Oakmont to Provide Tough Test for World's Best

Usually when I you hear me on Rizzo Sports Weekly on Family Life TV or read me over at In The Bleachers, I am spouting off about College Football. It is June, so I won’t be doing that just yet, but what I will be doing is talking about the second greatest golfing event in the world (behind The Masters), that takes place in our very own backyard, the United States Open.



This was the sole reason that I joined and am still a member of the USGA, to get tickets to this event when it came to Oakmont Country Club. For those who attended the 1994 US Open or even the 2003 US Amateur, they will notice one significant change in the course. Oakmont Country Club is without approximately 8,000 trees that were on the course previously. The reason being you ask? To return the course to its roots and to look and play as it did when it opened in 1903.

Quick little US Open trivia question: When play tees off on Thursday morning, which course has held the most US Opens? Well the answer is quite obvious, it is Oakmont Country Club, as the 2007 Open will be its 8th. It also the sight of one of the most famous rounds in the history of golf, Johnny Miller’s 63 to win the 1973 Open. With him in the booth this week for NBC, I’m sure you hear all about it. I am willing to go on record to say that best score you will see for a single round this week will not be any lower than a 68.

Last year’s winner Geoff Ogilvy has gone on record already saying that if he was offered the chance to either play the four rounds or accept a +9 for the tournament, he would accept the +9. As fans we are in for a treat watching these guys struggle around this course, and that is exactly what they will do, struggle. The rough will be 6 inches plus in some places. Try hitting a shot out of that and getting it to stop on a green that is as fast as your driveway. For more up to date info and pictures check out this site.

The hole right now that I want to spend time watching come Thursday is the Par 3 Eighth that could measure as long as 288 yards from the tee. If the yardage doesn’t scare you the green guarded on all sides by bunkers should.

Who will win the US Open? I will make my predictions on Wednesday, but it will be someone with a hot putter and a good short game and my feel is that the winner will be somewhere around +6 and news out of camp Mickelson is not very good as he still is having issues with a sore wrist from hitting shots out of the rough at…you guessed it…Oakmont.

Brian Sakowski is covering the U.S. Open for RSW.

Will the Winning Score US Open Score at Oakmont be over par?

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  Yes - Over Par


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  No - Under Par

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