PINEHURST — Like the U.S. Open 25 years ago won with an iconic, 15-foot par putt by Payne Stewart, the 124th edition of golf’s national championship at Pinehurst No. 2 produced the best winner possible. Bryson DeChambeau was the best player in the field throughout the tournament, even if Rory McIlroy provided a fantastic Sunday…
Lexington Golf Club (pictured above) closed on June 1 to convert the greens to Champion Bermuda grass. The course is expected to reopen in early August, according to director of golf Dylan Dawson. Lexington is using a “no till” process that simple kills the existing turf and plants the new grass. Prior to the closure,…
Kelvin Hernandez thrived as an outsider in his first season at UNC Greensboro. The freshman from Puerto Rico (pictured at the NCAA Championship in Carlsbad, California) came to Greensboro as not only the Spartans’ only player from outside of the state, but also as the team’s only player from outside North Carolina. At the conclusion…
Nick Mathews is healthy, and so his golf game. The Mebane native (pictured above playing in the NCAA regional at Finley Golf Course) concluded an outstanding year at N.C. State by finishing in a tie for 15th at the NCAA Championship at La Costa North in Carlsbad, California. Coming back from a slump of more…
I remember my first trip to Pinehurst well. It was nearly 40 years ago. I had just turned 23 and was working at The State newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina. Teddy Heffner, one of many great colleagues who befriended me, invited me to tag along on an annual golf writers trip. I had loved golf…
The USGA has gone all in at Pinehurst. As golf fans will see at the U.S. Open on June 13-16 at Pinehurst No. 2, the relationship between golf’s American governing body and the Pinehurst Resort has become heavily intertwined. To the right on the few hundred yards from N.C. 2 (Midland Road) to the main…
Making its debut as a U.S. Open site in 1999, Pinehurst No. 2 has a shorter Open history than traditional venues such as Oakmont, Shinnecock Hills, The Country Club (Brookline), Oakland Hills, Merion, Winged Foot, Baltusrol, and Olympic Club. But like fellow relative Open newcomers Pebble Beach and Bethpage Black, Pinehurst No. 2 offers the…
The best way to beat the expected June heat during U.S. Open week at Pinehurst Resort might a trip down memory lane. The USGA Experience and the newest edition of the World Golf Hall of Fame opened in May on the Golf House Pinehurst campus, across from Pinehurst Country Club, only a mid-iron from Pinehurst…