The United States Golf Association has faced criticism dating back many years over the handling of the US Open, and Phil Mickelson has already fired a shot at the organization weeks before its biggest event of the year.
This year’s US Open is being held at Shinnecock Hills, which is considered one of the toughest golf courses in the world. The USGA has a tendency to make challenging courses nearly impossible to score on, and it sounds like Mickelson is concerned 2018 will be no different.
Phil asked about 7 at Shinnecock. "I think it's a great hole until the USGA gets a hold of it. I'm concerned every time they get a hold of it."
— Will Gray (@WillGrayGC) June 3, 2018
The last time the US Open was held at Shinnecock was in 2004. Mickelson finished runner-up in that tournament, and several golfers unloaded on the USGA for creating unfair conditions. The greens were extremely hard and some became baked out, requiring them to be watered at inconvenient times. On the 7th hole, the green was accidentally rolled during the third round, making it even more challenging to land the ball on the putting surface of the par-3.
Of course, the USGA has grown accustomed to hearing the complaints. Ian Poulter led the charge with some remarks he made in 2015, and we could hear more of the same later this month if scoring conditions become impossible at Shinnecock.
