Huber Blog: No. 1 topic on everyone's mind is … obvious

TNT's Emmy Award-winning essayist Jim Huber is in Farmingdale, N.Y., for the 109th U.S. Open, and each day he will report on what he saw, heard and felt at Bethpage Black. This is his Saturday edition.

By Jim Huber, Special to PGA.com

FARMINGDALE, N.Y. -- The weather easily outdistances the golf at this U.S. Open thus far as the chief topic of conversation. Everyone is a meteorologist, all with a pensive eye over his or her shoulder.

It is either going to be the end of the world as we know it or simply another weekend of hit-and-miss rain. The radar definitely promises a good compromise between the two. The rain should begin about noon. The heavy stuff is due later and by late afternoon, it is 100 percent nasty.

There are a number of inherent problems; if there is electricity, we could still be finishing up the second round Sunday. But because this front is expected to last well into Father’s Day, well…

MEANWHILE, OUT ON THE GOLF COURSE: Oh, and Ricky Barnes, of all people, has it 8 under with a 12-shot lead over Tiger before the defending champion even goes out for his second round. But that’s just golf and has nothing to do with the weather. It does, however, have something to do with the record books. Nobody has ever come from more than 7 shots back to win in the 108-year history of this championship and that one remains the stuff of legends. Arnold Palmer at Cherry Hills, remember?

But that, again, is golf. Looks like the sky is darkening. Oh, my.

BREAKING ONTO THE BOARD: It was not until 1:48 p.m. that the first player from the second wave made it onto the huge 10-man leaderboard in the media center. For a solid 3:45, that board remained an unmoving constant, standards set by the men finishing up their second rounds early. Then, finally, came Steve Stricker with a birdie at 15 to get it to 2 under and take a spot among the leaders.

GOOD FEELINGS FOR A GOOD GUY: Who do you feel the better for thus far, Ricky Barnes or David Duval?  Barnes was set to become the next-best-thing after his win at the U.S. Amateur in 2002 and his low finish at the Masters the following spring. But Duval was the next-best-thing before falling off the face of our earth. Frankly, for someone who was there for both the rise and the fall, I couldn’t be happier to see him making noise again. There are few men out here as introspective and honest as the former Open champion.

SNAKES ALIVE: The USGA has a strange method of pairing twosomes to send out on both tees for this truncated third round, which began at 5:30 p.m. ET. It is like a snake draped over a ladder, with the leaders -- Barnes and Glover -- as the head, the last twosome going off the first tee … and the final group -- Kevin Sutherland and Johan Edfors -- as the tail or the last twosome going off No. 10. (Perhaps it’s just the incessant rain, but somehow that image makes sense to me.)

There is irony with Ricky Barnes and Lucas Glover since they were paired together the first two rounds here at Bethpage Black in 2002 and both missed the cut. Now they are 36-hole record-setters leading the field toward the finish.

Three amateurs made the final 36: Drew Weaver, Kyle Stanley and Nick Taylor. Neither of the PGA club professionals -- Michael Miles nor Sean Farren -- managed to make it past the cut.

Jim Huber is an Emmy Award-winning announcer with TNT. Check back during the 109th U.S. Open for more of his insights and observations from Bethpage Black.

The views and opinions expressed here do not reflect those of PGA.com, PGATOUR.com Turner Sports or The PGA of America.