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 egalitarian-oriented USGA the bonus of operating as a course accessible to the public.
Yet No. 2 has established its place in Open lore, beginning with Payne Stewart’s dramatic victory in 1999 with a 15-foot par putt on the final hole.
A unique Pinehurst particular — Tiger Woods has been in contention twice (he missed the 2014 Open with a back injury) without winning.
Here’s a look at the past three Opens at No. 2:
1999 — Stewart drains his par putt on the 72nd hole to finish at 1-under-par 279 for the tournament, one shot ahead of Phil Mickelson. Tiger Woods, suffering a rare loss when near the top of the leaderboard, joins Vijay Singh in a tied for third, two shots off the pace. Stewart preserved despite driving into fairway divots four times during the tournament. Stewart died in a plane accident in October. The previous year at Olympic Club, Stewart had failed to hold a 4-stroke lead at the Open, dropping two quick shots after hitting into a fairway divot and getting a warning for slow play.
2005 — New Zealander Michael Campbell, four shots behind Reteif Goosen entering the final round, roared back to win at even-par 280, by two shots over Woods. Tim Clark, Sergio Garcia and Mark Hensby tied for third. Goosen, a two-time Open winner, shot 81 to drop out of the top 10. N.C. native Davis Love III tied for sixth with Singh and Rocco Mediate.
2014 — Martin Kaymer dominated the week, finishing at 9-under 271, winning by eight shots after shooting 65 in the first two rounds. A young qualifier, future two-time Open winner Brooks Koepka, tied for fourth. Kaymer was in his prime. He had already won The Players Championship that year.
