Fast, firm, fierce: Taming Oakmont’s greens will be no easy task at U.S. Open
Poa annua: Two words very few people know or care to understand. They’re also two of the most important words to the members and staff at Oakmont Country Club. The unique Poa annua grass, which is harvested in Western Pennsylvania, is what makes the legendary greens at Oakmont so firm...
U.S. Open hole by hole: Long par 3 No. 16 at Oakmont made famous by Larry Nelson’s birdie putt
From the pristine fairways and lightning-fast greens to the punishing bunkers and club-twisting rough, Oakmont Country Club is one of the toughest tests for even the world’s best golfers, who will descend upon Western Pennsylvania for the 125th U.S. Open from June 12-15. TribLive is producing a hole-by-hole look at...
What is a Stimpmeter? Learn the term that will be in heavy use at OakmontVideo
How fast are the greens at Oakmont Country Club? That question can be answered thanks to the Stimpmeter, a measuring device invented almost 90 years ago by amateur golfer Edward Stimpson soon after attending the 1935 U.S. Open at Oakmont as a spectator. Discussions about the green speeds reportedly led...
Businesses take advantage of opportunity as vendor partners for U.S. OpenVideo
Bob Rivers can’t wait for golf fans to try his coffee at the U.S. Open. The owner of National Grind Coffee & Tea Shop in Ellwood City has good reason to be excited for the event. As a vendor partner with the USGA, Rivers anticipates doing a full year’s worth...
Breakfast With Benz U.S. Open at Oakmont retrospective: Goodbye Arnold Palmer, hello Ernie Els in 1994
Next week, Oakmont Country Club will host its 10th U.S. Open championship. This week at “Breakfast with Benz,” we are flashing back to memories of each of the last five U.S. Opens that have been held at the course in our podcast series with David Moore, a golf historian and...
Kowalski wins Tri-State Open in sudden death playoff over Gee
Amateur Darin Kowalski was sitting on the porch at Southpointe Golf Club sipping a cold beverage and watching the field finish the final round of the Tri-State PGA Open on Tuesday. He had finished the best round of the tournament, a 4-under-par, and finished the two-day event at even par...
Oakmont’s bunker legacy: How a century-old philosophy still traps golf’s best
If Rory McIlroy hits a tee shot into a bunker next week at Oakmont Country Club, he’ll have a weekend hacker from the early 1900s to blame for its location. Architect Henry Fownes designed the historic course in 1903 and continued to alter its landscape as he watched where golfers...
U.S. Open hole by hole: Piano Keys, massive green among trouble spots on No. 15 at Oakmont
From the pristine fairways and lightning-fast greens to the punishing bunkers and club-twisting rough, Oakmont Country Club is one of the toughest tests for even the world’s best golfers, who will descend upon Western Pennsylvania for the 125th U.S. Open from June 12-15. TribLive is producing a hole-by-hole look at...
USGA to open U.S. Open merchandise tent early for fans without tickets
Golf fans without tickets to attend the U.S. Open next week still will have the opportunity to purchase tournament merchandise, according to the USGA. The merchandise pavilion at Oakmont Country Club will be open to the public from Thursday to Sunday, prior to the tournament, the organization said. Featuring a...
How to ‘go low’ at Oakmont? Make some putts, get some breaks, says Western Pa. native who once carded 66
Oakmont Country Club isn’t necessarily the place where a player expects to shoot the round of his or her life. Certainly Johnny Miller’s 63 in the final round of the 1973 U.S. Open comes to the forefront of any discussion of the best rounds there, but “going low” at Oakmont...
Hosting the U.S. Open is worth the disruption to Oakmont Country Club members
With the U.S. Open coming to Oakmont Country Club next week, members can still schedule tee times for themselves — at other area courses. “The reciprocal courtesies kindly extended to Oakmont members during the U.S. Open allow for plenty of options,” said club member David Hickton, a former U.S. attorney...
Breakfast With Benz U.S. Open at Oakmont retrospective: Larry Nelson’s sparkling weekend in 1983
Next week, Oakmont Country Club will host its 10th U.S. Open championship. This week at “Breakfast with Benz,” we are flashing back to memories of each of the last five U.S. Opens that have been held at the course in our podcast series with David Moore, a golf historian and...
Seneca Valley grad who caddied at Oakmont qualifies for U.S. OpenVideo
Seneca Valley grad Matt Vogt is returning to the course where he used to caddie to play in the U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club in less than two weeks. Vogt was the medalist in qualifying at the Wine Valley Golf Club in Walla Walla, Wash., shooting a pair of...
U.S. Open hole by hole: Birdies could come calling on No. 14 at Oakmont, unless fairway bunkers get involved
From the pristine fairways and lightning-fast greens to the punishing bunkers and club-twisting rough, Oakmont Country Club is one of the toughest tests for even the world’s best golfers, who will descend upon Western Pennsylvania for the 125th U.S. Open from June 12-15. TribLive is producing a hole-by-hole look at...
‘Mental test of golf’: Attitude becomes as important as other skills to conquer Oakmont
The 2007 U.S. Open at Oakmont produced no shortage of complaints from the players. Most memorably, Phil Mickelson groused that the rough was so thick that he injured his wrist hitting out of it. Mickelson wasn’t alone in his angst. If the players weren’t expressing it verbally, their sour faces...
Breakfast With Benz U.S. Open at Oakmont retrospective: Johnny Miller’s historic win in 1973
Next week, Oakmont Country Club will host its 10th U.S. Open championship. This week at “Breakfast with Benz,” we are flashing back to memories of each of the past five U.S. Opens that have been held at the course in our podcast series with David Moore. He is a golf...
Visitors expected to fill hotels, rent private homes for U.S. Open in Oakmont
Mark Miller believes his Indiana Township home is a perfect accommodation for people coming to town for the U.S. Open golf tournament in Oakmont next week. Situated about 5 miles from the picturesque golf course, the property boasts an in-ground pool, hot tub, wet bar and gourmet kitchen. It sits...
Scottie Scheffler joins Tiger Woods as only repeat winners at MemorialVideo
DUBLIN, Ohio — Scottie Scheffler is winning with such alarming regularity that describing his dominance is not a comfortable topic. So when he won the Memorial on Sunday for the second straight year, he at least had tournament host Jack Nicklaus at his side. Nicklaus is a great authority when...
Sweden’s Maja Stark wins the U.S. Women’s Open for her 1st major championshipVideo
ERIN, Wis. — Maja Stark continued the steady play she had demonstrated all week to win the U.S. Women’s Open and claim her first major championship Sunday at Erin Hills. Stark carded a final round 72 and finished with a four-round total of 7-under-par 281 to beat top-ranked Nelly Korda...
U.S. Open hole by hole: A short par 3, Oakmont’s No. 13 is surrounded by sand
From the pristine fairways and lightning-fast greens to the punishing bunkers and club-twisting rough, Oakmont Country Club is one of the toughest tests for even the world’s best golfers, who will descend upon Western Pennsylvania for the 125th U.S. Open from June 12-15. TribLive is producing a hole-by-hole look at...
Daniel Summerhays recalls ‘one of the greatest rounds of golf’ in U.S. Open at Oakmont
Daniel Summerhays wasn’t even supposed to play in the 2016 U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club. Fate earned him a spot in the field, and, thanks to one of the greatest stretches of golf in the history of Oakmont Opens, he finished in the top 10. In the second round,...
Scottie Scheffler has flawless card, surges to Memorial lead
DUBLIN, Ohio — Scottie Scheffler was at his best on a tough day at Muirfield Village, opening with 13 straight pars and then pouring it on at the end for a 4-under 68 that gave him a one-shot lead Saturday over Ben Griffin at the Memorial. Scheffler birdied four of...
Maja Stark avoids mistakes to take 1-shot lead into final round of the U.S. Women’s OpenVideo
ERIN, Wis. — Maja Stark shot a 2-under-par 70 and avoided the mistakes that befell other contenders Saturday to take a one-stroke lead into the final round of the U.S. Women’s Open at Erin Hills. The 25-year-old from Sweden had a 7-under 209 total. Julia Lopez Ramirez of Spain was...
U.S. Open hole by hole: 600-plus yards to travel only part of the challenge on No. 12 at Oakmont
From the pristine fairways and lightning-fast greens to the punishing bunkers and club-twisting rough, Oakmont Country Club is one of the toughest tests for even the world’s best golfers, who will descend upon Western Pennsylvania for the 125th U.S. Open from June 12-15. TribLive is producing a hole-by-hole look at...
‘Plot your way around’: While tempted to grip it and rip it, players will have to tone down aggressiveness at Oakmont
On his way to becoming a two-time major champion, John Daly lived by the mantra “grip it and rip it.” His big drives and big personality made him one of the most popular — if not polarizing — players in golf. As he forged arguably the greatest career in golf...
