This week's US Open has been an interesting tournament, with quite a few players still in contention as we head into today's final round.
Rickie Fowler has been the story of the week so far, rediscovering his form from years gone by to get into a tie for the lead heading into Sunday's final round. Will Clark also sits atop the leaderboard, with Rory McIlroy one shot back as he searches for his first major since 2014.
Sunday should provide us with a scintillating final round, although there are concerns that the venue will be an obstacle in this respect.
The Los Angeles Country Club is hosting the US Open for the first time this week, with many people being unsure what to expect from the course in the buildup to the tournament.
The LA venue is one of the most exclusive courses in the world, so much so that they had previously refused to host some of golf's biggest events. In fact, most of the players in the the field this week would not have played at the venue in the past, with some of them reportedly resorting to picking up some tips on how to approach the course via YouTube.
That was always going to make for a unique championship, although many have not been impressed some aspects of the spectacle on show.
Matt Fitzpatrick makes valid US Open complaint
Whereas we have become accustomed to seeing huge crowds on display at golf's showpiece events, although this year's US Open has certainly underwhelmed in this regard.
We have not witnessed the type of heaving crowds that are commonplace at many venues, something that has had an effect on the atmosphere on display.
What an AWFUL crowd & atmosphere so far at the US Open this week, before you tell me it’s a major with expensive tickets & it’s more corporate etc. remember the masters is much more exclusive & has arguably the best atmosphere in all of golf. pic.twitter.com/sUD7VEsLKf
— NMH (@nosmhsnow) June 15, 2023
Certainly not a great look.
One moment during the third round perfectly summed up the week as a whole. Rickie Fowler drained a stunning putt from over 60 feet, and while you would expect it to be greeted with a raucous response, the reality was far different.
Honestly the lack of a crowd at a #usopen is disgusting. This is Rickie Fowler dropping a bomb from Mars and it's basically crickets pic.twitter.com/YejGnpGLSq
— Dave Portnoy (@stoolpresidente) June 18, 2023
The players themselves have noticed the lack of atmosphere at the venue.
Matt Fitzpatrick criticised it after yesterday's third round, as well as the course as a whole.
Matt Fitzpatrick on LACC atmosphere.
“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.”— Dan Rapaport (@Daniel_Rapaport) June 17, 2023
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...
There's just too many holes for me where you've got blind tee shots and then you've got fairways that don't hold the ball. There's too much slope.
Some of the tee shots are just — I think they're a little bit unfair. You hit a good tee shot and end up in the rough by a foot and then you're hacking it out.
The USGA often attempt to make US Open courses as difficult as possible, a challenge that the players usually relish.
In saying that, it seems they have not enjoyed playing at LACC. This is what Viktor Hovland had to say about the California venue:
I'm not a big fan of this golf course, to be honest. I think there's some good holes.
I don't think there's any great holes. I think there's a few bad holes.
Hardly a ringing endorsement.
In all, the viewers have not really enjoyed watching this week's US Open despite the quality of the players on show.
Rickie hits a 75 foot birdie putt on a Saturday in the US Open and 12 people politely clap. What a joke of a crowd
— Josh Knauer (@jknauer42) June 18, 2023
In other words, LACC is garbage.
Zero atmosphere, could land a jumbo jet on most of the fairways, possibly the most boring US Open in living memory. https://t.co/EYi7WxsCuv— Alexander Mackay (@_agmackay) June 16, 2023
The comparison between the US Open atmosphere and last week at the RBC Canadian open is laughable. Looks like an absolute snoozer at LACC from the crowd. Proud to be a rowdy Canuck 🇨🇦.
— Sam McKee (@SamAMcKee) June 18, 2023
What has been the cause of this issue? It seems that LACC placed strict limits on the amount of fans that could attend the event, while many of the available tickets were then snapped up their wealthy members.
They way they stopped crowds from congregating in certain areas has also been a factor.
I’ve been here all weekend
They limited tickets to 22k
And most are super rich people who are in those tents.
Less than half the crowd at a normal US Open
And they even less because they are all in hospitality tents.— Ian Dickey (@IanDickey4) June 18, 2023
The vibe has certainly sucked all week, but worth acknowledging there's no fans allowed near 13 green/14 tee.
Corner of the property similar to 12 green/13 tee at Augusta. https://t.co/OvmqORcgmF— No Laying Up (@NoLayingUp) June 18, 2023
We hold out hope that Sunday's US Open fourth round will be an exhilarating watch for golf fans, although the venue could stop that from becoming a reality.
You would really hope that this won't be the case.
SEE ALSO: McIlroy, Harrington, Lowry - US Open Final Round Tee Times
