Erin Hills Longest Course In USGA History Even Though Distance Increases Have Stabilized Since 2003

The USGA released the course info for next week's U.S. Amateur and announced that Erin Hills is the new back tee yardage champion!

RECORD YARDAGE: For the second consecutive year, the U.S. Amateur will be the longest course in USGA history. At 7,760 yards, Erin Hills surpasses the 7,742 yards played at Chambers Bay at the 2010 U.S. Amateur. Chambers Bay had overtaken the South Course at Torrey Pines Golf Course in San Diego, Calif., which measured 7,643 yards for the 2008 U.S. Open, and 2006 U.S. Amateur host Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minn., which measured 7,473 yards.

And this is fun:

PAR AND YARDAGE: Erin Hills will be set up at 7,760 yards and will play to a par of 36-36–72. The companion course, Blue Mound Golf & Country Club, will be set up at 6,622 yards and will play to a par of 35-35–70.

Gene Sarazen won the 1933 PGA at the Raynor-designed Blue Mound which is a whopping 1000 yards shorter than Erin Hills, yet par is 70 to Erin Hills' 72.

Check out the yardages:

The front nines at the two courses have a 600-yard differential, but only one-shot to par difference?

Blue Mound has a 492-yard par-5, while Erin Hills has four par-4s over 490.

The back nine at Erin Hills weighs in a 3,939, with a 675-yard finishing hole.

Now, recently the USGA's Mike Davis has been known to not ever come close to setting up a course to its maximum yardage and he's to be commended for that.

However, in the Tee It Forward era, we see a second consecutive year of a record-length golf. Granted, 7700 yards falls withing the Tee It Forward guidelines for a PGA Tour player. However, this confirmation of today's driving distance acumen is worth noting since both the USGA ("stabilized") and R&A ("surrounded") insist average distances haven't spiked since 2003.