This week might be about The Memorial Tournament on the PGA Tour but with the US Open at Oakmont around the corner, Xander Schauffele has fired a warning to those hoping to go low.
Oakmont plays host to the third major of the year in just a few weeks’ time and is expected to present a difficult challenge for the world’s best.
Indeed, Justin Thomas has admitted that the rough is brutal at the moment and we could well see a high score end up winning out.
Now, ahead of what promises to be another tricky test at The Memorial, Xander Schauffele appears to have seconded Thomas’ comments, based on what he’s hearing from fellow players.
Xander Schauffele shares what he’s heard about Oakmont ahead of the US Open
Speaking to the press ahead of the Memorial, Schauffele was asked about the upcoming US Open at Oakmont and specifically, about some of the long par threes.
And according to Schauffele, he’s already been told by multiple players that a tough test lies in wait.
“Yeah, that will be fun. Yeah, L.A. Country Club had a couple of those. It was interesting to hit a sand wedge and a 3-wood or driver into those. I’ve heard Oakmont is — from several players, it’s the hardest course they’ve ever played. That’s kind of the most people have talked about it. Not much detail on why. Just it’s long and the rough is impossible and you can end up hitting 50-yard pitches trying to get up-and-down for par on every hole, something of that nature,” Schauffele admitted.
“Yeah, just because a hole is long — I touched on it before. Just because a hole is long doesn’t mean it’s good. I think there’s a certain risk-reward that should be on a hole and a certain way a hole should be played.
“It shouldn’t just be about trying to hit it as far as possible — I mean, it’s modern golf, hit it as far as possible, hit it in the fairway, hit it somewhere on the green, and make do with what you got.
I still enjoy playing golf, but there are some courses that seem to be more fun than others and that’s because of the architecture.”
The par threes at Oakmont Country Club
Oakmont is home to 18 tough holes that includes four challenging par threes of differing nature throughout.
The first comes at the sixth hole, where players need to hit 200 yards into a green surrounded by bunkers.
Next, on the 8th, is the trickiest test of them all, as 289 yards separates the players from the tee box to the green that is covered by a large front bunker for those who do come up short. Depending on conditions, we could see driver hit here at some point.
The par three 13th isn’t much easier at 183 yards, while finally, the 16th is another brutal challenge, with 236 yards needed to find the putting surface.
Over the course of four rounds, how the players score on these holes is going to be crucial and could well mean the difference in a great week, or a nightmare.
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