When fans tune in to watch the US Open, they want to see the best players in the world struggle.
It has branded itself as golf’s toughest test, where breaking par is a significant achievement, and where professionals are brought to their knees.
So when the forecast predicted gusts of up to 40mph on Thursday at Shinnecock Hills, which is already one of the most difficult golf courses in the world at the best of times, chaos was predicted. But this chaos never came.
In response to the forecast, the USGA watered the greens to ensure balls could stay on the putting surfaces. So when the wind failed to live up to expectations, players were able to throw darts at Shinnecock.
Wyndham Clark leads through 18 holes with a score of six-under, at a place where only three players have finished a US Open under par in the last 100 years. This was not well received by golf fans.
Golf fans slam USGA for Shinnecock setup at the US Open
The typically rock hard greens of Shinnecock Hills had been softened by the USGA to ensure the golf course was playable, but that resulted in the scores being far lower than anyone wanted from the opening round of a US Open.
One fan slammed the USGA for setting up the golf course to be easier than it is for the members throughout the year: “I get why they softened the Shinnecock greens. I really do. But this is disgusting.
“This green plays twice as firm for the members on a typical Tuesday. 77 year old retired guys play a tougher hole than the best players on earth.”
Another fan agreed, appreciating why they made the call, but implying the USGA to ramp up the difficulty: “Not my US Open.
“I applaud looking at the wind forecast and adjusting but this is too cautious. Shinnecock is not supposed to play soft! Put the teeth back in the course!”
One fan noted that this felt more like the Canadian Open from last week than your usual US Open: “I’m worried that Golf Canada has infiltrated the USGA and is setting up our national open. Never in my wildest dreams did I think we’d see Shinnecock cosplaying as TPC Toronto.
“Slow the greens down as much as needed, but keep them firm for goodness sake. Sad!”
Fans begged the USGA to make the greens firmer for the final three days: “Should be like Royal Melbourne in February, harder and faster than concrete.”
Another fan said, “Stop watering the greens. Let nature do its thing.”
In truth, the US Open has not been as brutal of a test as it once was decades ago. The USGA seems afraid to upset the players in the modern era, meaning the event rarely lives up to the pre-tournament hype.
One fan said, “Every year everybody on Twitter hypes up how hard it’s going to be then the USGA swoops in and saves the players.”
The USGA made the right call with Shinnecock setup
In reality, the USGA were stuck between a rock and a hard place. The pre-tournament forecast forced them into this decision, and they simply got unlucky that the howling wind never really came.
If they had made the greens any firmer, and if the winds were any stronger, then balls would have blown off the greens, and play would have been suspended. In fact, in the morning wave we did see balls being shifted by the wind on the seventh green in particular.
And if the USGA set the golf course up in a way that threatened play to be stopped, they’d have been slammed for that too. They could not win in this scenario.
The USGA are now simply victims of their own reputation. If this was a PGA Championship, nobody would complain.
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