Oakmont (United States) (AFP) – World number one Scottie Scheffler can expect a daunting challenge when he vies to extend his recent run of success at the 125th US Open at formidable Oakmont. The famed 7,372-yard, par-70 course in suburban Pittsburgh, known for dense rough and lightning-fast greens, will host the US Golf Association’s showcase event for a record 10th time.
“You’re going to have some three-putts, you’re going to have some great putts that don’t go in, you’re going to look silly a few times and you’re going to pitch out a lot. That’s part of it,” said Brandt Snedeker, a Tour Championship winner seeking his first major title. The tournament will mark the 13th men’s major to be played at Oakmont, including three PGA Championships, and the first since American Dustin Johnson won the US Open there in 2016. Other notable major winners at Oakmont include Ernie Els in 1994, Jack Nicklaus in 1962, and Ben Hogan in 1953 at US Opens, plus Sam Snead in 1951 and Gene Sarazen in 1922 at PGA Championships.
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“It’s just a battle. It really is. It can be extremely rewarding if you are able to stay disciplined for 72 holes,” said Xander Schauffele, the reigning British Open champion. “You just feel like you’re going to war every day. I’ve heard Oakmont, from several players, it’s the hardest course they’ve ever played.”
Scheffler will face the challenge after winning three of his past four starts. The 28-year-old American won his third major title at the PGA Championship last month by five strokes, captured the Byron Nelson by eight strokes with a score matching the lowest 72-hole total in PGA Tour history, and won by four shots in what he called a perfect Oakmont tuneup at last week’s Memorial.
“If there’s a weakness in your game, (Oakmont) is going to expose it pretty quick,” Scheffler said. “It’s a challenging week.”
– ‘A really stern test’ –
“It’s a tough test,” said Memorial host Jack Nicklaus, an 18-time major winner. “You’re going to find the fairways a little soft-ish, the rough very deep, and the greens very firm — Oakmont, it’s a really stern test of golf.”
Defending champion Bryson DeChambeau, seeking his third US Open triumph in six seasons, won LIV Golf Korea last month. “I’ve been playing some great golf recently,” he said. “My game is in good form. Swing feels pretty solid. I’m always chasing history…going back-to-back would be great.”
Six-time major winner and six-time US Open runner-up Phil Mickelson, who turns 55 the day after the final round, is on the last year of an exemption from winning the 2021 PGA Championship and is likely on his last chance to complete a career Grand Slam. “There’s a high likelihood that it will be (his last US Open) but I haven’t really thought about it too much,” Mickelson said.
Second-ranked Rory McIlroy, who practiced at Oakmont a week early, completed a career Grand Slam by winning the Masters and has reset his goals ahead of the US Open. “Grinding on the range for three or four hours every day is maybe a little tougher than it used to be,” McIlroy said. “You have this event in your life you’ve worked toward and it happens; sometimes it’s hard to find the motivation to get back on the horse and go again.”
McIlroy said a two-week break provided a good reset, but the Northern Ireland star will arrive at Oakmont off a dispiriting missed cut at the Canadian Open. “Of course it concerns me,” McIlroy said after he struggled mightily with a new driver in an eight-over second round in Toronto.
Two-time major winner Justin Thomas practiced early also on such Oakmont areas as the Church Pew bunkers between the third and fourth fairways. “It’s still tough,” Thomas said. “I would say all of the rumors and everything are pretty on point.”
Snedeker said the course can be maddening. “That golf course is going to drive you crazy, so you need to accept that and realize everybody’s going to have to deal with the same stuff,” Snedeker said. “Put it in the wrong spot, you’re going to make a big number.”
© 2024 AFP
