lack of distance.

"I'm going to head to the range and try to hit my long irons as high as I can. These greens are very firm and I'm going to have a lot of long irons coming in," Hossler said.

He also mentioned the importance of keeping the ball below the hole, knowing that any misses will result in difficult chips out of the thick Congressional rough. All things considered, Hossler was happy with his performance in Tuesday's practice round.

"If I have to give up 10 yards on this long course, that is better than being in the rough," Hossler said. "I'm sure there's going to be a lot of guys out there who are going to be having to hit long clubs, so it's not like that is going to be a huge disadvantage for me."

With the U.S. Open being the biggest stage he has ever played on, Hossler hopes that past experiences will help him settle into a comfort zone. Two years ago, he qualified for the U.S. Amateur at Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Okla.

"I'm not going to go out there and grind over my results if I have a bad day or if I don't perform the way I wanted. I'm going to look back and see what I can take from this tournament."

Rich Conforti is the USGA's summer online intern and you can e-mail him at rconforti@usga.org.