It would be unusual if the build-up to the US Open didn’t have plenty of discussion - and trepidation - about the course set-up, and that’s no different for the Oakmont test that awaits the players this year.
Three of the biggest names in the field are Xander Schauffele, Justin Thomas and Dustin Johnson, who won the title at the course nine years ago, and ahead of the tournament, they gave their views on the challenge they're facing.
The rough is looking particularly brutal this year, with Ben Griffin and Bryson DeChambeau already showcasing just how deep it is, but Schauffele is adamant there is a surefire way to avoid catastrophe: “I think it just puts an emphasis on hitting the fairway and hitting greens,” he said. “If you're a premier ball striker, you'll be licking your chops."
He added: “If you're in the rough, it's very lie dependent. For the most part, the only control you can have is if you keep it right in front of you.”
It’s not just the rough that players need to worry about, with slick and undulating greens also awaiting players, as Schauffele has discovered in practice rounds.
He said: “You feel like you have a crazy putt when you just practice on 9, but then you kind of look down on the 9th green, and you're like, well, I guess that's kind of what it is, you know what I mean? It's hard to find a straight putt. It's hard to find a level putt. It's hard to find an area to do what we would call a speed drill. Like I said, you just have to adjust.”
Even with the potential for carnage, Schauffele is well aware it’s just part and parcel of the unique experience of the US Open - and it’s what the fans want to see. “I don't think people turn the TV on to watch some of the guys just hit like a 200-yard shot on the green, you know what I mean?" he asked. "I think they turn on the US Open to see a guy shooting 8-over and suffer. That's part of the enjoyment of playing in the US Open for viewers.”
Even then, he feels some noses may be put out of joint by the challenge, particularly concerning the 289-yard par-3 eighth. He said: “It's just a golf hole. If you can peel a par away from it, you just figure out how best to make a score on it.
“I think you might hurt a few egos if you see guys pulling driver or some long clubs in there, but at the end of the day, however you feel you're going to make the best score in there is how you should play it.”
As for Thomas, he sees laser-focused discipline as the key to success, with the potential for catastrophe with any lapse of concentration. “I just think it requires patience and discipline," he said. "If you just get lazy, like on any drive, any wedge shot, any chip, any putt, you can kind of look stupid pretty fast, especially at a place like this.”
Like Schauffele, Thomas thinks the answer to the penal rough is straightforward – don't land in it. Asked about the strategy of hacking out it, he said: “I'm fine with it. I don't know. I understand the strategy aspect that people are like, well, it doesn't require any thought. You just take a lob wedge and hack it out.
"To me it's like, well, at the same time, that just puts even more of a priority on hitting the ball straight, which I would think is going to lessen the chances of guys just pulling driver out of their bag and sending it as far as they can every hole.”
Oakmont has seen its fair share of rain in recent days, but even though Thomas admitted that could help on the greens, they will be anything but easy, adding: “Anytime the greens are softer, it's going to be easier than if they're firmer, but these greens are still far from normal or easy.
“Just the amount that the putts break and how quick some of the chips and around the holes can be, it's still difficult if it's firm or soft. It just changes it a little bit if it's one or the other.”
If there’s one player in the field who perhaps shouldn’t fear Oakmont it’s LIV Golfer Johnson, who could even afford a penalty in the final round in 2016 and still win by three. Nevertheless, he was clear when asked what the hardest course he'd ever played is: “Probably this one.”
Johnson thinks the course will be even more challenging this time, adding: “It seems like it's tougher this time around, but that's just maybe with the little bit of added length. It's going to make it a little more difficult."
So, how do you win at Oakmont? Johnson is with Schauffele and Thomas over the key to a good week - staying out of the rough. “Good memories here,” he said. “Obviously it was a long time ago. I have confidence in this golf course because I know I played well, but obviously this week puts a lot of pressure on the driver. I feel like I'm driving the ball really good right now.
"Even from there, though, it doesn't get much easier. You definitely have to hit it in the fairway if you want a chance to win around here.”
