THE GOOD: It’s easy to criticize the randomness of the penalties produced by the waste areas filled with wire grass or the severity of the slopes on the greens that send seemingly good approaches bouncing and rolling off the putting surfaces into ridiculously difficult collection areas.
But take a look at the final leaderboard Sunday at Pinehurst No. 2.
Hard to argue with a layout that produces Bryson DeChambeau as the champion at 6-under-par 274 with Rory McIlroy only one stroke behind, PGA Tour stalwarts Patrick Cantlay and Tony Finau just two off the pace, and Hideki Matsuyama, Xander Schauffele, Ludvig Aberg, and Sergio Garcia in the top 12.
Plus, there was the spectacular finish with DeChambeau becoming the only player all week to make par at 18 from the front right bunker.
THE BAD: Pinehurst couldn’t stop imbeciles in the galleries from making obnoxious and ridiculous shouts — made to generate attention for the offenders — following tee shots.
No reason to dignify the specifics of the shouts. They were out of hand, and totally inappropriate for the U.S. Open. Not that it doesn’t happen every week on the PGA Tour. But you know what, I don’t remember it happening at the British Open. And it’s not appropriate at Pinehurst No. 2. Neither were the “USA, USA” chants shouted in support of DeChambeau, rather than “Bryson, Bryson.” It’s the U.S. Open, not the Ryder Cup.
Maybe offenders could be arrested and placed in stocks where they could be targets for eggs and other debris (use your imagination).
THE GOOD: Nice to see Rory McIlroy play so well on Sunday until missing the two deciding short putts on the final three holes. If the 35-year-old Northern Irishman doesn’t win the British Open, he will complete a decade without a major victory. His two runner-up finishes during the decade were in the last two U.S. Opens.
McIlroy, who had four major titles by age 25, had a tremendous round going, reaching 8-under, 4-under on his round after a birdie at No. 13. On the front nine, NBC reported he had made 45 of 49 putts in the tournament from inside 7 feet.
Also, a strong performance by Cantlay, a top PGA Tour performer with a bad track record at the majors. Though in the background most of Sunday despite playing with McIlroy, Cantlay nearly sneaked into a playoff. But his birdie putt at 18 just missed. If it dropped and DeChambeau failed to save par from the bunker in the final group, Cantlay would have joined DeChambeau and McIlroy in a playoff.
THE BAD: McIlroy (pictured after his par putt missed at 18) bailed quickly from the grounds after the tournament without comment. That’s just not done at major championships. It wasn’t a good luck for McIlroy, who knows better. McIlroy has four major titles. He should be able to handle a few tough questions, even if he didn’t want to talk about his putts at 16 and 18. Together with his drama-filled love life, McIlroy is making it easy for speculation about possible character issues.
THE GOOD: Top amateur Neal Shipley of Ohio State finished 26th at 286. Fellow amateurs making the cut included Luke Clanton, who posted 288, and Gunnar Broin, who carded 296. Finau, Russell Henley and Sam Burns each shot Sunday’s low rounds of 67 to finish in the top 10.
THE BAD: Scottie Scheffler made only four birdies in four rounds, getting the goose egg in Rounds 2 and 4. Scheffler, the world’s top-ranked players, still managed to post 288 and tie for 41st, so his ball striking wasn’t the big problem. Despite the struggles at Pinehurst No. 2, Scheffler retained leadership in two PGA Tour categories with 4.91 birdies per round and a 68.6 stroke average. Byeong Han An is second in birdie average at 4.44. Schauffele is second in stroke average at 69.32.
