Chambers Bay is the real winner of the US Open

Did Jordan Spieth win the US Open or did Dustin Johnson lose the US Open? Either way, the publicity will ensure Chambers Bay has a full tee sheet.

When Chambers Bay opened in 2007 and was awarded the U.S. Open in 2008, it became the first golf course in the Pacific Northwest to host such a prestigious event. It is also the longest course in Open history, stretching upwards of 7,742 yards. Mike Davis, USGA executive director for the tournament, promised some changes—which surprisingly included swapping par 4s and 5s on holes 1 and 18, as well as multi-pro tees. The USGA made a broadcasting agreement with Fox Sports, which covered its first Open with Joe Buck and Greg Norman. Considering the course is unproven by PGA touring professionals, the highly anticipated second Major of 2015 proved to be controversial and very unpredictable.

Although the course is picturesque, with Puget Sound to the west and Mount Rainier to the east, this links-style course would be more at home in Scotland. Links courses are not new for touring pros, but the entire course is very intimidating—especially the sand bunkers which stretch from tee to green. The sand dunes are ridges and mounds that parallel the fairways and are covered in natural grass and fescue. There is no water on the course, other than that view of Puget Sound. The undulating, firm greens are not the usual bent grass or poa annua, but fine fescue. The 18 holes have ominous names like Blown Out, Free Fall, Shadows and Derailed.

To win the Open, it was going to be necessary to be long off the tee, avoid the fescue grass, play some bump-and-run shots, bounce the ball off the green sideboards and above all avoid rolling off the green into the bunkers. The phrase often used by the media was “playing with creativity and imagination.” Chambers Bay was kind to those golfers who could keep the ball straight and use the topography around the greens.

Opening day

After three days of practice rounds, 156 players teed it up for a share of the $10 million purse.  Greg Norman on Fox Sports described the first day as  ”interesting.” 

The final scores were typical, ranging from five under to numerous scores well over par 70.  Dustin Johnson of the U.S. and Henrik Stenson of Sweden led the field. Not far behind were Phil Mickelson and Jordan Spieth, followed by a collection of PGA golfers. Tiger Woods and Rickie Fowler had a round to forget. 

Several players were not very complimentary about the course, calling it “unplayable,” “imperfect” “the worst course ever,” and adding “it was like putting on broccoli.” Most players, not wanting to be fined by the USGA, just said, “no comment.”

Cut day

Chambers Bay played much harder the second round, as the course was stretched. At the end of the day, the cut line was at plus five, with 60 golfers plus ties making the cut. Some of the better known golfers never made it to the final two days, including Bubba Watson, Hunter Mahan and Jason Dufner. Canadian Brad Fritsch continued playing, while David Hearn packed his bags for home. Patrick Reed and Jordan Spieth were co-leaders at minus 5, followed by Branden Grace of South Africa and Dustin Johnson, who were one stroke back. The most dramatic part of the day was when fan favorite Jason Day of Australia collapsed on the final hole due to vertigo. From that point on, the eighth ranked golfer in the world was the sentimental player to win.

Moving day

Moving day refers to golfers moving up and down the leaderboard, with the cream finally rising to the top. That proved to be Jason Day, who despite not feeling well shot 68 and walked off the 18th as co-leader. The course proved to be very difficult and the scoring went backwards to minus 4, with double bogeys being a common score. After 54 holes, four golfers were on top of the leaderboard: Jordan Spieth, Jason Day, Dustin Johnson and Branden Grace.

Final day

Not all golfers conceded the tournament to the top four. The world’s no. 1 player, Rory Mcllory of Northern Ireland, hit the ball well but could not come up with birdies. Brandt Snedeker (U.S.), Adam Scott (Australia) and Louis Oosthuizen (South Africa) all made a late run to finish under par. Day simply ran out of gas due to his poor health. Grace hit a ball out of bounds on Hole 16 and lost the tournament. Johnson, who got off to an early two-stroke lead, had his putter fail him on holes 10 through 13 and once again on the 18th.  

On the 72nd hole, with a 12-foot putt for eagle and the win, Johnson three-putted and handed 21-year-old Jordan Spieth the US Open. Spieth is the first player to win both the Masters and US Open in the same year since 2002, an accomplishment only six players have made in golf history.

The question remains: did Jordan Spieth win the US Open or did Dustin Johnson lose the US Open?

When the final article is written about the 115th US Open, there will be more than one winner. Although Spieth has his name engraved on the Open trophy and earned approximately $1.5 million, it will be Chambers Bay that will emerge the ultimate winner. The international exposure the course received from hosting the Open will ensure a full tee sheet for many years to come.