The 2025 US Open is upon us, and as the world's best players head to Oakmont Country Club for what is sure to be a treacherously tough test, I started thinking... how many shots would I get at the US Open venue?
I would generously describe myself as an 'improving' golfer, so I am under no illusion about how challenging it would be for me to tackle a course which famously terrorises some of the greatest in the game.
Using the handy US Open course handicap calculator on the USGA website, I was able to enter my current index and learn how many shots I would get on the championship course setup at Oakmont... and you can too!
How Many Shots Would I Get At 2025 US Open Venue Oakmont CC?
There are two ways of working this out, so I'll go through both.
Firstly, you can enter your handicap index into the calculator to reveal the extent of the help Oakmont is willing to give you.
For me, that means entering 23.1 and praying for something bigger to be spat out of the machine.
Fortunately, the number of shots awarded was higher than my index... and quite significantly.
On the Championship setup, I actually get 39 shots (with a predicted score of 109) - so no danger to the Oakmont course record then.
I still think that's ambitious considering the length of the rough at the US Open and the speed of the greens on the stimpmeter at the US Open, but... ok, then!
The other way to get your course handicap through the calculator is to put in your average score on the golf course.
For me, I can go through my England Golf app and work this out, but if you roughly know your recent scores you can also do some of your own calculations in your head.
If I look at my last ten scores, my average is 103. That fits into the pre-assigned band 100-104, which actually gives me a course handicap of a whopping 46 shots!
If I was to take the average of my last ten counting rounds, my average is 97 - which provides a course handicap at Oakmont of 37.
At more than two extra shots per hole, irrespective of the method I use to enter the data, I am still less than confident of beating the par target set for me by this measure.
Think I'll just sit back and watch the pros go to battle instead...
How Many Shots Would You Get At Oakmont Country Club?
The tool is really easy to use, so why not give it a go using the link at the top of this article. If you would prefer instead to let me do the work for you, I have compiled an extensive list of the course handicap awarded for a series of different handicap indexes (0-36). You are welcome!
Here are a couple of interesting takeaways from the data:
- The calculator predicts that any amateur golfer with a handicap index of 17 or higher would struggle to break 100.
- A 21-handicapper is the lowest index golfer to get at least two extra shots on every hole at Oakmont Country Club
- A scratch golfer, or a player with a handicap index of 1, are the only amateurs expected to break 80 at the 2025 US Open venue.
Handicap Index |
Course Handicap @ Oakmont |
Predicted No. Shots |
|---|---|---|
0 |
8 |
78 |
1 |
9 |
79 |
2 |
11 |
81 |
3 |
12 |
82 |
4 |
13 |
83 |
5 |
15 |
85 |
6 |
16 |
86 |
7 |
17 |
87 |
8 |
18 |
89 |
9 |
20 |
90 |
10 |
21 |
91 |
11 |
23 |
93 |
12 |
24 |
94 |
13 |
25 |
95 |
14 |
27 |
97 |
15 |
28 |
98 |
16 |
29 |
99 |
17 |
31 |
101 |
18 |
32 |
102 |
19 |
33 |
103 |
20 |
35 |
105 |
21 |
36 |
106 |
22 |
37 |
107 |
23 |
39 |
109 |
24 |
40 |
110 |
25 |
41 |
111 |
26 |
43 |
113 |
27 |
44 |
114 |
28 |
45 |
115 |
29 |
47 |
117 |
30 |
48 |
118 |
31 |
49 |
119 |
32 |
51 |
121 |
33 |
52 |
122 |
34 |
53 |
123 |
35 |
55 |
125 |
36 |
56 |
126 |
Have Your Say...
I am really keen to hear how many shots you would receive at the 2025 US Open venue, but also whether you feel that is a fair reflection of your golf.
Do you think you could beat your course handicap or do you feel you need a few more to make it a fair fight?
Let me know your thoughts by commenting in the box below - you never know, they might change when the coverage starts and the chaos ensues...
