The course which hosts the US Open each year arguably comes under greater scrutiny than any other on the calendar, with most golf fans having a clear idea of the questions which need to be asked of the world’s best players at the third major of the year.
Of course, there are a number of iconic courses which have hosted the US Open over the years. Oakmont will stage the event for a 10th time this week, while Pebble Beach and Pinehurst will be among the courses to host the tournament again before 2030.
But sometimes the USGA makes a bad call when it comes to the venue which hosts the US Open.
Los Angeles Country Club is unlikely to live long in the memory of most after hosting the US Open in 2023, while Erin Hills continues to divide opinion having also hosted the US Women’s Open earlier this month.
But perhaps no course has received quite the battering from critics that Chambers Bay got after the 2015 US Open.
What Gary Player said about Chambers Bay while it hosted the 2015 US Open
It was a notable week with Jordan Spieth winning a second major title of the year after already clinching The Masters. But it is etched in US Open folklore for all of the wrong reasons.
Billy Horschel received an apology from the USGA after speaking out about the quality of the greens after his final round. But perhaps the strongest criticism came from Gary Player, who won the event 50 years earlier.
Speaking to Golf Channel, as reported by Sky Sports, the South African was left baffled that Chambers Bay had been awarded the chance to host the US Open.
“We’re playing the US Open, this great championship… but this has been the most unpleasant golf tournament I’ve seen in my life,” he said. “The man who designed this golf course had to have one leg shorter than the other.
“It is hard to believe that a man can miss the green by one yard and the ball ends up 50 yards down in the rough. This is a public course where we are trying to encourage people to come and play and get more playing the game. They are having a putt from 20 feet and they are allowing 20 feet right and 20 feet left.
“You don’t bring the US Open to golf courses like this. This is devastating. To see a man miss the green by one yard and end up 50 yards down there, caddies falling and hurting their ankles and knees, players falling … this is terrible.
“It’s actually a tragedy – 7,900 yards long. An average golfer playing this course, a 15 or 16 handicap, he is going to shoot 110 and not go home a very happy man.”
Is Chambers Bay scheduled to host the US Open again?
Unsurprisingly, there are no current plans for the US Open to return to Chambers Bay. The next US Open which has not had its venue confirmed yet will take place in 2043.
It will however, host the US Amateur in 2033 as well as the US Junior Amateur six years earlier.
Much can change over the next few years, so it would certainly not be a surprise if the event did return to the links style course at some stage in the future.
But clearly, there are a lot of bad memories which will need to be banished in the minds of many if it ever does come back.
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