Robin Rombach, Post-Gazette An aerial view of the Eighth Hole at Oakmont which will challenge the contenders with the longest par 3 in U. S. Open history. Click photo for larger image. MORE COVERAGE U.S. Open Chat with Gerry Dulac, today at 1 p.m. Interactive course map, video previews, audio and more at our U.S. Open section

Tom Weiskopf knew the eighth hole at Oakmont Country Club was long, but this was ridiculous. A second shot of nearly 140 miles?

In the 1983 U.S. Open, Weiskopf hit a 1-iron at the 252-yard par 3 that went so far right the ball went over the trees, over the hill and landed on a passing railroad car that sits below the course, adjacent to the Pennsylvania Turnpike. By the time his ball stopped moving, the train was in Cleveland. Talk about hitting a 1-iron a long way?

The eighth hole will not play that long when the U.S. Open comes to Oakmont in less than a month.

It will only seem that way.

Tiger Woods called it "what ... a 900-yard par 3?"

John Daly said it's the first par 3 on which he might ever lay up.

Retief Goosen called it silly.

Oakmont already has caused a great stir among the players, and the 107th U.S. Open hasn't even begun. Players who haven't been to the course are painfully aware of the new, expanded eighth hole, which will play 288 yards from the back tee -- the longest par 3 in U.S. Open history.

It is only 25 yards shorter than the par-4 17th hole, which is 313 yards uphill. And the hole even looks like a mini-par 4 because players will have to cross a portion of the Sahara bunker -- the 100-yard sand bunker on the left -- creating a slight dogleg effect.

"I cut driver in there three times now," said Rod Pampling, who has played in several charity pro-ams at Oakmont.

"We've never played a par 3 that's 290 yards," defending U.S. Open champ Geoff Ogilvy said. "I think everybody's been talking about that for a while, actually. That's the most talked-about hole in the locker room at the moment. We don't have driver or 3-wood par 3s."

When Woods played 54 holes at Oakmont last month, he stubbornly refused to hit driver on the hole, despite playing into a stiff wind, because he said it's against his religion. Instead, he hit 3-wood on the green every time.

"Sounds to me like it's a bit silly, but we'll find out when we get there," said two-time U.S. Open champion Retief Goosen, who has never been to Oakmont.

Mike Davis, senior director of rules and competition for the United States Golf Association, said it has not been determined how many days the back tee at No. 8 will be used in the tournament. He said it will be rotated with the former back tee, which is 252 yards, depending on the forecast and weather conditions.

Nonetheless, because of the hole's length, Davis said the USGA will be "more docile" with pin locations on the green.

"When we were here in 2003 and we started watching players in the U.S. Amateur routinely hit 2-irons, 4-irons, 5-irons [from 252 yards], a few of us shook our heads and said, this doesn't need to be done for the Open," Davis said. "We thought this distance would really put, you know, 1-irons, 3-woods, even drivers, back in the players' hands. If we have a few players who can't get it there, so be it."

Davis noted that the eighth hole played at 252 yards even in the 1927 U.S. Open at Oakmont. Previously, the longest par 3 in U.S. Open history was the 17th hole at Interlachen Country Club in Edina, Minn., which played 262 yards in 1930.

"You go back and look at the golden age of architecture and how many par 3s in the 1920s were designed to be long par 3s with drivers in your hands," Davis said. "You won't believe how many courses have 250-yard par 3s back in the 1920s when they were playing with hickories."

Despite its new length, several former players who won the U.S. Open at Oakmont said the hole will not be a problem for today's long hitters. The reason: The green is one of the largest -- and flattest -- on the course, and there is approximately 40 yards of tightly cropped runway in front of the putting surface, once the ball clears the Sahara bunker.

PGA Tour driving distance
Here's a look at the longest and shortest drivers in the top 185 players in the PGA Tour. Only the top 66 players average 288 yards or better. The average per drive is measured on two holes per round that face in opposite directions to counteract the effect of the wind.
Rank/Player	Rounds	Avg	Total distance	Total drives
1. Bubba Watson	43	314.7	27,063	86
2. John Daly	25	308.4	15,421	50
3. J.B. Holmes	40	307.3	23,352	76
183. Gavin Coles	43	265.9	20,740	78
184. Jose Coceres	21	265.6	9,031	34
185. Corey Pavin	37	257.7	19,072	74

"If there is going to be a 288-yard par 3, that's a good one," said Johnny Miller, who won the 1973 U.S. Open with a final-round 63. Curiously, Miller's only bogey in the final round came when he three-putted the eighth from 18 feet, spinning out a putt for par. "There's no water, you got a big wide green and you got the front open. You can hit a low draw, some type of stinger. I don't know if they can hit a 2-iron that far, but hit a low draw and let it run on the green. You can run it in."

"Five-iron," said 1962 champion Jack Nicklaus, predicting what some players will hit. "Don't think it won't be. They'll play some kind of iron there."

Over the years, the eighth hole has provided some big moments at Oakmont. Tom Watson aced the hole with a 1-iron from 233 yards in the 1969 U.S. Amateur. Gil Morgan also recorded a hole in one with a 1-iron in the 1978 PGA.

Nobody, though, had more trouble at the hole than the late James Pernice.

J.P., as he was called, was not a player, but an Oakmont caddie. One day, driving a cart as he headed toward the path on the right side of the hole, Pernice wasn't paying attention and began barreling toward the trees. With no fence to stop him, Pernice and the cart started heading down the steep hillside, toward the railroad tracks.

The cart ended up stuck in a thicket of trees. Pernice was found dangling by one arm from another tree, holding on for dear life.

The eighth hole might be scary, but not as scary as it was for Pernice.

"We view it as really the only par 3 on Open courses we go to that we have this opportunity," Davis said. "I think it should be good fun."