Some courses ease you into the round with a friendly opening hole. Not Oakmont. The long par 4 played as the hardest hole in the 2016 U.S. Open — doling out more double bogeys (30) than birdies (29).
The fairway slopes severely downhill to the green, which also runs away from the player. Land your approach on the putting surface, and it might chase over the green. But land it too short into the downslope, and it could kick over as well. The first green was the second-hardest to hit in 2016.
“You have to be so precise, especially in firm conditions, with where you land that golf ball,” said Oakmont head professional Devin Gee.
The short par 4 second hole on the other side of the turnpike is friendlier but will still challenge players to make a decision off the tee, with multiple possible landing areas all presenting their own potential risks and rewards. Sit in the grandstands behind the second green, and you’ll likely see many different approaches to the hole — with some players hanging well back off the tee to avoid taking on the bunkers or ditch that line the fairway, others attempting to drive the green, and everything in between.
Once on the green, the job is far from done. The putting surface slopes back-to-front, requiring players to stay below the hole. Legend has it that W.C. Fownes Jr., son of Oakmont founder Henry Fownes, would drop a ball on the back of the second green every morning after the grass had been cut. If it didn’t roll off the green and into the fairway, he’d tell the grounds crew to cut the greens again.
The tee shot on the third hole brings players face-to-face with one of the most iconic and intimidating sights in golf — the Church Pews bunker. The 100-yard sand trap lining the left side of the fairway on holes 3 and 4 features 13 grassy mounds spaced several feet apart.
But that’s far from the only trouble on the hole that Oakmont calls “one of the most difficult par 4s in the country.” Deep bunkers can swallow shots that miss right, as well, requiring players to hit an accurate tee shot.
From there, players face a blind approach shot up the hill, with a severe run-off area guarding the front of the green. Shots that land short can roll 20 or 30 yards back into the fairway, Gee said. But go over the green, and you’ll risk tumbling down that same slope if you go too long with your chip.
The only par 5 on the front nine played as the second-easiest hole in 2016 and was one of only four holes to play under par for the tournament. Players recorded three eagles and 98 birdies on the reachable par 5. That doesn’t mean it’s easy — the Church Pews still loom on the left side of the fairway, and a number of other bunkers guard the right.
Players who go for the green in two will need to manage their distance carefully on a blind downhill approach shot. Going long of the putting surface leaves a difficult up-and-down. Angel Cabrera birdied the hole three times en route to his 2007 U.S. Open victory.
Players will have a shot at back-to-back birdies, as the fifth hole is a short par 4 that should leave most pros with a wedge in for their approach after a semi-blind tee shot. But bunkers on both sides and a landing area that narrows closer to the green will force players to be precise off the tee.
The fifth green is the second-smallest on the course and is surrounded by bunkers — including a pair of deep sand traps left of the green.
Cabrera hit his approach to tap-in range to tie the leaders in the final round of the 2007 U.S. Open that he would ultimately win by a shot.
The first par 3 on the course and the second-shortest hole at 200 yards, the sixth is birdieable. But shots long and right of the green will leave players in danger of bogey or worse. The bunkers right of the green are particularly deadly, with the putting surface sloping away.
It was the 11th-hardest hole in 2016, surrendering 71 birdies, but Gee expects that changes to the green as part of the recent restoration of Oakmont led by architect Gil Hanse will make it more difficult this year.
“It’s really challenging to get the ball close to the hole,” he said.
The long par 4 kicks off perhaps the most difficult four-hole stretch on the course. The seventh played as the fifth-hardest hole in 2016, giving up just 36 birdies compared to 157 bogeys or worse.
The fairway on No. 7 underwent one of the biggest changes in the Hanse restoration, as players can now hang back with their tee shot to a wider landing area on the right that leaves a lengthy approach. If they want to be aggressive, they can challenge the bunkers and hit up the left side, which offers a better angle to the green.
“It’ll be interesting to watch how the players strategize off that tee box,” Gee said.
Capable of playing over 300 yards, the eighth at Oakmont holds the record for longest par 3 in U.S. Open history. It was the most difficult green to hit in both 2007 and 2016.
No. 8 was just the eighth-hardest hole in 2016, but it gave up the fewest birdies (24). Shots well short of the green can run up to the putting surface in firm conditions — a necessary option when some players will likely hit 3-woods off the tee.
The length is not the only challenge. The massive “Sahara” bunker guards the left side of the green. No. 8 was the site of Johnny Miller’s lone bogey in his legendary final-round 63 to win the 1973 U.S. Open.
After crossing back over the turnpike, players face a long, uphill climb to the clubhouse that plays as a par 5 for members — but is a beastly par 4 at the U.S. Open. It was the second-hardest hole in 2016, as players carded 34 birdies to 196 bogeys or worse. The sloping fairway creates a tight landing area off the tee — with a ditch on the left and bunkers on the right — and most players will have a mid-to-long iron into the green.
But the length and precision required tee-to-green is perhaps not even the most arduous aspect of the hole.
The massive, multi-tiered green is one of the most unique in major championship golf. It doubles as the practice green, and players going long of the hole might have a marathon of a putt coming back.
Just like the front nine, Oakmont’s inward half starts with a grueling bang. The downhill par 4 played as the fourth-hardest hole in 2016 and could be even more difficult this year, as the Hanse restoration added a ditch across the fairway — already one of the narrowest on the course — that may force players to take a shorter club off the tee.
The green slopes severely front-to-back and right-to-left. Any player that misses short or right of the putting surface will face a challenging chip, and birdie opportunities are few and far in between for those who hit the green in regulation.
“Any second shot on that green within 15 or 20 feet is an incredible shot,” Gee said.
The short par 4 played as the fifth-easiest hole in 2016, surrendering 66 birdies and one eagle compared to 84 bogeys or worse. Like No. 10, players will have to avoid a ditch crossing the fairway on the uphill tee shot. A drive to the left side of the fairway offers the ideal angle. The green was the second-easiest to hit in 2016 and is relatively flat.
The last U.S. Open playoff at Oakmont ended on No. 11, when Ernie Els made par and Loren Roberts couldn’t get up-and-down from a bunker in 1994. The second sudden-death playoff hole marked the end of a marathon tournament in extreme heat — Els and Roberts had remained tied following an 18-hole playoff that also included Colin Montgomerie.
Par 5s are supposed to provide birdie and eagle opportunities for the best golfers in the world. In 2016, the 12th at Oakmont — playing as the longest hole in U.S. Open history — doled out more bogeys and double bogeys than red numbers.
Bunkers and ditches await on both sides of the sloping fairway. The hole plays significantly downhill, making it reachable for many pros with two excellent shots despite the over 600-yard scorecard distance.
But getting close to the hole can be difficult, even from just a few yards in front of the green that slopes away from the fairway. Shots that miss the green long likely provide an easier chip.
“There are plenty of places on that hole you can get caught speeding,” said Jeff Hall, the USGA’s managing director of rules and open championships. “That’ll be a hole that is a touch underrated and is a bit more demanding than you think.”
The shortest hole at Oakmont played as the third-easiest in 2016, with players carding 87 birdies to 75 bogeys or worse. The hole location on the renovated, tiered green will be a major factor in the difficulty — Gee said the 13th green was likely the most modified in the Hanse restoration.
Shots long or right of the green, surrounded by bunkers, will make saving par challenging, as the green slopes back-to-front and right-to-left. Clinging to a slim lead in the final round of the 1953 U.S. Open, Ben Hogan nailed a long birdie putt on No. 13 and went on to win by six strokes over Sam Snead as part of Hogan’s historic three-major season.
Players recorded fewer bogeys or worse on the short par 4 (67) than at any other hole in 2016. Surrendering 72 birdies and three eagles, No. 14 played as the fourth-easiest hole.
Players will likely approach the green, the third-largest at Oakmont, with a short iron or wedge despite some added length in the Hanse restoration.
“Certainly a hole where, if you’re in the fairway, it’s a little bit of a green light opportunity,” Gee said.
Players chasing the leader on Sunday better make birdie on No. 14, because the fifteenth is a bear of a par 4 that played as the third-hardest hole on the course in 2016. The longest par 4 at Oakmont gave up just 32 birdies compared to 177 bogeys or worse.
The “Piano Keys,” another series of grassy mounds in a bunker less famous than its Church Pews counterpart, lurk left of the fairway off the tee. Gee said he expects the changes made to the green and bunkers on the hole will make the fifteenth even harder than in previous Opens.
“While the changes weren’t really significant on that hole, the impact of just how difficult it plays, you see it there as much as anywhere else on the golf course,” he said.
Of course, with two superb shots, birdie is possible at No. 15. Johnny Miller made the last of his nine birdies on the hole with a 4-iron to a few feet during his historic final-round 63 en route to the 1973 U.S. Open title.
The last par 3 on the course completes one of the most difficult two-hole stretches at Oakmont. While not as long as No. 8, the length of No. 16 still packs a punch — and it played nearly just as hard as its front nine counterpart in 2016, surrendering 32 birdies to 123 bogeys or worse.
Gee expects the hole to play longer than it did in the last two U.S. Opens at Oakmont thanks to some added distance in the Hanse restoration.
“Anything on the green is great,” he said. “Par is a great score on [holes] 15 and 16, and that will remain true in the championship.”
Players going left of the green could face their death in the long, deep “coffin” bunker that lines the entire length of the putting surface and beyond. But the brutish par 3 has provided some notable fireworks through the years. Larry Nelson drained a 62-foot birdie putt at No. 16 in the final round of the 1983 U.S. Open to take a lead he would carry to victory.
The easiest hole on the course in 2016, the drivable par 4 offers players a shot at birdie or even eagle — and it gave up 135 red numbers at the last U.S. Open at Oakmont, by far the most of any hole. But going for the green doesn’t come without risk.
“The 17th hole has really been a critical part of most of the U.S. Opens here,” said Tim Lloyd, the tournament’s senior director. “It can be an eagle hole. It can be a triple bogey hole.”
The 17th green is the smallest on the course, and the gaping “Big Mouth” bunker awaits to swallow shots that miss right. Whether players choose to go for the green off the tee or lay up and leave a wedge in, Gee said they’ll “have to hit a great shot at some point.”
Not a hole known for par, Jack Nicklaus recorded a clutch one in the final round in 1962, getting up-and-down from the greenside rough to save his spot in a playoff with Arnold Palmer that he would go on to win for the first of his record 18 majors.
Gee described the 18th at Oakmont as “one of the more iconic finishing holes in the game of golf.” The lengthy par 4, with the clubhouse looming behind the green, played as the seventh-hardest hole in 2016 — and it’s not a friendly finale for players needing a birdie to catch the leader, as it gave up just 33 in the last U.S. Open at Oakmont.
The second-longest par 4 on the course requires a straight drive. The major undulations on the green make getting close to the hole challenging. Gee said a shot to the middle of the green allows for a manageable two-putt to any hole location.
“It’s a deceiving green because of the way it sits with the topography of the land,” he said — and if fans want to experience that for themselves, they can try their hand at the replica 18th green in the “Fan Central” area next to No. 3.
Should the tournament remain tied after 72 holes, the players would return to No. 17 to play a two-hole aggregate playoff on the closing holes. If still deadlocked after that, it would move to sudden death starting on Hole 15.
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