US Open 2017 - Erin Hills

Well, it will be fun tracking the 6 Oklahoma State University PGA tour players who made it to the 2017 US Open:  Talor Gooch, Kevin Dougherty, Peter Uihlein, Jordan Niebrugge, Rickie Fowler, and Alex Noren.  Talor is an Oklahoma in-state who used to beat up the other juniors, including my son, when they played junior golf.

STILLWATER, Okla. – Oklahoma State's men's golf program will be well represented later this month at the 117th U.S. Open Championship in Erin Wis. Four Cowboys advanced through sectional qualifying this week to join a pair of former Cowboys who were already exempt for the event. The championship will take place  June 12-18 at Erin Hills .
 
Competing in Newport Beach, Calif., at Big Canyon Country Country Club and Newport Beach Country Club, former Cowboy Kevin Dougherty shot 64 at Newport Beach and 72 at Big Canyon. With his 7-under 136 total, Dougherty finished tied for fourth and was the only professional among the six qualifiers from the sectional.
 
A pair of Cowboys qualified after surviving a playoff at the Columbus, Ohio sectional contested at Brookside Golf and Country Club and Lakes Golf and Country Club. Peter Uihlein, the 2010 U.S. Amateur champion, carded a pair of 68s, while Talor Gooch posted scores of 67 and 69 to tie for 12th place and earn a spot in a 4-for-3 playoff. Both players used birdies during the extra-hole session to move on.
 
Jordan Niebrugge also qualified for the event, which will take place in his home state. The 2013 U.S. Public Links Championship winner carded rounds of 63 and 67 to share second place at the Lakewood, Wash., sectional, which was contested at Tacoma Country Club.
 
"To play in the U.S. Open in front of my family and friends at Erin Hills, I don't know what to say about that," Niebrugge said. "I used to walk that course, think of the 2017 U.S. Open, and now I am going to play in it."
 
The Pokes also have a pair of players who were among the 78 exempt players in the 156-player field. Rickie Fowler is exempt via his 2015 victory at The Players Championship in addition to his spot in the Official World Golf Ranking.
 
Alex Norén is exempt via his recent win at the European Tour's BMW PGA Championship as well as his place in the OWGR.

Please do not refer to this as the US Open. Mike Davis has made this the Wisconsin Open, a new PGA Tour event.

The US Open was cancelled when Kevin Na bitched about the length of the fescue

Lol, he said he wasn't cutting the fescue because of the fescue-length-rant, but because it was 'laying down' :-), sure Mike  (it always looks so suspicious when you make changes within an hour after criticism). But I think USGA is bending over backwards to eliminate criticism that they've had the last couple years.  I kind of like the place....reminds me of a RTJ course in northern Alabama, which had tall waist-high grass on either side of most fairways, Muscle Shoals (not exactly, but more so than other courses I've been to).  https://www.rtjgolf.com/theshoals/photogallery.html  

dortt wrote:Please do not refer to this as the US Open. Mike Davis has made this the Wisconsin Open, a new PGA Tour event.

The US Open was cancelled when Kevin Na bitched about the length of the fescue

Interesting rules tidbit released today during US Open telecast.

New proposed rules change coming (or being considered?): putting from on the green with the flag 'in' will to be allowed.

They showed a video of someone on the fringe putting with the flag in, and the ball hitting the flag and falling in the hole. Then they said, by current rules, you can't do this (or have it tended and then pulled), but the rules change being considered will allow you to leave the flag in the hole and putt and the next putt will be from wherever the ball ends up?

bulls9999 wrote:Interesting rules tidbit released today during US Open telecast.

New proposed rules change coming (or being considered?):  putting from on the green with the flag 'in' will to be allowed.

They showed a video of someone on the fringe putting with the flag in, and the ball hitting the flag and falling in the hole.  Then they said, by current rules, you can't do this (or have it tended and then pulled), but the rules change being considered will allow you to leave the flag in the hole and putt and the next putt will be from wherever the ball ends up?  

yep. reverting back to how the rule used to be

Boy its just fate that top guys that you usually worry about MC. Day Rory Bubba & Rose DJ needs to rebound. Maybe being too optimistic but Phil was playing good enough to contend.

I'm sure those guys will be all straightened out to play crazy good for the next major

I think this could have been a good place for Phil (if he could have stayed out of the long stuff).  

j58golf wrote:Boy its just fate that top guys that you usually worry about MC. Day Rory Bubba & Rose DJ needs to rebound. Maybe being too optimistic but Phil was playing good enough to contend.

I'm sure those guys will be all straightened out to play crazy good for the next major

I double-down on my statement... Phil missed a great opportunity to win a US Open:  
Course had the widest fairways, wider than any PGA Tour event all year. The 'tall fescue' wasn't the monster it was billed to be, although some people still found it and caused them to miss the cut (Rory, DJ).
The weather was superb for a US Open. Phil's accuracy with irons (and driving and iron length) could have played him into him winning this thing.