USGA's Davis Clarifies U.S. Open Comments: Players Take Note

The USGA's Executive Director ruffled some feathers by suggesting players had no chance of winning the U.S. Open without some advance preparation.

Although anyone at all familiar with the dynamics of this year's venue understood his point--new course, new grass, unfamiliar part of the country, etc.--suggesting that a player had to make an advance scouting trip to win came off as rude considering the U.S. Open is golf's most democratic championship. The AP even called the position arrogant.

Dave Shedloski at GolfDigest reports on Davis expanding on his thoughts and clarifying his point which, once players catch their breath, they should take to heart if they are serious about contending.

The occasion was the opening of the the Jack Nicklaus Room at Golf House (Max Adler with a report here). Shedloski writes:

“My point was this is really a unique golf course that was going to require a lot of study,” Davis said. “[There’s] more elevation changes than a normal U.S. Open course. It’s wider. It’s all fescue. They had never seen it before. There’s a lot of local knowledge needed.
 
“This is going to be my 26th U.S. Open, and I’ve noticed that players just don’t play as much golf there [at the Open site]. They’ll play nine holes a day, rely on their caddies instead of coming in early to play three or four rounds the week before like they did in the past … it’s just the way things have become. And what I wanted to communicate is that the advantage really goes to the player who knows the course inside and out. There is so much bounciness to that course that you just can’t learn it quickly. You certainly can’t learn it well from a yardage book. It is not a straightforward test, like, say Oakmont next year, which many of them have already seen.”

Well done and as I've explained to many who were miffed by Davis' comments, local knowledge is a trait we want in our golf courses and championships. How many times have we later found out that a player's extra preparation or attentiveness gave them an edge in key moments? That's a good thing.