The build-up to the US Open has not been without talking points. Some have concerned the tournament itself, with the brutal rough at the host venue, Oakmont, a particular point of interest. Others concern the tournament’s organizer, governing body the USGA, such as the controversy over driver testing that flared up at the PGA Championship and the ongoing saga of the proposed golf ball rollback.
Those subjects, and more, were all tackled at the USGA’s pre-tournament press conference, which saw CEO Mike Whan, President Fred Perpall and Chief Communications Officer John Bodenhamer in attendance. Here are 6 big takeaways from the session.
Preparing A ‘Tough But Fair’ Oakmont Test
It’s virtually US Open tradition to debate the way the USGA has prepared the course, and that’s no different for the Oakmont Major, with the length and density of the rough drawing the attention of many big names, including Xander Schauffele, Justin Thomas and Dustin Johnson.
However, the USGA’s Chief Championships Officer John Bodenhamer insisted it won’t present an unfair test for the players. He said: “Tough but fair. A lot of discussion about Oakmont being tough. It certainly is, but our mantra is tough but fair. And what does that mean? It's pretty simple. It's not about the score, it's about getting every club in a player's bag dirty, all 15 of them. The 14 in their bag and the one between their ears. And we work hard on that, and that's how we've gone about our business here at Oakmont.”
He also provided some details on how much peril players who stray from the fairways will be in, adding: “The rough will be a little over five inches and it is dense. Oakmont, day in and day out, has dense rough. But we have plenty of spotters, but no guarantees we won't lose a golf ball or two, but we're going to do everything we possibly can not to do so.
“But we feel good about that. As I said, I think the rough, players that drive the ball in the fairway will have an advantage, no question about it.”
A US Open Future For Phil Mickelson?
One of the players hoping to stay out of the rough will be six-time US Open runner-up Phil Mickelson. The LIV Golfer admitted there is a “high likelihood” it could be as final appearance in the tournament with no guarantee of qualification after this year.
However, one potential route to future editions could be a special exemption, something he was awarded four years ago but didn’t need to use thanks to winning the PGA Championship. So, could Mickelson be handed another? Bodenhamer didn’t confirm he would, but didn’t rule it out either.
He said: “Listen, the answer to that is Phil did receive one in 2021, and I'm a little sleep deprived, but counting my years backwards - it's like anything; we would review things for Shinnecock ahead of next year and look at all of those possibilities and evaluate it from there.
"I think the way that we would also think of Phil is we hope he earns his way in, and I think he'd tell you the same thing. That's what he did last time. We gave him one and then he went out and won the PGA Championship. So wouldn't put it past him.”
The Driver Testing Controversy
While driving the ball accurately will be a key part of a successful four days for any player, the state of the drivers was also a topic of concern. That’s because, a month ago at the PGA Championship, there was controversy when a report leaked that Rory McIlroy’s driver had been deemed non-conforming before the tournament began, forcing him to make a change.
The USGA carries out the tests and CEO Mike Whan insisted that it’s not as big a deal as was made at the time.
He explained: “When we see failure, at least currently, we're seeing clubs just literally creep over the line. It's a line we draw we aren't seeing when we're taking drivers off, drivers that are, ‘oh, my gosh, look where that one went.’
"So I think sometimes in the media and the fan space, you think, we just took 20 yards off that player. We're literally talking about an extra microsecond, and if you get within I think it's 18 microseconds of the line and we test you, we give you what we call a yellow warning, which is, ‘hey, be careful, that club is starting to’ - because at the velocities and at the frequency at which they hit these clubs, they will just relax over time.”
The Golf Ball Rollback Plan
On the subject of equipment changes, ever since the USGA and The R&A announced golf ball rollback plans in late 2023, it has never been too far from the headlines.
The plan, intended to reduce the impact of increased hitting distances, would see pros begin using new balls in 2028, with recreational players starting to use them in 2030.
That is proving controversial, with PGA of America CEO Derek Sprague saying before the PGA Championship that the organisation is “vehemently” against the rollback after previously revealing the organization hadn’t been greatly involved in discussions, saying: “To my knowledge, we haven't had a lot of dialogue on it."
However, Whan said there was plenty of ongoing collaboration. He explained: “I'm encouraged by the collaborative nature of the discussions. Listen, I get this isn't easy and everybody has got their own constituents.
"I'll just say what I said yesterday again, is as an industry we have to be able to make small adjustments that are in the best interest of the game long-term, that we all know would be better 40 years from now if we were smart enough to make them today."
He also tried to add perspective, saying: “Not everybody will like it. It'll be high anxiety until we get there. But nobody is going to die. The game is going to be great. We're going to prove that we can be better for future generations rather than to simply look the other way and know that in 40 or 50 years we'd be handing them something we could have made small adjustments on.”
Whan also confirmed the plan has not been derailed, adding: “Yeah, if I'm being honest with you, we're full-speed ahead on what we've announced. Those decisions have been made.”
Is LIV Golf Making Another Bid For World Ranking Points?
At the end of April, it was reported that LIV Golf were back in discussions over securing world ranking points, but that was later denied by Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) chairman Trevor Immelman. Whan is also on the governing board of the OWGR, and he confirmed that, to his knowledge, no new application had been submitted.
He explained: “Yeah, I'll be honest with you, my last two weeks have been sort of in a cave. So if they have submitted something new in the last two weeks, it'd be in the last two weeks. As a board member, I'm not aware of a resubmit.
"I know there's been dialogue with LIV about the concept of resubmitting. As a board member, I'll review it just like we did the last time. But I don't think that's happened.”
Big US Open Prize Money
Last year, Bryson DeChambeau claimed one of the largest individual prizes ever given to a player for his victory at the US Open, $4.3m. That came from an overall purse of $21.5m.
Whan confirmed there will be an identical sum in 2025, saying: “Our purse is $21.5 million. Winner's check is 4.3. We didn't raise our purse this year. When I started at the USGA just four years ago, our purse was 12.5, so I feel comfortable that we've been a leader in moving fast and bigger.
"We're not really a fan of small, but when we go, go a little bit bigger. Same, by the way, has happened on the women's side where we've gone from 5½ to 12 in a similar period of time.”
