By Brian DePasquale, USGA
June 15-18, The Los Angeles (Calif.) Country Club (North Course
| PAR AND YARDAGE The Los Angeles Country Club’s North Course will be set up at 7,423 yards and will play to a par of 35-35–70. The yardage for each round of the championship will vary due to course setup and conditions. |
ARCHITECTS
George C. Thomas Jr. designed The Los Angeles Country Club’s current North Course, which opened for play in 1928. W. Herbert Fowler designed the club’s original North Course and South Course, which opened in 1921. Gil Hanse, along with Jim Wagner and Geoff Shackelford, restored the Thomas design of the North Course in 2010 while Hanse also did work on the South Course, which was completed in 2016.
COURSE RATING AND SLOPE
Based on the course setup for the championship, the Course Rating™ for the North Course at The Los Angeles Country Club is 76.9 and its Slope Rating® is 148.
WHAT THE WINNER RECEIVES
Among the benefits enjoyed by the U.S. Open winner are:
►A U.S. Open exemption for the next 10 years
►An invitation to the next five Masters Tournaments
►An invitation to the next five Open Championships, conducted by The R&A
►An invitation to the next five PGA Championships
►An invitation to the next five Players Championships
►Exempt status on the PGA Tour for five years
►Custody of U.S. Open Trophy for one year, Jack Nicklaus Medal and a replica trophy
PURSE The 2022 purse was $17.5 million, the highest among golf’s major championships; the winner earned $3.15 million. The 2023 purse is to be announced.
QUALIFYING FOR THE OTHER MAJORS
The top 10 finishers (and ties) are exempt into the following year’s U.S. Open. The top four finishers (and ties) are invited to the following year’s Masters Tournament.
CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY
This is the 123rd U.S. Open Championship. The U.S. Open, which was first played in 1895, was not contested for two years (1917-1918) during World War I and for four years (1942-1945) during World War II. The youngest winner of the U.S. Open is 19-year-old John McDermott, who won in 1911; he is among nine players age 21 or younger who have won the U.S. Open. The oldest winner is Hale Irwin, who was 45 and playing on a special exemption when he won his third U.S. Open title in 1990. Irwin also won in 1974 and 1979.
There are four four-time U.S. Open winners: Willie Anderson (1901, 1903, 1904, 1905), amateur Bob Jones (1923, 1926, 1929, 1930), Ben Hogan (1948, 1950, 1951, 1953), and Jack Nicklaus (1962, 1967, 1972, 1980). Only six players have won the Masters and U.S. Open titles in the same year: Craig Wood (1941), Ben Hogan (1951, 1953), Arnold Palmer (1960), Jack Nicklaus (1972), Tiger Woods (2002) and Jordan Spieth (2015).
THE LOS ANGELES COUNTRY CLUB HISTORY
In 1897, a group calling themselves the Los Angeles Golf Club led by Joseph Sartori and Edward Tufts organized an association to further the cause of one of Southern California’s newest sports. After outgrowing three locations and years of planning, the club bordering Beverly Hills officially opened on May 30, 1911. Its stately clubhouse, tennis courts and golf courses have served as the club’s home ever since. The original 18-hole golf course was laid out by Sartori, Tufts, Norman Macbeth and Charles Orr.
In 1921, British golf architect W. Herbert Fowler created two new 18-hole courses at the existing location to address the increasing popularity of the game of golf and The Los Angeles Country Club. In the late 1920s, legendary golf course architect and club member George C. Thomas Jr. redesigned the North Course, later called his greatest design. In 2010, the North Course was unveiled after a five-year project led by noted architect Gil Hanse restored Thomas’ 1928 layout. Balancing the unique architectural vision of the North Course and the functionality necessary to sustain its design well into the future, Hanse achieved what Thomas himself envisioned when he said: “In golf course construction, art and utility meet. Both are absolutely vital; one is utterly ruined without the other.” Archived photos, written documents and physical unearthing of landforms provided the framework for a finished product that reflects the past.
In March 2015, the club undertook a significant 16-month renovation of the historic 106-year-old clubhouse (designed by architect and club member Sumner Hunt) to restore its original grandeur. The reopening in August 2016 included the rededication of the Reagan Terrace in honor of Ronald Reagan, the 40th president of the United States and member of The Los Angeles Country Club.
In late 2015, Hanse began a renovation of the club’s South Course, designed to provide a different but complementary experience from the North Course. The South Course reopened in July 2016.
USGA CHAMPIONSHIPS AT LACC
The Los Angeles Country Club’s North Course has previously hosted three USGA championships. Glenna Collett (Vare) won the fifth of a record six U.S. Women’s Amateur titles when she defeated Virginia Van Wie, 6 and 5, in the 1930 championship final. In 1954, Foster Bradley defeated Al Geiberger, 3 and 1, in a battle of two Southern Californians for the U.S. Junior Amateur title. In each case, it was the first time that the championship was contested on the West Coast.
In 2017, Collin Morikawa was one of three Americans to win all four of his matches in leading the United States to a convincing 19-7 victory over Great Britain and Ireland in the 46th Walker Cup Match. Two-time major champion Morikawa was joined by Maverick McNealy and Doug Ghim with perfect marks as the USA recorded the Match’s second-largest margin of victory. The Americans entered Day 2 of the two-day competition with an 8-4 advantage and went on to post a 3-1 record in foursomes and a 7-1-2 mark in singles. GB&I’s Jack Singh Brar, of England, went 3-1 in his matches. It was the second Walker Cup to be contested in California.
1930 U.S. Women’s Amateur: Glenna Collett (Vare) def. Virginia Van Wie, 6 and 5
1954 U.S. Junior Amateur: Foster Bradley def. Allen Geiberger, 3 and 1
2017 Walker Cup Match: USA def. Great Britain and Ireland, 19-7
OTHER EVENTS AT LACC
1926 Los Angeles Open: Harry Cooper by three strokes over George Von Elm, 279-282
1934 Los Angeles Open: Macdonald Smith by eight strokes over Willie Hunter, Bill Mehlhorn, 280-288
1935 Los Angeles Open: Vic Ghezzi def. Johnny Revolta, 285 (73) – 285 (75)
1936 Los Angeles Open: Jimmy Hines by four strokes over Henry Picard, Jimmy Thomson, 280-284
1940 Los Angeles Open: Lawson Little by one stroke over Clayton Heafner, 282-283
USGA CHAMPIONSHIPS IN CALIFORNIA
This will be the 86th USGA championship played in California and the 15th U.S. Open contested in the state. In 2023, the U.S. Women’s Open will be played at Pebble Beach (Calif.) Golf Links, the U.S. Women’s Amateur will be held at Bel-Air Country Club, in Los Angeles, and the U.S. Senior Amateur will be contested at Martis Camp Club, in Truckee.
U.S. Open Championships in California (14):
1948: The Riviera Country Club, Pacific Palisades (Ben Hogan)
1955: The Olympic Club (Lake Course), San Francisco (Jack Fleck)
1966: The Olympic Club (Lake Course), San Francisco (Billy Casper)
1972: Pebble Beach Golf Links, Pebble Beach (Jack Nicklaus)
1982: Pebble Beach Golf Links, Pebble Beach (Tom Watson)
1987: The Olympic Club (Lake Course), San Francisco (Scott Simpson)
1992: Pebble Beach Golf Links, Pebble Beach (Tom Kite)
1998: The Olympic Club (Lake Course), San Francisco (Lee Janzen)
2000: Pebble Beach Golf Links, Pebble Beach (Tiger Woods)
2008: Torrey Pines Golf Course (South Course), San Diego (Tiger Woods)
2010: Pebble Beach Golf Links, Pebble Beach (Graeme McDowell)
2012: The Olympic Club (Lake Course), San Francisco (Webb Simpson)
2019: Pebble Beach Golf Links, Pebble Beach (Gary Woodland)
2021: Torrey Pines Golf Course (South Course), San Diego (Jon Rahm)
1948 U.S. OPEN
Ben Hogan won the first of his four U.S. Opens with a 72-hole score of 276 (8 under par), two strokes better than Jimmy Demaret, at The Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, Calif. Hogan shot 68-69 on the final day to smash Ralph Guldahl’s championship scoring mark set in 1937 by five shots, and his three rounds in the 60s were a first in U.S. Open competition. In a little more than one year, Hogan won the 1947 and 1948 Los Angeles Opens and the U.S. Open at Riviera, earning the course – like Los Angeles Country Club’s North Course, a George C. Thomas Jr. design – the nickname “Hogan’s Alley.”
LONGEST U.S. OPEN COURSES
7,845 yards, Erin Hills, first round, Erin, Wis., 2017
7,839 yards, Erin Hills, second round, Erin, Wis., 2017
7,818 yards, Erin Hills, third round, Erin, Wis., 2017
7,721 yards, Erin Hills, fourth round, Erin, Wis., 2017
7,695 yards, Chambers Bay, second round, University Place, Wash., 2015
7,676 yards, Torrey Pines Golf Course (South Course), fourth round, San Diego, Calif., 2021
7,664 yards, Torrey Pines Golf Course (South Course), second round, San Diego, Calif., 2021
7,637 yards, Chambers Bay, third round, University Place, Wash., 2015
7,635 yards, Torrey Pines Golf Course (South Course), first round, San Diego, Calif., 2021
7,616 yards, Torrey Pines Golf Course (South Course), third round, San Diego, Calif., 2021
7,603 yards, Torrey Pines Golf Course (South Course), second round, San Diego, Calif., 2008
LONGEST PAR 3s IN U.S. OPEN HISTORY
300 yards, 8th, fourth round, Oakmont (Pa.) C.C., 2007
299 yards, 8th, fourth round, Oakmont (Pa.) C.C., 2016
281 yards, 8th, second round, Oakmont (Pa.) C.C., 2007
281 yards, 8th, second round, Oakmont (Pa.) C.C., 2016
279 yards, 8th, third round, Oakmont (Pa.) C.C., 2007
266 yards, 3rd, fourth round, Merion G.C. (East Course), Ardmore, Pa., 2013
264 yards, 2nd, first round, Shinnecock Hills G.C., Southampton, N.Y., 2018
261 yards, 8th, first round, Oakmont (Pa.) C.C., 2007
258 yards, 8th, first round, Oakmont (Pa.) C.C., 2016
256 yards, 3rd, third round, The Olympic Club (Lake Course), San Francisco, Calif., 2012
LONGEST PAR 4s IN U.S. OPEN HISTORY
551 yards, 13th, second round, Chambers Bay, University Place, Wash., 2015
544 yards, 11th, second round, Chambers Bay, University Place, Wash., 2015
542 yards, 4th, third round, Pinehurst Resort & C.C. (Course No. 2), Village of Pinehurst, N.C., 2014
541 yards, 11th, first round, Chambers Bay, University Place, Wash., 2015
541 yards, 11th, fourth round, Chambers Bay, University Place, Wash., 2015
536 yards, 14th, first round, Shinnecock Hills G.C., Southampton, N.Y., 2018
534 yards, 14th, third round, Chambers Bay, University Place, Wash., 2015
534 yards, 6th, third round, Torrey Pines Golf Course (South Course), San Diego, Calif., 2021
533 yards, 13th, third round, Chambers Bay, University Place, Wash., 2015
530 yards, 11th, third round, Chambers Bay, University Place, Wash., 2015
LONGEST PAR 5s IN U.S. OPEN HISTORY
684 yards, 12th, first round, Oakmont (Pa.) C.C., 2016
681 yards, 18th, fourth round, Erin Hills, Erin, Wis., 2017
676 yards, 18th, second round, Erin Hills, Erin, Wis., 2017
674 yards, 12th, third round, Oakmont (Pa.) C.C., 2016
671 yards, 16th, third round, The Olympic Club (Lake Course), San Francisco, Calif., 2012
667 yards, 12th, first round, Oakmont (Pa.) C.C., 2007
667 yards, 12th, second round, at Oakmont (Pa.) C.C., 2007
667 yards, 12th, fourth round, Oakmont (Pa.) C.C., 2007
667 yards, 18th, third round, Erin Hills, Erin, Wis., 2017
660 yards, 16th, first round, The Olympic Club (Lake Course), San Francisco, Calif., 2012
THE LAST TIME IT HAPPENED AT THE U.S. OPEN
Matt Fitzpatrick: last international winner (2022)
Brooks Koepka: last to defend title (2018)
Francis Ouimet: last winner in his first attempt (1913)
Webb Simpson: last winner in his second attempt (2012)
Martin Kaymer: last start-to-finish winner with no ties (2014)
Jon Rahm: last winner to birdie the 72nd hole to win by one stroke (2021)
Jon Rahm: last winner to birdie the 72nd hole (2021)
Tiger Woods: last winner to birdie the 72nd hole to force a playoff (2008)
Geoff Ogilvy: last winner without a round in the 60s (2006)
Gary Woodland: last winner with all rounds in the 60s (2019)
Matt Fitzpatrick: last winner between ages 20-29 (27 in 2022)
Gary Woodland: last winner between ages 30-39 (35 in 2019)
Payne Stewart: last winner age 40 and older (42 in 1999)
Gary Woodland: last defending champion to miss the cut (2020)
Hale Irwin: last winner who received a special exemption (1990)
Lucas Glover: last winner to come through final qualifying (2009)
Orville Moody: last winner to come through local and final qualifying (1969)
John Goodman: last amateur winner (1933)
CHAMPIONSHIP TROPHY
The first United States Open Championship was won by Horace Rawlins in September 1895 at Newport Golf Club in Rhode Island. Rawlins earned $150, a gold champion’s medal, and possession of the championship sterling silver cup for one year. The trophy was designated for display at Rawlins’ club until it was presented to the next year’s champion. Thus began an annual rite that has endured for more than a century.
The original two-handled cup was destroyed by fire in September 1946 at Lloyd Mangrum’s home country club, Tam O’Shanter, outside of Chicago. The USGA considered replacing it with a new design, but opted instead to preserve the look of the original with a full-scale replica on April 24, 1947. This replica remained in service, passed from champion to champion until 1986, when it was permanently retired to the USGA Golf Museum. Today, the U.S. Open champion receives possession of the 1986 full-scale replica. The original U.S. Open Trophy is on display at the USGA Golf Museum in Liberty Corner, N.J.
FUTURE U.S. OPENS IN THIS DECADE
June 13-16, 2024: Pinehurst Resort & Country Club (Course No. 2), Village of Pinehurst, N.C.
June 12-15, 2025: Oakmont (Pa.) Country Club
June 18-21, 2026: Shinnecock Hills Golf Club, Southampton, N.Y.
June 17-20, 2027: Pebble Beach (Calif.) Golf Links
June 15-18, 2028: Winged Foot Golf Club (West Course), Mamaroneck, N.Y.
June 14-17, 2029: Pinehurst Resort & Country Club (Course No. 2), Village of Pinehurst, N.C.
MERCHANDISE
2023 U.S. Open merchandise is available online at usgashop.com. USGA
The USGA is a nonprofit organization that celebrates, serves and advances the game of golf. Founded in 1894, we conduct many of golf’s premier professional and amateur championships, including the U.S. Open and U.S. Women’s Open. With The R&A, we govern the sport via a global set of playing, equipment, handicapping and amateur status rules. The USGA campus in Liberty Corner, New Jersey, is home to the Association’s Research and Test Center, where science and innovation are fueling a healthy and sustainable game for the future. The campus is also home to the USGA Golf Museum, where we honor the game by curating the world’s most comprehensive archive of golf artifacts. To learn more, visit usga.org.
