Oakmont Country Club "ready to rock" for U.S. Open after extensive course renovations
OAKMONT, Pa. (KDKA) -- Oakmont Country Club is "ready to rock" for next year's U.S. Open.
Oakmont is set to host what's known as golf's toughest test for a record 10th time in June and the property has undergone extensive renovation projects aimed at taking the course back to some of its roots.
All that renovation work led by golf architect Gil Hanse is done now and for all intents and purposes, the course is ready for next year's tournament.
"We're ready to rock. We just got to grow the rough up a little bit," said Michael McCormick, Oakmont Country Club Grounds Superintendent. "The nice thing about the U.S. Open at Oakmont is from a fine turf playing surface perspective of greens, approaches, fairways, and tees, we really don't do anything much different."
McCormick said that next spring, the club will start growing the rough up, making it more penal than what Oakmont's members see on a daily basis.
Renovating Oakmont's greens
A majority of the renovations at Oakmont were focused on its historic greens.
"One of the most special things about Oakmont is certainly the green surfaces," McCormick said.
Oakmont's greens were expanded by a total of 24,000 square feet and USGA Senior Director of Player Relations Scott Langley says that there's a lot more 'pinnable space' on the greens now.
"I think what we have now is just a restored version of what it used to be, with all that square footage," Langley said. "What that gives you is more options from a hole location standpoint to present a little more variety during the four days of competition."
Setting up the course at Oakmont for the U.S. Open
Langley says he and other members of the USGA team have been making periodic visits to Oakmont for at least a year to familiarize themselves with the property.
When laying out the course for the tournament, the USGA team will often start with a blueprint from past times hosting the U.S. Open and then make adjustments.
Langley said he and his team have more visits planned to Oakmont to continue preparing to set up the golf course and will work very closely with McCormick's grounds crew and the golf staff on-site, like Head Professional Devin Gee.
"We acknowledge that our host sites know the golf course better than we ever will," Langley said.
When it comes to how difficult the course may play during the upcoming tournament, Langley shot down the idea that the USGA wants to see a certain score for the winner.
"I think that's a little bit of a misconception with the USGA," Langley said. "I think we look at score as a metric, but not the metric."
While there may be a focus on making a national championship challenging, Langley says there is still the responsibility of making the course both playable and fair, adding that the USGA isn't going to manage its course setup based on the leaderboard.
"I think at the end of the day, a U.S. Open means that a par is a good score on every hole," Langley said. "It doesn't mean you can't make birdie and it doesn't mean you won't make bogey. At a place like Oakmont, I could see this place bogeying you to death."
Langley says it's been fun getting to know the Oakmont staff and membership and has been doing his due diligence on reading up on the club and course's history during his role in preparing for the U.S. Open.
"It's a magnificent place," Langley said.