Oakmont gets 2016 Open
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Jack Nicklaus with Arnold Palmer at Oakmont Country Club in 1962 after Nicklaus won his first U.S. Open. The Open will return to Oakmont for the ninth time in 2016.
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Shortly after the U.S. Open ended in 2007, during the closing ceremonies in which Angel Cabrera of Argentina was crowned champion after outlasting Tiger Woods and Jim Furyk, Oakmont Country Club president Bill Griffin already was inviting officials of the United States Golf Association back for another national championship.
Griffin handed an invitation letter to USGA president Walter Driver during the ceremony, asking that the U.S. Open come back to Oakmont when the next future date became available.
"We wanted them back as soon as we could get them back," Griffin said.
They got their wish.
Oakmont was awarded the U.S. Open in 2016 for a record ninth time, marking the shortest period of time the club has had to wait between national championships since Ben Hogan won the U.S. Open in 1953 and Jack Nicklaus beat Arnold Palmer in an 18-hole playoff in 1962.
The USGA made the official announcement yesterday at a news conference at the Black Course in Bethpage State Park, site of the 109th U.S. Open that begins today in Farmingdale, N.Y. The Post-Gazette first reported June 5 that the Open was expected to return to Oakmont in 2016.
"We're excited," Griffin said. "It's great for golf, it's great for Oakmont, it's great for Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania. The Steelers won the Super Bowl, the Penguins won the Stanley Cup and Oakmont is getting the 2016 Open. It couldn't get much better than that."
It will mark the 16th time Oakmont will play host to a USGA national championship, including the 2010 U.S. Women's Open. The club also has had three PGA Championships, the most recent in 1978.
The championship will be June 13-19, 2016.
"We have a great partner in Oakmont," said Jim Hyler, vice president of the USGA executive committee and chairman of the championship committee. "We have a great relationship with this team and we're really looking forward to 2016."
Griffin was among several Oakmont officials who were present for the announcement yesterday at the USGA's annual news conference, along with general manager Tom Wallace, head professional Bob Ford and superintendent John Zimmers.
"I don't think we had any expectations to get the Open back before we did," Griffin said. "To have them come back in nine years is a great statement for our club. [The USGA] is as excited as we are, which makes this nice."
Oakmont had to wait 13 years for the U.S. Open to return after Ernie Els won the national championship in 1994. Part of the reason for the prolonged delay was the concern the USGA had for pedestrian flow and grandstand areas at Oakmont, not to mention not having enough space on the club grounds for corporate hospitality, the merchandise pavilion and even the media village.
But the club slowly eased any of those concerns, beginning with the construction of an additional pedestrian bridge that spanned the Pennsylvania Turnpike. Then came the removal of 8,000 trees around the course, a plan designed to improve turf quality and return Oakmont to its original appearance, but also to create more room for grandstands that could accommodate 25,000 people.
In addition, Oakmont closed the 18-hole public course it owned -- Oakmont East -- and used the adjoining property to house the corporate hospitality tents and the massive 45,000 square-feet merchandise pavilion.
"We felt like the course certainly held up to the challenge," said Wallace, referring to Cabrera's winning score of 5-over 285, "and we felt as far as organizationally, we did a fantastic job. We know anytime we go into a championship, our mindset is to keep Oakmont at the forefront of major championships. That was our mindset in '07, that will be our mindset next year and it will be our mindset in '16."
"It was a tremendous success in everyone's eyes," Griffin said.
This time, Oakmont will not have to do nearly as much preparation to get ready for the 2016 U.S. Open.
"We'll probably stick with the same playbook," Wallace said.
First Published June 18, 2009 12:00 am
