12-year-old Californian Rico Hoey is among 8,390 entrants for the year's US Open at Torrey Pines.

The US Golf Association announced the final entry figure for the June 12-15 showdown at Torrey Pines where world number one Tiger Woods has won six events, including his past four starts in a row.

Entries came from across every US state and 68 other nations. The event is open to professionals and anyone with a handicap no higher than 1.4.

The youngest entrant was Hoey of Rancho Cucamonga and the eldest was Harris Moore, 79, a professional from Los Angeles.

Those from other lands include pros Dawuda Mahama, 40, of Ghana; Lawan Mallam, 28, of Nigeria; and Alejandro Villavicencio, 28, of Guatemala.

Woods, a 13-time major champion trying to catch Jack Nicklaus' all-time record of 18 career major titles, underwent left knee surgery just after his runner-up showing at the Masters in hopes of recovering in time for the Open.

Other past US Open champions exempt from qualifying include South African two-time winners Ernie Els and Retief Goosen, defending champion Angel Cabrera of Argentina, 2005 winner Michael Campbell of New Zealand, 2006 winner Geoff Ogilvy of Australia and Americans Jim Furyk and Lee Janzen.

Other exempt players will be added from the world rankings top 50, the top 10 US PGA money leaders and two European PGA Tour money leaders on May 26 and the winner of next month's Players Championship.

Local qualifying will begin May 5 at 111 sites with sectional qualifying starting May 26 in Japan and at 13 other sites on June 2, including England.

Other non-US players into the Open field include Canada's Stephen Ames, South Korean K.J. Choi, Fiji's Vijay Singh, Colombia's Camilo Villegas, Sweden's Daniel Chopra and Niclas Fasth, South Africans Tim Clark and Rory Sabbatini, Spain's Sergio Garcia, Ireland's Padraig Harrington, Masters champion Trevor Immelman of South Africa, Japan's Shingo Katayama and Toru Taniguchi, Scotland's Colin Montgomerie, Argentina's Anders Romero, Aussies Robert Allenby, Adam Scott and Aaron Baddeley plus England's Luke Donald, Lee Westwood and Justin Rose.

AFP