COMMUNITY

Have you ever played a U.S. Open course before the U.S. Open?

Yesterday, one month short of the start of the U.S. Open, I got a chance to play at Congressional. The traditional old course has hosted  1 PGA (76), 1 Senior U.S. Open (95) and 2 U.S. Opens (64 and 97) in my lifetime.

This wonderful layout has a few changes for this years U.S.Open. As has been the case in recent Major tournaments, Congressional has increased the yardage of the golf course by adding several new tees, most notable on holes 3, 4 and 9 on the front side, and holes 12, 15 and 18 on the back side.  Also, only one of the par 5 holes is playing as a par 4, unlike the previous Majors there where two of the par 5's played as par 4's. Through the green, minor changes to some fairways and some new bunkers have made an already tough course even more difficult. The green complexes are beautiful. These greens will also get harder and faster as June 16th approaches.

Now the really hard part. The rough is so thick now, at only two inches deep, that I could only advance the ball some 60 yards, wait until they get it to the required 4 inches or even deeper. This rough will be a nightmare during the upcoming U.S. Open. I believe the winning score will be 5 over par.

To give you some idea of how I play, I am a 7 handicap and hit it 245 off the tee. I shot 86 and was thrilled to do so. No birdies and one triple.