oakmont getting ready

[tiderider]

12 hours ago, ChrisATL said:

As I said before, I think the US Open should continue to lean into making this tournament a bit more painful (as compared to the average tour stop). 🤷‍♂️

 

Early predictions on winning score?  I think someone will break par, but can't imagine its going to be very low...

i enjoy a little grammar/vocabulary dust-up on a Monday morning ... well done, gentlemen ... well done ... 

 

[tiderider]

 

[CanFred]

28 minutes ago, tiderider said:

i enjoy a little grammar/vocabulary dust-up on a Monday morning ... well done, gentlemen ... well done ... 

 

That’s why we are all here, right? 😂

[TiScape]

58 minutes ago, tiderider said:

i enjoy a little grammar/vocabulary dust-up on a Monday morning ... well done, gentlemen ... well done ... 

 

If this is any indication, we should have someone calling another member out to “meet up 🥊” by Friday! 😂 

 

US Open thread gonna be a tot 💩 show! 

[Poor Mans Ty Webb]

On 5/25/2025 at 9:41 AM, ChrisATL said:

Call me a masochist but I can’t wait to see this place wreak havoc on the Pros in a couple weeks. US Opens should be the stiffest test in golf, and I think Oakmont will come through. 

 

13 hours ago, ChrisATL said:

As I said before, I think the US Open should continue to lean into making this tournament a bit more painful (as compared to the average tour stop). 🤷‍♂️

 

Early predictions on winning score?  I think someone will break par, but can't imagine its going to be very low...

Maybe take this with a grain of salt because it’s still Oakmont and it’s still the US Open, but thus far here in the Paris of Appalachia we’ve had a pretty wet and relatively cool spring. I’m concerned it may play just a little softer than the USGA/Oakmont members would like. A bit bold, perhaps, but it wouldn’t necessarily surprise me if the winning score was better than DJ’s in 2016…

[CanFred]

1 minute ago, Poor Mans Ty Webb said:

 

Maybe take this with a grain of salt because it’s still Oakmont and it’s still the US Open, but thus far here in the Paris of Appalachia we’ve had a pretty wet and relatively cool spring. I’m concerned it may play just a little softer than the USGA/Oakmont members would like. A bit bold, perhaps, but it wouldn’t necessarily surprise me if the winning score was better than DJ’s in 2016…

Yea, I totally get that - let’s hope it gets hot and dry soon!

 

Also, love the “Paris of Appalachia” callout 😂

[Fairways_and_Greens]

15 hours ago, jimecherry said:

i dont think you know what that word means if you think enjoying others suffering makes you a masochist ;}

The “royal” masochist.

[Anser3]

Oakmont is still on my list of courses I hope to get to play before my time is done. (Not a fan of “bucket list”  terminology. )

 

Anxiously waiting the weather forecast for the 9th through the 12th.  Hoping I won’t need the umbrella for practice rounds.  

  I also have some AXS app questions before getting my tickets delivered.  Can’t wait for this, though.

Edited May 26 by Anser3

[StoutKing]

1 hour ago, Poor Mans Ty Webb said:

 

Maybe take this with a grain of salt because it’s still Oakmont and it’s still the US Open, but thus far here in the Paris of Appalachia we’ve had a pretty wet and relatively cool spring. I’m concerned it may play just a little softer than the USGA/Oakmont members would like. A bit bold, perhaps, but it wouldn’t necessarily surprise me if the winning score was better than DJ’s in 2016…

If they go low it's no big deal.  Course is still great.

[elwhippy]

Insanely difficult but visually the place looks bland. I have no idea what the average handicap member goes round in but I cannot imagine many single figure players off any of the tee boxes. 

[golferdude54]

1 hour ago, elwhippy said:

Insanely difficult but visually the place looks bland. I have no idea what the average handicap member goes round in but I cannot imagine many single figure players off any of the tee boxes. 

While I like Gil Hanse, I just can’t help but think his renovation of major courses is nothing more than getting rid of trees, making the greens bigger, and adding more bunkers.

 

Sometimes it feels like the golf course equivalent of these kitchen renovation shows where it’s always taking down the kitchen wall for a “more open concept”.

[italianstallion]

5 minutes ago, golferdude54 said:

While I like Gil Hanse, I just can’t help but think his renovation of major courses is nothing more than getting rid of trees, making the greens bigger, and adding more bunkers.

 

Sometimes it feels like the golf course equivalent of these kitchen renovation shows where it’s always taking down the kitchen wall for a “more open concept”.

 

Your point is actually correct, just not in the way you think. This course was designed with no trees, as shown in the photo below from 1930. So yes, they've gone open concept, but that's actually what Oakmont use to be. The Fownes' designed it as homage to the links of the UK, and while the grass is different the course still doles out the same penalties in the form of menacing bunkers, waist high rough, and wind unbroken by trees. Oakmont has spent the better part of the past two decades ripping out all the carpet to expose beautiful hardwood floors and power washed the white and black paint off the exterior to expose the natural brick. This course was not meant to be a parkland course.

 

[StoutKing]

20 minutes ago, golferdude54 said:

While I like Gil Hanse, I just can’t help but think his renovation of major courses is nothing more than getting rid of trees, making the greens bigger, and adding more bunkers.

 

Sometimes it feels like the golf course equivalent of these kitchen renovation shows where it’s always taking down the kitchen wall for a “more open concept”.

I've played and studied two or three of his renovations.  Those I've studied have been brought back to the original design as much as possible.  Night and day improvement over the previous versions

[StoutKing]

2 hours ago, golferdude54 said:

While I like Gil Hanse, I just can’t help but think his renovation of major courses is nothing more than getting rid of trees, making the greens bigger, and adding more bunkers.

 

Sometimes it feels like the golf course equivalent of these kitchen renovation shows where it’s always taking down the kitchen wall for a “more open concept”.

Here are some aerials I've gathered for Oakland Hills.   You've got pre-resto, post-resto, a 1937 aerial and a Ross sketch from the 1920's.  Pretty impressive that Hanse brought back a course from 1917 and made it capable to host the US Open again.  LACC's restoration was pretty awesome too.  I hope to play Oakmont someday to see it in person.

 

OH Before

 

OH After Hanse

 

1937 Aerial

 

Ross Sketch

[italianstallion]

17 minutes ago, StoutKing said:

Here are some aerials I've gathered for Oakland Hills.   You've got pre-resto, post-resto, a 1937 aerial and a Ross sketch from the 1920's.  Pretty impressive that Hanse brought back a course from 1917 and made it capable to host the US Open again.  LACC's restoration was pretty awesome too.  I hope to play Oakmont someday to see it in person.

 

OH Before

 

OH After Hanse

 

1937 Aerial

 

Ross Sketch

[cardoustie]

I agree with @Forged4ever, ripping out trees is good, golf courses are not arboretums … however, in my opinion, some large signature trees left in spots (strategic / aim points / corner of doglegs / besides tees for shade etc) would’ve improved things visually 

 

I get its a links homage but you can still tweak for local flavor

 

oh, and I love that my golfing idol Johnny Miller broke members hearts when he tore it up in ‘73, should’ve been a 61 

[Forged4ever]

The other thing to bear in mind regarding taking Oakmont back to its original Fownes' links design is that cross country golf was not a thing or even on the horizon when Oakmont was first designed. Over the decades, as the Tour Boys got longer and started to swing for the fences and land in the short hair a fairway or in a few cases two fairways over, and in 1980, Oakmont even flew Tour Boy Long Baller Lonnie Hinkle in to Play the track, Play his version of cross country golf, and they then went out and Planted trees🌲🌳 to impede the path of both Lonnie's and any other Long Ballers' shortcuts. That just started a decade plus of tree craziness, lolol. 

 

There actually was a happy medium where there were enough trees to achieve the purpose of punishing those long wayward drives though also not negatively impacting the surrounding grass and foliage, however, as our species is prone to do, especially those who drink the kool-aid and believe their own press clippings, if some was good, then by god, thousands more would be better, lol🤪

 

A lil aside about the Lonster that the young 'uns may be unfamiliar with is that him goin cross country was no biggie, as in the 1979 US Open at Inverness, he took a serious short cut on the 587yd par-5 8th hole by hitting up and onto the 17th fairway, scarin the 💩💩 outa the Players comin up the fairway, lolol. Overnight USGA officials planted a tree off of #8 tee to block Lonnie's shortcut😂😂. Lonnie didn't even have to take a wood outa the bag that day!! He took a 1i between the tees off of #8 tee up #17 FW and brought a 2i back into the green. 

 

Please take a minute out of your leisurely Memorial day and think about this...

 

587 yards!!

 

1i off of the tee!!

 

2i into the green!! 

 

The other factor is that most of those links courses across the pond, at least the most Iconic ones, have a serious ocean breeze or two coming across the course. While we do get some windy days that will affect ball flight and traj(god do I love this word and I owe my knowledge of it to WRXers!!! I lovvvve you guys/gals🥰), trust me here, the winds coming off the Allegheny River below Oakmont ain't like those coming off the Atlantic!!

 

If you're gonna strip the carpet, to borrow @italianstallion's superb analogy, then you'd better have some seriously severe bunkers(more so than the bunkers from pre-Hanse and of course), let the grass grow and do away with the graduated rough, which they did. 

 

Speaking of the rough, I was scrolling through my YTube vids and came across this Berkshire kid's vid where he Played the course a month or so ago. This is in #8, which he Played at 302yds, and he went with a 3i. He jumped on one, which he seemed to be doin all day long. He's a mental midget cuz if he would bury the ego and THINK like a Player, not just swing like one, he'd be dangerous. Whether it was a 190yd SW/56*, or this 302yd 3i, that he short sided, he was jumpin on balls and they were all 20-30yds short left. He didn't adapt at all. Kept doin the same thing shot after shot after shot after.....

 

That said, he dropped a superb LW to 5-6' and ran the putt for a beautiful 3. Trust me here, he does not want either that wedge shot or that putt in a Tourney under the gun. That is why he's just a Long Baller and not Playin for Pay .

 

Anyhoo, this was a practice swing though you can barely see the ball in that rough. The reshaped bunkers combined with the greens being expanded by 24,000+ square feet have more than made up for the loss of trees. 

 

Apologies for the novella and goin off the rails, as Lon Hinkle, Kyle Berkshire,  jesus, my posts are like a Long Baller's errant drive...you have no friggin idea where they're gonna end up🤷🏻‍♂️🤪

 

Stay Well My Friends👊

RP

Edited May 29 by Forged4ever

[StoutKing]

4 minutes ago, Forged4ever said:

The other thing to bear in mind regarding taking Oakmont back to its original Fownes' links design is that cross country golf was not a thing or even on the horizon when Oakmont was first designed. Over the decades, as the Tour Boys got longer and started to swing for the fences and land in the short hair a fairway or in a few cases two fairways over, and in 1980, Oakmont even flew Tour Boy Long Baller Lonnie Hinkle in to Play the track, Play his version of cross country golf, and they then went out and Planted trees🌲🌳 to impede the path of both Lonnie's and any other Long Ballers' shortcuts. That just started a decade plus of tree craziness, lolol. 

 

There actually was a happy medium where there were enough trees to achieve the purpose of punishing those long wayward drives though also not negatively impacting the surrounding grass and foliage, however, as our species is prone to do, especially those who drink the kool-aid and believe their own press clippings, if some was good, then by god, thousands more would be better, lol🤪

 

A lil aside about the Lonster that the young 'uns may be unfamiliar with is that him goin cross country was no biggie, as in the 1979 US Open at Inverness, he took a serious short cut on the 587yd par-5 8th hole by hitting up and onto the 17th fairway, scarin the 💩💩 outa the Players comin up the fairway, lolol. Overnight USGA officials planted a tree off of #8 tee to block Lonnie's shortcut😂😂. Lonnie didn't even have to take a wood outa the bag that day!! He took a 1i between the tees off of #8 tee up #17 FW and brought a 2i back into the green. 

 

Please take a minute out of your leisurely Memorial day and think about this...

 

587 yards!!

 

1i off of the tee!!

 

2i into the green!! 

 

The other factor is that most of those links courses across the pond, at least the most Iconic ones, are a serious ocean breeze or two coming across the course. While we do get some windy days that will affect ball flight and traj(god do I love this word and I owe my knowledge of it to WRXers!!! I lovvvve you guys/gals🥰), trust me here, the winds coming off the Allegheny River ain't like those coming off the Atlantic!!

 

If you're gonna strip the carpet, to borrow @italianstallion's superb analogy, then you'd better have some seriously severe bunkers(more so than the bunkers from pre-Hanse and of course, let the grass grow and do away with the graduated rough, which they did. 

 

Speaking of the rough, I was scrolling through my YTube vids and came across this Berkshire kid's vid where he Played the course a month ir so ago. This is in #8, which he Played at 302yds, and he went with a 3i. He jumped on one, which he seemed to be doin all day long. He's a mental midget cuz if he would bury the ego and THINK like a Player, not just swing like one, he'd be dangerous. Whether it was a 190yd SW/56*, or this 302yd 3i, that he short sided, he was jumpin on balls and they were all 20-30yds short left. He didn't adapt at all. Kept doin the same thing shot after shot after shot after.....

 

That said, he dropped a superb LW to 5-6' and ran the putt for a beautiful 3. That said, trust me here, he does not want either that wedge shot or that putt in a Tourney under the gun. That is why he's just a Long Baller and not Playin for Pay .

 

Anyhoo, this was a practice swing though you can barely see the ball in that rough. The reshaped bunkers combined with the greens being expanded by 24,000+ square feet have more than made up for the loss of trees. 

 

Apologies for the novella and goin off the rails, as Lon Hinkle, Kyle Berkshire,  jesus, my posts are like an Long Baller's errant drive...you have no friggin idea where they're gonna end up🤷🏻‍♂️🤪

 

Stay Well My Friends👊

RP

Oakmont and all other major courses would play better with a 15% rollback but I don't really want to start with that here.

[Forged4ever]

1 hour ago, StoutKing said:

Oakmont and all other major courses would play better with a 15% rollback but I don't really want to start with that here.

That's a combo of religion, politics and LIV all rolled into one😂🤣

 

Nah, me goin off the rails is enough for any one thread😜🤪

 

Have a Great Week Brotha👊

RP

Edited May 26 by Forged4ever

[tiderider]

1 hour ago, Forged4ever said:

The other thing to bear in mind regarding taking Oakmont back to its original Fownes' links design is that cross country golf was not a thing or even on the horizon when Oakmont was first designed. Over the decades, as the Tour Boys got longer and started to swing for the fences and land in the short hair a fairway or in a few cases two fairways over, and in 1980, Oakmont even flew Tour Boy Long Baller Lonnie Hinkle in to Play the track, Play his version of cross country golf, and they then went out and Planted trees🌲🌳 to impede the path of both Lonnie's and any other Long Ballers' shortcuts. That just started a decade plus of tree craziness, lolol. 

 

There actually was a happy medium where there were enough trees to achieve the purpose of punishing those long wayward drives though also not negatively impacting the surrounding grass and foliage, however, as our species is prone to do, especially those who drink the kool-aid and believe their own press clippings, if some was good, then by god, thousands more would be better, lol🤪

 

A lil aside about the Lonster that the young 'uns may be unfamiliar with is that him goin cross country was no biggie, as in the 1979 US Open at Inverness, he took a serious short cut on the 587yd par-5 8th hole by hitting up and onto the 17th fairway, scarin the 💩💩 outa the Players comin up the fairway, lolol. Overnight USGA officials planted a tree off of #8 tee to block Lonnie's shortcut😂😂. Lonnie didn't even have to take a wood outa the bag that day!! He took a 1i between the tees off of #8 tee up #17 FW and brought a 2i back into the green. 

 

Please take a minute out of your leisurely Memorial day and think about this...

 

587 yards!!

 

1i off of the tee!!

 

2i into the green!! 

 

The other factor is that most of those links courses across the pond, at least the most Iconic ones, are a serious ocean breeze or two coming across the course. While we do get some windy days that will affect ball flight and traj(god do I love this word and I owe my knowledge of it to WRXers!!! I lovvvve you guys/gals🥰), trust me here, the winds coming off the Allegheny River ain't like those coming off the Atlantic!!

 

If you're gonna strip the carpet, to borrow @italianstallion's superb analogy, then you'd better have some seriously severe bunkers(more so than the bunkers from pre-Hanse and of course, let the grass grow and do away with the graduated rough, which they did. 

 

Speaking of the rough, I was scrolling through my YTube vids and came across this Berkshire kid's vid where he Played the course a month ir so ago. This is in #8, which he Played at 302yds, and he went with a 3i. He jumped on one, which he seemed to be doin all day long. He's a mental midget cuz if he would bury the ego and THINK like a Player, not just swing like one, he'd be dangerous. Whether it was a 190yd SW/56*, or this 302yd 3i, that he short sided, he was jumpin on balls and they were all 20-30yds short left. He didn't adapt at all. Kept doin the same thing shot after shot after shot after.....

 

That said, he dropped a superb LW to 5-6' and ran the putt for a beautiful 3. That said, trust me here, he does not want either that wedge shot or that putt in a Tourney under the gun. That is why he's just a Long Baller and not Playin for Pay .

 

Anyhoo, this was a practice swing though you can barely see the ball in that rough. The reshaped bunkers combined with the greens being expanded by 24,000+ square feet have more than made up for the loss of trees. 

 

Apologies for the novella and goin off the rails, as Lon Hinkle, Kyle Berkshire,  jesus, my posts are like an Long Baller's errant drive...you have no friggin idea where they're gonna end up🤷🏻‍♂️🤪

 

Stay Well My Friends👊

RP

i always think of hinkle when i see/saw jason kokrak swing ... tall, not thin or wide but a bit lanky ... and long, of course ... 

[PJE]

6 hours ago, italianstallion said:

Your point is actually correct, just not in the way you think. This course was designed with no trees, as shown in the photo below from 1930. So yes, they've gone open concept, but that's actually what Oakmont use to be. The Fownes' designed it as homage to the links of the UK, and while the grass is different the course still doles out the same penalties in the form of menacing bunkers, waist high rough, and wind unbroken by trees.

It looks ugly, boring, hot , and difficult. 
I’ve wondered about the designer’s intentions. Did he really design it as a homage to links courses or was he confronted with a treeless property and he said, “Here’s your inland links course”?   And then members wisely planted some trees because it was so boring, ugly, and hot?  Fast forward to a contemporary narrative about designer intentions and shot values? 

Edited May 27 by PJE

[StoutKing]

28 minutes ago, PJE said:

It looks ugly, boring, hot , and difficult. 
I’ve wondered about the designer’s intentions. Did he really design it as a homage to links courses or was he confronted with a treeless property and he said, “Here’s your inland links course”?   And then members wisely planted some trees because it was so boring, ugly, and hot?  Fast forward to a contemporary narrative about designer intentions and shot values? 

I understand trees went in with the interstate to block the view and noise.

[Duct Tape]

15 hours ago, elwhippy said:

Insanely difficult but visually the place looks bland. I have no idea what the average handicap member goes round in but I cannot imagine many single figure players off any of the tee boxes. 

Eye of the beholder and all that. 
 

To me the hole layout and mix of green with native grasses is visually stunning. 
 

It is also one of the best and easiest walks in golf. 

[cassel191919]

21 hours ago, Anser3 said:

Oakmont is still on my list of courses I hope to get to play before my time is done. (Not a fan of “bucket list”  terminology. )

 

Anxiously waiting the weather forecast for the 9th through the 12th.  Hoping I won’t need the umbrella for practice rounds.  

  I also have some AXS app questions before getting my tickets delivered.  Can’t wait for this, though.

I hope you get that chance it's always been my favorite golf course. Outside of my child being born it was the best day I've had.

[IneverDothis]

Can't comprehend how someone could watch that Toro video and not think this course is awesome. It's up there with the Country Club for me and a perfect US Open venue. 

 

Can't wait to watch. 

[Forged4ever]

On 5/26/2025 at 1:50 PM, elwhippy said:

Insanely difficult but visually the place looks bland. I have no idea what the average handicap member goes round in but I cannot imagine many single figure players off any of the tee boxes. 

They  actually have a larger scratch/Plus pool of Players than the average Top-Tier Club. Our two Clubs were considered the Top-2 "Players'" Clubs in town. We used to have the Inter Club Championships, a three day Ryder Cup format Tourney, and we faced off in the Championship against each other 10 of the 12 years that I Played, with them winning 7/10 Championships.

 

What I remember is that they were 10 Player Teams, and we had 18 guys vying for 10 spots, with Club Champion/Runner-Up gettin auto selections. Now our 18 guys were all legit Plusses, forget scratches, as not a single one of those 18 was scratch or higher. We actually had another 12-15 who carried Plusses from our place and/or Fla or southern Clubs where they spent the winter and while they were legit Plusses, they were what I'd refer to as "soft," in that they didn't Play a lot of big Money or Tourney golf, nor was there a Club Champion amongst em. 

 

So we didn't even have two full teams to practice against as we'd have to get a few of the "softies" to fill in.

 

Oakmont????

 

They actually had 25-27 Plusses and two former Card carryin Tour Boys who were around ~1 to +1 that had, both due to injuries, left the Tour, gone on to raise families, build successful businesses and get on with life, Playin maybe 5-7 rounds a year. They were both still legit Plusses ball striking wise, their putting was just streaky. I had Played with the one earlier that spring from the blacks, he had a 66 in his second round that year. We Played the US Open/US Am par of 70. 

 

Their #11-20 also included 2 former Tour Boys and 3 past President Cup Members(their Club Championship). Bottom line, their second ten would beat our first ten 5-6 times outa 10.

 

The one thing that you can rest assured is that if you ever play with an Oakmont member, regardless of whether their cap is ~18, ~22, ~10, scratch or +4, his/her cap is legit. Even when I Played in Stags & Invitationals with Oakmont mid/high caps, they were rock solid and usually helped the team/group quite a bit with their strokes.

 

There are very very very few Poseurs at Oakmont, at least I've never Played with one, as they would get embarrassed and wouldn't last long over there. Their SWATs are legendary, and a Poseur would only Play one time, as they would never ever want to play again if they could not carry their weight or strokes!!

 

I realize that everyone has a bad day, though you know what I mean about a guy who has a ~6, ~9 or ~12, and it's evident that bad day or not, he is not a legit ~6, ~9 or ~12. Every Club, including mine, has em. Not Oakmont. At least if they're there, they don't play events, Tourneys or money games(When I refer to "money games," I'm not referring to $10-20 nassaus, lolol). They play with there wives in the evenings or the couples games on Sundays, lol.

 

Bottom line, Oakmont has more "Players(Competitive & Elite Plusses, Pros & former Tour Boys)" than any Club in town and would be on par with all of your Top Tier Championship Clubs around the country. These Players Play from either the green(7130yds, Par 70), black(7427, Par 70) or BoB/Back of Box(7588, Par 71). We Played the blacks 90% of the time, the greens the rest cept for twice a year, once in the spring and once in the fall, we Played the BoBs at par 71. 

 

Guys do not join the  Clubs like Oakmont for their families or for the Club's other amenities, ie., dining, swimming pool, tennis courts, paddle ball courts, skeet, etc. Contrary to what they might tell ya in the presence of their wife or kids, they join for the golf. 

 

Oakmont has more legit single cap, scratch and Plus Players than any Club in town and I would put them up against ANY Club in ANY city in this country and while they might not be #1, they'd be right there above 98%+ of em(My Bro & Parents belong to Isleworth GC down in Orlando and it seems that every other Player on the practice line is a Tour Boy or Gal, lol, as Tiger was a member there Pre-fire hydrant days, though those kinda Clubs are next next level😂😂).

 

Stay Well My Friend👊

RP

Edited May 27 by Forged4ever

[PedronNiall]

18 hours ago, Forged4ever said:

Speaking of the rough, I was scrolling through my YTube vids and came across this Berkshire kid's vid where he Played the course a month or so ago. This is in #8, which he Played at 302yds, and he went with a 3i. He jumped on one, which he seemed to be doin all day long. He's a mental midget cuz if he would bury the ego and THINK like a Player, not just swing like one, he'd be dangerous. Whether it was a 190yd SW/56*, or this 302yd 3i, that he short sided, he was jumpin on balls and they were all 20-30yds short left. He didn't adapt at all. Kept doin the same thing shot after shot after shot after.....

 

An aside, but correct insight from viewing how he plays. He has exactly one gear at almost all times. Think Rory, DJ, or Tiger before they learned to finesse all their irons, but especially wedges, and turn that up to 11 and you get Berkshire. 

 

That kind of mindset won't ever get him on Tour the way he'd like, and it's a shame because it would be a dream come true for him and would be fun to watch someone with that length who could also dial it on challenging layouts and take advantage of his distance properly. 

[jonsnow]

On 5/26/2025 at 9:48 AM, gvogel said:

You would enjoy watching many of the best players in the world fail to finish?  7 hour rounds and all that?  There are no trees out there.  If it's hot, some might perish.

[Duct Tape]

44 minutes ago, Forged4ever said:

They  actually have a larger scratch/Plus pool of Players than the average Top-Tier Club. Our two Clubs were considered the Top-2 "Players'" Clubs in town. We used to have the Inter Club Championships, a three day Ryder Cup format Tourney, and we faced off in the Championship against each other 10 of the 12 years that I Played, with them winning 7/10 Championships.

 

What I remember is that they were 10 Player Teams, and we had 18 guys vying for 10 spots, with Club Champion/Runner-Up gettin auto selections. Now our 18 guys were all legit Plusses, forget scratches, as not a single one of those 18 was scratch or higher. We actually had another 12-15 who carried Plusses from our place and/or Fla or southern Clubs where they spent the winter and while they were legit Plusses, they were what I'd refer to as "soft," in that they didn't Play a lot of big Money or Tourney golf, nor was there a Club Champion amongst em. 

 

So we didn't even have two full teams to practice against as we'd have to get a few of the "softies" to fill in.

 

Oakmont????

 

They actually had 25-27 Plusses and two former Card carryin Tour Boys who were around ~1 to +1 that had, both due to injuries, left the Tour, gone on to raise families, build successful businesses and get on with life, Playin maybe 5-7 rounds a year. They were both still legit Plusses ball striking wise, their putting was just streaky. I had Played with the one earlier that spring from the blacks, he had a 66 in his second round that year. We Played the US Open/US Am par of 70. 

 

Their #11-20 also included 2 former Tour Boys and 3 past President Cup Members(their Club Championship). Bottom line, their second ten would beat our first ten 5-6 times outa 10.

 

The one thing that you can rest assured is that if you ever play with an Oakmont member, regardless of whether their cap is ~18, ~22, ~10, scratch or +4, his/her cap is legit. Even when I Played in Stags & Invitationals with Oakmont mid/high caps, they were rock solid and usually helped the team/group quite a bit with their strokes.

 

There are very very very few Poseurs at Oakmont, at least I've never Played with one, as they would get embarrassed and wouldn't last long over there. Their SWATs are legendary, and a Poseur would only Play one time, as they would never ever want to play again if they could not carry their weight or strokes!!

 

I realize that everyone has a bad day, though you know what I mean about a guy who has a ~6, ~9 or ~12, and it's evident that bad day or not, he is not a legit ~6, ~9 or ~12. Every Club, including mine, has em. Not Oakmont. At least if they're there, they don't play events, Tourneys or money games(When I refer to "money games," I'm not referring to $10-20 nassaus, lolol). They play with there wives in the evenings or the couples games on Sundays, lol.

 

Bottom line, Oakmont has more "Players(Competitive & Elite Plusses, Pros & former Tour Boys)" than any Club in town and would be on par with all of your Top Tier Championship Clubs around the country. These Players Play from either the green(7130yds, Par 70), black(7427, Par 70) or BoB/Back of Box(7588, Par 71). We Played the blacks 90% of the time, the greens the rest cept for twice a year, once in the spring and once in the fall, we Played the BoBs at par 71. 

 

Guys do not join the  Clubs like Oakmont for their families or for the Club's other amenities, ie., dining, swimming pool, tennis courts, paddle ball courts, skeet, etc. Contrary to what they might tell ya in the presence of their wife or kids, they join for the golf. 

 

Oakmont has more legit single cap, scratch and Plus Players than any Club in town and I would put them up against ANY Club in ANY city in this country and while they might not be #1, they'd be right there with 98%+ of em(My Bro & Parents belong to Isleworth GC down in Orlando and it seems that every other Player on the practice line is a Tour Boy or Gal, lol, as Tiger was a member there Pre-fire hydrant days, though those kinda Clubs are next next level😂😂).

 

Stay Well My Friend👊

RP

Good stuff RP. I always enjoy reading your posts. Very informative. 

[Forged4ever]

3 hours ago, PedronNiall said:

 

An aside, but correct insight from viewing how he plays. He has exactly one gear at almost all times. Think Rory, DJ, or Tiger before they learned to finesse all their irons, but especially wedges, and turn that up to 11 and you get Berkshire. 

 

That kind of mindset won't ever get him on Tour the way he'd like, and it's a shame because it would be a dream come true for him and would be fun to watch someone with that length who could also dial it on challenging layouts and take advantage of his distance properly. 

I really hope that he hooks up with someone who takes him aside and works with his mental game. First, athletically, he's a Freak and does what cannot be taught!!! That is uber rare. Secondly, he has to want to become a legit Player and not a Freak Show and YTube Entertainer.

 

He's got to start thinking like a Player, just as Jamie Sadlowski did when he went from Long Baller Entertainer to legit Pro. I'm not referring to any success or lack there of that Sadlowski has encountered, just the mindset change that he underwent which shapes his strategical thinking on the game and tactical thinking on the course with his shot/club selection. 

 

The fact that this kid shot 79-80 that day is a friggin joke and tells you the talent level that he possesses. He was Playin for the camera and the ooohs aaahs and astounded looks of viewers when he stated that he was using a 3i on the 302yd Par 3 8th, instead of tactically attacking Oakmont as a Player would with a goal of breaking 80.

 

Now, bear in mind that just in the 2-3 minutes of the vid that I watched, he came up short left 2-3 times, so I can only imagine 8+ shots across the round. It did not cost him on #8 cuz he had a World World Class 3 which also showed me that he has phenomenal hands as that wedge from that 5-6" 💩💩 to 5' was Tour level execution!!

 

Nah, this kid has the physical tools in spades♠️ and it isn't just the distance as that wedge from the deep rough on #8 to 5' and another LW from the trash to 6-7' showed me that he has World Class Hands, which both Sam & Pete considered THE #1 must have trait for a World Class Player. Ya gotta have World Class hands with your scoring irons and putter!!

 

He would have to do a total mental reset though if he has the discipline and drive to become an Elite Player, he could be something to watch.

 

Ironically, his biggest hurdle is mental, not physical. 

 

I could not watch that whole video cuz his club selections were killing me, lolol.

 

Because the mental game was so stressed to me in both football & golf, I cannot accept mediocre/poor mental thinking, especially from a World Class Athlete such as this kid. 

 

Thanks for responding👊

RP

 

 

Edited May 27 by Forged4ever