Teeing off in the US Open has long been a desire of top local professional Dwayne Pearman.And if all goes according to plan the Port Royal head pro hopes to rub shoulders with the world’s elite at next month’s major at Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, Pennsylvania.But first Pearman will have to negotiate the first hurdle at next Tuesday’s 18-hole US Open qualifier at the Atlanta National Golf Club in Atlanta where he will come up against fierce competition from professionals and amateurs alike.The veteran player hasn’t played in a big tournament since topping the local pro field at March’s Bacardi Par 3 World Championship at Turtle Hill Golf Club. Yet despite this he remains confident of putting in a good showing in Atlanta next week in the hope of keeping his dream of playing in the US Open alive.“I haven’t had as much time to practise as I would prefer because I’ve been putting so much time in the shop (Port Royal),” the veteran player said. “I’ve only been playing once a week so I haven’t been playing a lot of golf. But I’m hitting the ball okay so we’ll just see how it goes.”The only area of concern for Pearman, who departs for Atlanta on Sunday, is his putting that hasn’t been at its best lately.“The putter has been a little cold but hopefully it warms up next week,” he said. “It’s really just a matter of getting the putter working. My putting hasn’t been terrible but I know I can do better. When I do go out on the course I haven’t been hitting the ball bad and if the putter is hot then I think I should be all right.”Pearman, who has unsuccessfully tried to qualify for the US Open on several occasions, will journey into the unknown when he embarks on the stroll around the 6,942-yard Atlanta National Golf Club layout.“I will be pretty much going into the unknown because I haven’t been there before,” he said. “But I’m going to give it my best shot and I’m really looking forward to it.”Pearman is wary that he will have to bring his ‘A’ game if he is to advance to the next phase of the qualifiers.“It’s like a shoot-out and you have to be on for that day,” he said. “If you’re on then maybe you can get somewhere. You also have to be on top of your game mentally.”Atlanta is just one of more than one hundred qualifying venues in the US. Each local qualifier consists of 18 holes, with several players, determined by the size of the field, advancing to sectional qualifying.Since 1895, the US Open has been a democratic championship, offering entrants an opportunity to play on golf's biggest stage alongside golf's biggest names. Thousands of professionals and amateurs with a USGA Handicap Index not exceeding 1.4 have filed entries to compete in this year’s US Open.n The upcoming Bermuda Seniors Championship has been called off because of a lack of entries.“Unfortunately, due to low entries, the BGA is going to have to postpone the Bermuda Seniors Championship,” Bermuda Golf Association administrator Nichola Littlejohn stated in an e-mail. “We require a minimum of 16 entries to run the event.”Littlejohn added: “We will notify you as soon as we have confirmation of the new date that this event will be moving to.”