From quirkiness to too quiet, LACC received criticism, but there are reasons the USGA will return

LOS ANGELES – Mike Whan watched quietly behind the ninth green Sunday as the day’s final group played up, basking in the Southern California sun and the idyllic stage of Los Angeles Country Club.

Unlike the towering hedges that separate the thunderous world on Wilshire Boulevard from the manicured oasis that is the North Course, Whan – the CEO of the USGA – was acutely aware of the noise this year’s venue created.

Whan and the USGA heard the push back regarding the unique course hosting its first U.S. Open and an onsite vibe that was a bit too chill for some.

“I’m not a huge fan of this place,” Brooks Koepka said on Friday. “I’m not a huge fan of blind tee shots, and then I think there’s just some spots that no matter what you hit, the ball just ends up in the same spot. I think it would be more fun to play on just like a regular round than it would be a U.S. Open. I mean, there’s, what, two 8s yesterday. That doesn’t happen.”

While hardly isolated, Koepka’s criticism falls in line with a curious theme for the week. Across fandom, complaints crashed down on Whan and the USGA when the field scorched the North Course on Day 1. The marine layer never lifted on Thursday and a relatively soft layout with little wind yielded 37 rounds in the 60s and a 71.37 scoring average, the lowest in U.S. Open history.

Social media spoke and it wasn’t happy, although – to be fair – nearly every player cautiously and correctly warned that tougher times were coming.

Despite Thursday’s scoring assault, which included a pair of record-setting 62s, the par-70 North Course’s 71.77 average for the week ranks as the second-most difficult on Tour this year, just behind Oak Hill and the PGA Championship, and Wyndham Clark’s 10-under total was in line with most recent U.S. Open champions.

You didn’t need to be a fan of golf-course architecture to appreciate the North Course’s nuances. The short, par-4 sixth hole provided a compelling mix of risk and reward with a 44 percent “going for the green” rate, and the layout’s collection of par 3s delivered both difficulty and drama. There were three aces, the 15^th hole brilliantly played just 81 yards on Day 3 (to a 2.92 average), and three of the layout’s five par 3s ranked among the Tour’s 10 toughest par 3s this season.

But then, player complaints are as much a part of the U.S. Open as player “arrival” videos and merchandise tents. According to various players, there’s nothing wrong with the North Course that a few elevated tee boxes and some softened fairways can’t fix.

The more tangible criticism focused on the crowds that braved L.A. traffic and a landscape that was not at all user friendly.

“I wish it would have been louder. I wish it was a few more people. But, yeah, I’m surprised there’s not been as many people out as I thought this week,” last year’s U.S. Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick told a couple of reporters. “Very poor … It’s disappointing on the USGA side.

“They want a great tournament, from what I’ve heard a lot of members bought tickets and that’s why there’s so many less people. Hopefully it’s not the same for other U.S. Opens going forward.” 

The Beverly Hills Open had a limited footprint because of traffic concerns and the layout’s routing challenges, and officials limited daily attendance to roughly 23,000. By comparison, 30,000 a day were allowed on The Country Club last year and in 2016 at Oakmont that number climbed to nearly 50,000 per day.

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Adding to that lack of buzz was a distribution model that had the majority of those 23,000 tickets going to corporate hospitality and LACC members. It all added up to a typical LA crowd – late arriving and early exit. It’s what you’d expect at a Lakers game or the Golden Globe Awards, which is annually held at The Beverly Hilton located just beyond the North Course’s first green, not the national championship.

There’ll be a good amount of pearl clutching about LACC’s lack of vibe and the North Course’s quirky brilliance in the coming weeks, but what will be lost in the handwringing is the obvious fact that the course is now firmly rooted in the U.S. Open rotation.

According to one USGA official, corporate hospitality – including the sprawling skybox that spanned nearly the full length of the par-5 opening hole – produced record revenues and even with a limited fan footprint, the premium on anything in Los Angeles more than compensated for the smaller crowds.

There’s also the dreamy combination of a primetime finish on the East Coast and countless beauties of Beverly Hills, Sunset Boulevard and the Hollywood hills, which is what television executives live for.

There’s a “suggestion box” fixed some 30 feet up in a tree between the 18^th green and the club’s pro shop, the subtext is obvious – keep you opinions to yourself.

In true Hollywood fashion there are plenty of nip/tucks needed before the U.S. Open returns to the North Course in 2039, but Los Angeles Country Club is here to stay.