Gee, I would have bet no one ever had it as many times as Baltusrol.
Then I checked and was about to admit I erred again. But you have to help me with this first. I can only find 6 for Oakmont.
1994 Ernie Els
1983 Larry Nelson
1973 Johnny Miller
1953 Ben Hogan
1935 Sam Parks, Jr.
1927 Tommy Armour (I use a set of Armour stix. Unhappy with the Quality Control)
My favorite Open was 93, merely because I was a volunteer at Balustrol and Marshalled the 18th tee. I was a bit younger and larger at the time, the Baltusrol members are rather unable to handle the crowds. Watching these pros bang it off the tee was a bit impressive, to make an understatement truly an understatement.
Pine Valley I've never played, but in a sense it's even more remote than Pinehurst and I can understand from that point of view why it has not hosted. My brother has played there, and tells me it's is the kind of place where you can hit it into the woods, be in a sandtrap, and the only way out is the way you came in.
I do know several people who have played there, and I know it's been host to the Ryder Cup or the Walker Cup.....can't recall which. But I'll speculate that I know the real reason why it shall never host an Open. A fellow I knew who won the 1963ish New Jersey Open...maybe it was 1964, maybe it was 1962.....told me he never used a driver there more than on 3 holes holes I think it was. Now this is a guy who still holds records all over New Jersey with course records of 63's and 61's and such from over 3 decades ago. I'm just guessing that if a club pro can get around that course without using a driver much you won't see the big ball hitters drawing the crowds there.
Besides, like Augusta it's a big money club. Drawing the US Open to Pine Valley is perhaps the last thing these people wish to do. Then, too, it's probably a bit like a course such as Bob-o-Link. Like the PGA, the USGA may wish the US Open to be held at a course that is gender neutral or submits to standards that Pine Valley will not accept for one reason or another. So I do not think (for all of the above) we will see it there. Courses like Pine Valley, Butler and such can afford not to have the US Open. They are going to make themselves gender neutral (for example) if they wish, and the USGA telling them that they have to be gender neutral isn't going to be much pressure on them. This is probably a point where I could take heat, but it's not my course and it is most likely a fact. Fact or not, it's at least a fair supposition, I would think.
Oh, by the way, the word "dispute" for me did not mean I wished to contest this combatitively....merely a figure of speech. |
