ARDMORE, Pa. — The Philadelphia fans were screaming it at players all week, speaking with a pride evident all around this passionate sports town.
“Hey Tiger,” they would scream, “Merion has teeth!”
And at the end of this 113th playing of the U.S. Open, that statement would prove to be true. No matter the lack of distance, Merion Golf Club’s East Course showed itself to be a stern test, one that did more than just defend itself, but pushed the best players in the world to the brink of frustration.
Despite the wonderfully strategic Hugh Wilson design playing under 7,000 yards each of the four days, not a single player finished under par. Englishman Justin Rose won tournament at 1-over, with only 16 players finishing better than 10-over.
“On the edge,” is how world No. 2 Rory McIlroy described it after finishing his four rounds 14-over. “There’s been a few [holes] this week that have been … yeah.”
McIlroy bit his tongue before saying something he might regret. Earlier in the week, Zach Johnson ripped the USGA for the course setup after he missed the cut by a wide margin, coming off as bitter and disdainful.
“I would describe the whole golf course as manipulated,” Johnson said. “It just enhances my disdain for the USGA and how it manipulates golf courses.”
Walking down off the fourth tee in yesterday’s final round, Phil Mickelson decided to have a quick word with USGA executive director Mike Davis, the man in charge of tournament setup. Mickelson could be seen using the word “unfair” concerning the third hole, a 266-yard par-3. Mickelson had made a double-bogey 5, and two groups before him, Luke Donald had to hit a driver off the tee.
Davis and his staff anticipated a different wind direction, and had a simple and humble explanation.
“Sometimes we get it right,” he said, “and sometimes we get it wrong.”
Earlier in the week, Davis had said the USGA is not concerned with their old mantra of “protecting par.” Instead, he said he wanted to see the best tournament he could, and the sternest test of golf.
“I can understand what Mike and his staff are doing, because it’s soft out there,” Tiger Woods said about the course that took on more than 7 inches of rain since last Friday. “And trying to protect par, even though they say they don’t. But I understand what they’re trying to do.”
It seems most players were happy with the course, home to the most USGA tournaments in history, including iconic moments such as Bobby Jones’ completion of the Grand Slam in 1930 and Ben Hogan’s comeback win in the 1950 Open. Yet no U.S. Open had been held at Merion since 1981, and most of the concerns coming in were with it being the shortest U.S. Open course since Long Island’s Shinnecock Hills in 2004.
But even at 6,869 yards for the final round, only six of the 73 rounds played yesterday were under par. Sometimes it goes to show it’s not always length that determines difficulty.
“I think that overall as a golf course, yes, it can be played,” Woods said. “They move the tees back, and they give us some pretty tough pins this week. But certainly as a golf course-”‘wise, it could definitely host another major championship.”