Former Oakmont caddie, Seneca Valley grad Matt Vogt enjoying emotional return home

A return to Oakmont Country Club has been a bit overwhelming for Cranberry native Matt Vogt.

The 34-year-old dentist from near Indianapolis showed off a beaming smile Monday saying, “It has been crazy the past week,” since he qualified for the 125th U.S. Open, which begins Thursday at historic Oakmont Country Club.

This is the 10th time the U.S. Open will be hosted at Oakmont, where Vogt spent countless hours caddying during his high school and college years.

“That is the crazy part about qualifying is you qualify, and you’ve got to get going — the U.S. Open is the next week,” said the 2009 Seneca Valley graduate.

Vogt has been swarmed by media requests the past week. He was engulfed by a large group of supporters rooting for him, not to mention fans asking for autographs and thousands of others watching his every swing Monday during a practice round. The pressure of playing against some of the world’s top golfers only added to the emotional roller coaster ride he has been on the past week.

After getting only two hours of sleep the night after qualifying, he was riding on adrenaline and soaking it all in. He traveled home to take care of his personal and professional needs at his dental practice Wednesday, then he packed and headed to Pittsburgh to stay with his caddie and good friend Kevin O’Brien on Thursday.

“It feels like it has been about three years in about six days, but it has been incredible,” Vogt said. “It means so much. Honestly, with the restoration work here at Oakmont and everything going on with the Open, I try not to even pay attention to it because I knew that it was an absolute pipe dream to get here.

“It is for the best pros in the world, let alone amateurs. So, I almost didn’t want to think about it too much. I’m still trying to like soak it all in, but also not get too sentimental about it because it’s incredible.”

Vogt spent five years as a caddie at Oakmont while in high school and at Butler University.

He and other caddies got to play the course on Monday nights, but he admits he did not always take advantage of the opportunity. He wishes he had.

“This place means so much to me,” Vogt said. “The members are incredible. Stanley Druckenmiller, prominent member here, provided me and a lot of the caddies with a scholarship to help with college. So, I’m just indebted to this place, and I’m so grateful.”

Vogt played in the 2021 U.S. Amateur when it was held at Oakmont but played poorly. He’s back again with no real expectations.

“I don’t have a specific goal this week,” Vogt said. “I don’t have expectations. It’s all because I love golf so much.

“I really never had any aspirations of playing professional golf. I was a pretty good junior. I went to Butler University and played very briefly on the golf team and then decided to focus on school.”

O’Brien, who teams up with Vogt in major amateur events, said don’t count him out.

“He hits it a long ways,” the 2013 North Allegheny grad said about Vogt. “We played with Chris Gotterup today, and he bombs it. Matt was right with him. He is out there with just about anyone he’s played with.

“So, he hits it far, and he took a lot of what Bryson (DeChambeau) does putting. He has the same setup, the whole arm lock, straight arms, he focuses putting that way. So, he hits it long, and he putts great.”

O’Brien said a cool moment came on the driving range when Vogt and DeChambeau met and conversed.

“Bryson was so gracious,” O’Brien said. “Matt had modeled his game after Bryson by watching YouTube videos. If you are watching him putt from a distance, you would think he’s Bryson.

“It was fun to just, you know, kind of chop it up, like you are one of the guys.”

With Father’s Day approaching Sunday, Vogt showed his emotional side when he talked about losing his father (Jim) to colon cancer two months ago.

“It’s definitely on my mind,” Vogt said about his dad. “Even walking up the ninth fairway today after signing some autographs for some little kids, I kind of looked up and thought about it. Anyone who’s lost a parent, you feel these brief spurts of emotion from time to time.

“I wear the blue ribbon for that. Gosh, I say a prayer every night for people who have been affected by cancer. It is a horrible, horrible thing.”

Vogt said his father was diagnosed last year and struggled for a few months before his passing.

“You could see it was starting to take a toll,” Vogt said. “It is emotional, but honestly I know he is in a better place. He was beginning to suffer, and that is something no one ever wants to see. Although I wish he were still here with us — and yes, I’m sure this weekend will be emotional — there is a sense of peace among our family, and I hope he is at peace as well because it was hard.

“It’s a unique time in my life where, yes, my father passed, and I miss him dearly, but I have this beautiful 15-month-old daughter and a wife who supports me in pursuing this and doing these kinds of things. I thank God every day for them.”

Vogt teared up when speaking about his daughter, Charlotte, and his wife, Hilary.

“So, I think the theme of the week for me is to just be present and let those (moments) come as they may,” Vogt said. “Obviously, once you get closer to hitting a golf shot, you’ve got to snap back into focus, and that’s how I’m trying to handle it.”