Oakmont, PA. The Beast is back. The 2025 US Open will return for a record 10th time to Oakmont CC. If the Pittsburgh- area course had a Star Wars connection, then the key figure of Darth Vader would await golfers as they approached the 1st tee.
Oakmont was created by Henry C. Fownes and the mission was a simple one — provide a thorough examination in golf and make any golf shot not played with sound execution and total precision face the consequences.
How severe would the consequences be? Fownes said it aptly with the following statement —
“Let the clumsy, the spineless, the alibi artist stand aside. A shot poorly played, should be a shot irrevocably lost.”
Yet, even with the reputation as the most challenging of US Open courses the roster of champions produced is a testament to the manner by which the greatest names of golf have risen to the occasion when called upon, among them Tommy Armour, Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus, Johnny Miller, Larry Nelson, Ernie Els, Angel Cabrera and Dustin Johnson.
Oakmont is one of the few championship courses that has not fundamentally changed the core of the actual holes through the years. The one major element change came prior to the ’07 US Open when contestants arrived to see a layout practically devoid of countless trees which had been mindlessly planted in past years.
Oakmont possesses an engaging array of various holes – both long and short. A player’s game must be in sync in all areas to reap any benefit.
The test of golf begins as soon as you step onto the 1st tee.
Four architects were asked to weigh in with their comments. Each well aware of Oakmont’s considerable pedigree and how the 2025 championship will most certainly add to the latest chapter for this most storied and iconic club in American golf.
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You hear the words Oakmont CC — what comes immediately to mind?
Kyle Franz: Oakmont is the golf course that cemented my decision to go into golf course architecture. Watching it during the 1994 US Open as a teenager. The entire calculus of what makes Oakmont great appealed to me.
The great and quirky architecture, rich character, old school bunkering, shaggy ditches, superb ground-game elements, severely sloped putting surfaces, and unique history. Last but not least, arguably my favorite clubhouse.
Forrest Richardson: An American classic.
Shawn Smith: Magical! Having been there prior to the tree removal, I’m still blown away with the transformation. The view from the clubhouse across the entire course to the 3rd green, over a half a mile away, is stunning. Few places stir the golfer’s soul like Oakmont.
Kevin Norby: The Church Pew and Piano Key bunkers.
Bill Bergin: The first thing that comes to mind is the sloping away first Green that slaps you in the face and says welcome to Oakmont.
What do you think the Fownes — father and son — would think of the course that exists today?
Bill Bergin: I think they would be amazed with the quality of conditions on today’s golf course.
Kyle Franz: Knowing how much the game has evolved since they were building Oakmont in 1903, I think the Fownes team would be pretty happy with the decisions they made.
Especially the repeated use of fall-away/sloping away greens. Oakmont has always been one of America’s ground game gold standard courses.
Overall, their goal of creating the great inland American links is still firing on all cylinders, 10 US Opens and 122 years later.
Shawn Smith: I think they would be pleased it looks, feels and plays much the same as it did a century ago and continues to be one of the toughest tests in golf, just as they intended.
Forrest Richardson: I think they’d be pleased to see the continual evolution. Henry Fownes was never ‘done’ with Oakmont, which was how Arthur Snyder described his work to always be adding bunkers and ditches.
[Editor’s Note: Arthur Snyder began working for Henry Fownes as a caddie in 1907, and was transferred to the grounds crew to build bunkers. Forrest Richardson’s mentor was Arthur’s eldest son, Jack Snyder, ASGCA who passed away in 2005].
Kevin Norby: I would think they would be very proud to see how highly regarded the course is and how strong a test of championship golf it has become.
Oakmont is famous for the “church pews” that come into play on the 3rd, 4th and 15th holes. Why is this feature not seen with other courses and would you ever contemplate doing so with your efforts in architecture?
Shawn Smith: The church pews are iconically Oakmont and true to the original design intent, they are difficult. Both sets of pews are large hazards that catch most shots missed left and the spacing of the pews is such that the ball will often get hung up under the face of one of the pews, forcing the player to wedge out.
I suspect this is the primary reason why church pews aren’t more commonly found. Oakmont’s membership is unique because they embrace and celebrate the course’s difficulty where most other courses are focused on playability.
Bill Bergin: I think the church pews are reminiscent of other great hazards, sandy or natural, but are presented in a very unique and penal form.
Kevin Norby: The Church Pews are a very unique and very challenging hazard and I think replicating them, particularly at another championship venue, would seem cliché.
It would be like building another TPC Sawgrass island green – there’s only one and any others would likely be bad copies.
Kyle Franz: Great question! It’s so iconic and unique it’s hard to pull off without tipping off into cliche territory. I wouldn’t hesitate to use it in some format.
The fact that the Church Pews is so difficult to copy is a testament to the Fownes pair’s ability to build something incredibly original and unique! A well-deserved icon.
Forrest Richardson: The ‘right’ project and time would need to be exceedingly appropriate. My hunch is that many of us would find it a bit unnerving to copy such an iconic feature, and one so solidly tied to Oakmont.
I’ve shown pews on a few concept plans, but they never came to life. Maybe that’s a good thing.
Oakmont was famous years ago in using a furrow to provide even more of a penalty for golfers finding one of the numerous bunkers on the course. After the ’53 US Open the usage was effectively banned. What’s your take on such usage in modern architecture or is that man-applied gimmick?
Kevin Norby: I don’t believe that the furrows are gimmicky, in fact I think they could be utilized more as a tool on other courses.
There is however a strong trend in the United States towards making bunkers more natural and more of a hazard rather than so carefully manicured.
Forrest Richardson: Arthus Snyder made furrowed rakes using simple 2x4s. The Snyders always said the furrowed bunkers were often easier to hit out of because you could get sand behind the ball better.
Look, when I go out to eat I rarely see a fish fork at my table setting, but that doesn’t mean it’s a gimmick. For Oakmont, I’m sorry to see them gone.
Bill Bergin: Today’s bunkers are often a better place to miss than the rough or even closely mown areas around greens. While I am not in favor of the furrow raking method, I am in favor of bunkers being less consistent for championship golf. It is reasonable to returna bunker’s role to that of a more significant hazard.
Shawn Smith: At Oakmont, given the historical precedence, I’m all for it, particularly during the US Open, which is meant to be the most difficult test of golf.
Kyle Franz: Hazards are supposed to be hazards. Whenever someone complains about a bad lie in a bunker, I’m reminded of this great image from early golf in the British Isles of two players disputing a shot in a sandy hazard. It’s filled with footprints and grasses. The Fownes team was gunning for that unpredictability on the old links. Today when players are aiming for bunkers — because they think they’ll get a good lie — that’s a step too far for me.
I would love to see Oakmont bring back the furrows for select events. Not all the time. Perhaps use them in a national event again like the US Amateur. The furrows are pretty well suited for a one-on-one match play setting!
Part 2
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The Participants
Kevin Norby
ASGCA
Carver, MN
A member of the American Society of Golf Course Architects and owner of Norby Golf Design, a professional golf course design firm specializing in golf course design and long-range master planning for golf courses. He is also a Golf Digest Top 100 Panelist and a registered landscape architect in four states.
He has 35 years of experience in the golf industry and has been responsible for the design of over 200 projects throughout the United States, Canada and the Caribbean. Recent projects include The Club at Golden Valley (A.W. Tillinghast, 1924), Eau Claire Golf & Country Club (T. Vardon, 1928) and The Legacy at the 19 (T. Bendelow, 1915).
Bill Bergin
ASGCA
Atlanta, GA
Founded Bergin Golf Designs in 1994 and has completed over 100 renovations and original designs.
Prior to becoming a golf course architect, he played professionally for six years, competing on both the PGA Tour and European Tour, and playing in three US Opens and two Open Championships.
His favorite designs include the brand-new cliff edged Keep at McLemore; the sandy beachside gem at Santa Rosa Golf & Beach Club; and the historic Richland Country Club, in Nashville, TN.
Forrest Richardson
ASGCA
Phoenix, AZ
Forrest Richardson works predominantly in the west. His work includes private clubs, resorts and public access courses. In 2022 he helped ready Anchorage Golf Course for the US Women’s Senior Amateur, including greens and bunker renovation. He has several projects listed on top lists.
In recent years he has become a champion for short courses, and during his tenure as President of ASGCA he was a strong voice for more design ideas that involved less time to play and were fun for all. His most recent short course at Promontory Club in Park City, Utah was just honored among the top three awards in Golf Inc’s Development of the Year.
Shawn Smith
ASGCA
Toledo, OH
Originally from Montana, Smith attended Washington State University where he was a member of the golf team while earning a Bachelor of Science in Landscape Architecture.
He joined the Hills & Forrest team in 1998 and became a Partner in 2010. Over the past two and a half decades, he has gained a wealth of experience from his direct involvement in numerous projects around the world, including prestigious private clubs such as Oakland Hills Country Club and Oakmont Country Club.
Shawn has been a member of the American Society of Golf Course Architects since 2009. With a competitive background in golf and a design philosophy shaped by an avid appreciation for classic golf course architecture, his design approach centers around creating golf courses that are a dynamic blend of strategy, playability, artistry and the natural environment.
Kyle Franz
KMF Golf Course Design
Pinehurst, North Carolina
Most recently, he and his team have led the design and creation of the Karoo Course at Cabot Citrus Farms. The Karoo was named Best New Public Course in 2024 by Sports Illustrated and ranked second by Golf Digest. They also co-designed the Roost Course at the same property—both courses opened this year.
Over the course of his career, he has had the privilege of working on some of the most renowned modern and classic golf courses in the world. He began his professional journey working for Tom Doak at Pacific Dunes in Oregon and later worked with him at Barnbougle Dunes in Australia—two of the most highly regarded/ranked courses built in the last 80 years. His experience also includes working for Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw on the restoration of Pinehurst No. 2 for the 2014 US Open, Gil Hanse on the 2016 Rio Olympic Course, and for Rod Whitman on Canada’s award-winning Cabot Links.
Internationally, he spent a year studying the classic links of the British Isles and the Sandbelt courses of Australia, an experience that continues to deeply inform his design philosophy.
