While the vast majority of the best players in the world are in Ohio at Jack Nicklaus' famed Muirfield Village this week for the Memorial Tournament, some (and most likely all) are already thinking ahead to the U.S Open, the first round of which kicks off from historic Shinnecock Hills in Southampton, New York, on Thursday, June 18.
Scottie Scheffler is among those who already have the season's third major on the brain, and America's national championship holds extra significance for the world No. 1: After winning both the PGA Championship and The Open Championship last year, he'll take his first crack at becoming just the seventh player in history to complete the career Grand Slam, and if that happens, it would go down on his 30th birthday.
Scheffler scouted Shinnecock Hills ahead of the U.S. Open
As Scheffler was not in the field the last time the U.S. Open was at Shinnecock back in 2018, he recently took a scouting trip to the site, which was actually his first-ever visit to the property, and he told the world this week during a presser that it was just as challenging as he imagined it would be.
"That was my first time on property,” Scheffler said. “It was kind of what I expected. I had heard some rumors about how difficult the greens were. I was a little surprised at the width of the fairways, but the green complexes there are extremely difficult, and I think that’s where the greatest challenge comes from."
Yeah, that sounds about right. Scheffler's assessment should sound familiar to anyone who remembers Shinnecock's U.S. Open history. The course produces difficult golf and the kind of major championships fans remember. Winning scores rarely drift far below par. In fact, the lowest winning score at Shinnecock for a U.S. Open was 4-under.
Shinnecock has a history of producing classic U.S. Open carnage
In 2018, not a single player finished in red, as Brooks Koepka, who'd shot 16-under to win the previous year at Erin Hills, took the title for the second straight season, this time posting a winning score of 1-over, with Tommy Fleetwood taking second at 2-over following a magnificent final-round 63.
In 2004, there were only two players under par, with Retief Goosen claiming his second U.S. Open title after posting a score of 4-under. Phil Mickelson finished second at 2-under, marking the third of his record six runner-up finishes. In 1995, there were no players in red, as Corey Pavin hoisted the trophy after shooting an even-par score of 280, besting Greg Norman by two.
And in 1986, Raymond Floyd was the only player in red figures, finishing at 1-under to take the title by two over co-runners-up Chip Beck and Lanny Wadkins.
This year marks the sixth time that Shinnecock will have hosted the U.S. Open, and while the USGA always makes certain that this particular tournament is one of the toughest tests in golf, this course has undoubtedly been one of the most difficult. In the four times it's been held at Shinnecock in the modern era, the winner has shot under par over the 72 holes only twice.
So, that's the challenge Scheffler and the other 155 players in the field will face in a couple of weeks. U.S. Open rough is effectively unlike anything else players see all season, and Scottie made sure to mention that when discussing the difficulties it has to offer.
"The rough, also, was a really good penalty, I think for the width,” Scheffler said. "Once you start missing fairways out there, you have no chance. But the fairways are generous enough to where it provides you some opportunity, and that way it’s just that the green complexes are extraordinarily difficult, and so they can put the pins wherever they want and make the scores as high as they could possibly want them to be."
How high those scores at Shinnecock will be this time around is anyone's guess, but we'll find out soon enough.
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