BROOKLINE, MA. — After a few walks around The Country Club, the host of this week’s U.S. Open, something has become clear about the golf course.
It’s going to be a slow bleed for the field.
There aren’t incredibly penalizing hazards scattered around the layout, but if a player gets out of position at any point, bogey is the most likely outcome.
No. 9, for example.
The 427-yard par 4 plays downhill, and most weeks, that kind of sticker yardage would mean a scoring opportunity for the best players in the world.
The ninth is not that.
About 270 yards from the box awaits a portion of fairway that looks like three baby elephants standing on top of each other, waiting to canter balls toward the water hazard down the right.
If the photo isn’t doing it for you, check this out:
One of the best fairways I’ve ever seen https://t.co/yOO6rdcv0n pic.twitter.com/yR27QTjNqy
— Riley (@rileyhamel_) June 15, 2022
It’s possible to send tee shots down the left, but there’s little wiggle room to work with. Anything that comes close to the hill is bound for a watery grave.
Instead of this hole being a driver-flip wedge, expect a long iron off the tee followed by a 8- or 9-iron for most of the field.
