On Pebble Beach, It & # 39; s About the Lay of the Land

But players still see changes for the decisive weekend rounds. Jim Furyk, who won the US Open in 2003 and has since finished the second time three times, said Open officials made the track harder at Olympia Fields in Illinois, where he won after the Friday cut. They did this by speeding up the greens, and with that the number of players on the track fell sharply.

"It was clear & # 39; we are not happy with scoring & # 39; and they have completely changed course," he said. & # 39; On Sunday morning I dropped three balls on the putting green and turned around to talk to my father. When I looked down, they were rolled off the green. "

How players score depends on the course arrangement and how it is adjusted with the weather. With the exception of the Oakmont Country Club in Pittsburgh, one of the most difficult golf courses in the United States, Furyk said the setup and the way it was changed had the biggest impact on the tournament.

"Every course we play on the PGA Tour, you can make it so that overpages win and you can make it 20 under par wins, "he said." The setup has a much greater impact on our score than the course. "

He said he believed the golf association was trying to do the right thing with the setups, but communication was not

Players have been complaining about the installation of locations in US Open for decades, and in 1973 Johnny Miller, then 26, made a record setting of 63 – or eight shots better than par – in the final round and won with it the American Open in Oakmo nt. He won with one shot and defeated the legends Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player.

The following year the setup at Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck, NY, was so heavy that the tournament named "massacre on winged feet." The winning score was seven over par, and the champion, Hale Irwin seemed empty after the win.