The US Open: 100 Yard Dash or 26 Mile Marathon?

     I am a fan of the US Open.  It is truly a test of golf and in order to win you have to have every shot in your bag.  I want to congratulate Dustin Johnson for winning The Open and his first major, and that first major hurdle has been jumped.  A hearty well done and good job to you Dustin Johnson.
     What can you say about that controversial rules decision? Personally, I think that it was a bunch of hooey.  Besides, DJ asked for a ruling and got it by the rules official on the hole.  That should be enough. Its just fortunate that he won the tournament by three strokes and the discussion about the penalty was moot thereby not effecting the outcome of the tournament even though the USGA assessed the penalty.
      The US Open is not a sprint, but a very difficult marathon. So much is involved in winning and the player must know how to play golf, not just hit the ball. Lead changes are very common, and just because you are leading the tournament by ten strokes on Friday night doesn't necessarily mean that you are going to win the tournament.
      A US Open venue is set up like no other course the pros and players see all year, except for maybe the British Open.  The fairways are tight and the greens are extremely fast.  We won't even talk about the rough, shich is grown long and thick.  The rough at Oakmont was a bit different in that it wasn't long and deep, but it was thick and deep. The look was a bit deceiving, but it was still very thick. US Open courses demand hitting fairways and put a premium on hitting fairways as well as testing the player's putting skills.  Seventy-two holes of negotiating these conditions takes it's toll out of a player. It is not only physically but mentally taxing.  Each shot is an adventure.
      In my golf career both as a player and as a writer, I have played many courses and met many people. It was my good fortune to play in a tournament at Monterey Pines in Monterey, California. It was a Grand Reopening Celebration as the course had been recently renovated. The tournament was a blind draw scramble and I was teamed up with three other golfers I didn't know. Our group became very friendly a few minutes after meeting as strangers. My cart mate was Ron Read, who is an official with The USGA and was their Open starter for many years.
     Ron and I chatted over the course of the tournament and at one point the conversation came around to US Open venues. This was the year that Merion Country Club was place back into the course rotation of the US open.  I told Ron that I was excited that an old course like Merion was returning to the rotation.  The course stretched out plays to about 6600 yards. I asked Ron what the winning score would be at Merion since the course was so short. My guess was twenty under par. He kind of looked at me with a wry smile and calmly said, "They will be lucky to break par."  That was the end of that line of the conversation. We had a wonderful time chatting about golf, but as far as Merion was concerned that was it.  At this point I should refresh everyone's memory. Justin Rose won the 2013 US Open held at Merion with a score of one over par.
     The US Open is a marathon, not a sprint.

US Open Golf is different than regular tournament golf.