Preview

Event Info

Starts: 15th June 2023
Course: Los Angeles Country Club
Par: 70
Length: 7,421 yards
2022 Champion: Matt Fitzpatrick

The Basics

Los Angeles Country Club hosts the US Open for the first time, the ultra exclusive club having previously been reluctant to open their doors to the professionals.

In an event known for the thickest rough, five of the last six US Open winners - Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka (twice), Gary Woodland, Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm - all ranked outside the top 60 for driving accuracy the week they won.  Length is a definite advantage and 'bomb and gouge' tactics have often been adopted by the longest of hitters. However, note that the rough at LACC is said to be less penal than other US Opens and this may well level the playing field.

2023 US Open Course Info

Designer: George C. Thomas Jr with Gil Hanse restoration 2010.
US Open last played here: N/A
Type of Course: Parkland, Classical.
Greens: Small, Bentgrass
Premium on: Greens in Regulation

2023 US Open Weather

The lead up to the event looks dry and the course should play firm and fast.

Thursday
Partly Cloudy, Max winds 7mph.
Friday
Sunny, Max winds 8mph.
Saturday
Sunny, Max winds 7mph.
Sunday
Sunny, Max winds 7mph.

US Open Trends

Winning Score
The US Open winning score has varied significantly over the years.  Since 2008 we have seen scores range from +1 to -16. 

Price of Winner
Gary Woodland (2019) is the only winner to start in excess of 50/1 in the past 10 years.

Course Form
Most players will have limited playing experience here but it won't hurt those with fond memories of the 2017 Walker Cup, which was held at LACC.

Recent Form
Five of the past seven champions had recorded a top 10 in their last two starts. 

Nationality
Six of the last eight winners have been from the USA but Europeans have won five of the last thirteen events.

Age
The US Open has been a younger man's Major in recent times with the last 14 winners being 35 or less on the day they lifted the trophy.  Of those 14, thirteen were under 32.

Major Virgins
It has also been an event which has favoured first time Major winners in recent years with 11 of the past 14 claiming their first Major.  However, it's not an event to record your first ever win in America - only two winners from the past 14 did not have a previous PGA Tour title.

US Open Exposure
As with the Open Championship, prior experience of playing in a US Open is essential.  In the last 13 years, only one player has won a US Open without previously having a top-25 finish, and every winner in the last 13 years has made at least one previous US Open appearance.

World Ranking

2022: Every player tied for fifth or better ranked inside the top 20 in the world golf rankings.

2021: Only one of the top 5 was ranked outside the top 25 in the world - Guido Migliozzi (107th). The other four were all established winners.

2020: The top 5 at Winged Foot last year comprised three players inside the world's top 30 and two who had previously won on the PGA Tour.  It is a similar story through the years:

2019: The top 6 comprised five players within the world's top 30 and one player who had won on the PGA Tour before.

2018: Four of the top 5 were in the world's top 30 and the other player, Tony Finau (ranked 37th), had won on the PGA Tour before.

2017: The top seven comprised four players inside the top 30. Two had won on the PGA Tour before and one who had not won but would win twice later that year (Xander Schauffele)

2016: Four of the top six were inside the top 30 and the other two had both won on the PGA Tour before.

Stats Analysis

We are looking for a player with high SG: Approach and long off the tee. 

Driving Distance
Every US Open champion in the past six years has ranked inside the top 25 for Driving Distance.

Driving Accuracy
Only two winners in the past six years have ranked inside the top 25 for Driving Accuracy. 

SG: Off The Tee
Rankings in the last six years have been 3-4-2-44-43-7. A strong driver is always favoured at a U.S. Open.

SG: Approach
Four winners in the past six years have ranked inside the top 4. Matt Fitzpatrick and Jon Rahm were the only ones not to, but both still ranked inside the top 20.  It is absolutely vital to hit good iron shots at the US Open.

SG: Around The Green
Matt Fitzpatrick was 1st around the greens last year but Bryson DeChambeau (ranked 5^th in 2020) is the only other champion in the last six years to rank inside the top 10 for SG: Around The Green.

US Open In Play Tactics

Fast or Slow Start
Of the past 24 U.S. Open winners, 21 have been within four shots of the lead after round one. 

US Open winners more often than not come from the 3^rd round leader or those closest to him.  Twelve of the past fifteen winners have been first or second after 54 holes. 

2023 US Open Course Quotes

"I would say if I was to choose a non-scorable stretch it would probably be 16 through 18. Yeah, the golf course -- I feel like the front nine is a bit easier than the back. The front nine hole you have hole 6, you have hole 8 that are very gettable. You have hole 1 that is very gettable. Then let me think. Like 3 is another wedge hole where the fairway is pretty wide. So there's definitely some opportunity on the front. As you turn, you get 10 that's a wedge, and then the golf course kind of just hits you and you've got to play -- I think 11 through 18 is probably the toughest stretch on the course. I mean, 11 obviously being such a big par-3 and then 12 if you don't put the ball in the fairway you pretty much can't hit it on the green, and so you're fighting for par. I think 12 is probably one of my favorite holes out here. I think it's just a great design. Then 13 through 18, there's really not much to say. There's just a lot of long, hard, difficult holes." Scottie Scheffler

"I think this course is a really good mix of holes. And yeah, the fairways maybe average a little bit wider than they usually are, but when you get fairways that are very firm, any sort of curve you put on the ball makes it play so much smaller. With how firm I think we're going to get this golf course, it's going to be a really good test for all parts of the game." Scottie Scheffler

"There's a bit of everything. You start with -- if you hit perfect drives, let's say, in 1, 2 and 3, you're pretty much looking at birdie options. And then you get kicked in the teeth with 5 and 4 and most likely 7, and possibly 9 depending on pin location. So you get a bit of everything. That's the way to describe it. That's a really good way to describe it. There is certain flow to the golf course in a U.S. Open that we haven't seen before. That I haven't. Maybe a course like Merion being a little shorter gives you a little bit, but this one definitely is a little bit different. You have par-4s where you're going to hi driver, wedge every day if you hit the fairway, no matter the wind. And then you have holes like 13 that are going to play very long no matter what. 17 is going to play long. 16 is going to play long. 11 and 17 are going to play very long. It gives a bit of everything, and it's fun. You have that diversity that you don't see. And yes, we have two really long par-4s, but we just mentioned we have one that absolutely maxed out it is 135 yards, and that is if we're on the very edge of the tee box and it plays downwind. Yeah, I think it's a bit different, and it's fun. You'll see a lot of birdies, and I think you also you see some high numbers come out of nowhere. It's a bit like you would see in Riv. You don't have out of bounds lurking everywhere. You don't have water hazards lurking everywhere. You just use the golf course as it is, you have the contours to deal with, and you see a bit of everything happen. You see birdies happen, you see bogeys happen." Jon Rahm