MATT ALLEN- CHAMBERS BAY- PART TWO

THE SUN SETTING AT CHAMBERS BAY (Courtesy of Simonds)

In the second half of my talk with Matt Allen, he discusses the changes that the USGA desires in anticipation of the the 2010 U.S. Open and the 2015 U.S.. Open. They are adding six tees to this already long course (7,585 yards). When I was there recently they were making changes to the fourth green area. It was not clear what they were doing to this area. If I were them, I would move the green down the hill, shortening the hole, but making the slopes around the green more manageable and encouraging players to play into this green along the ground. This would have the added benefit of moving the green away from the ridge that runs along the east side of the property and blocks sunlight to some of the greens that are hard-up against it. (video after the jump)

Touching up the bunkers will visually improve the course the most. The shape along the edges move up and down and in and out. They are really quite well done. Since the end of construction, the bunkers have been maintained only with a sand pro which has led to long, narrow ribbons of sand winding through the large waste areas that are prevalent throughout the course. There is great potential to go back into these bunkers and extract some of the grass that has crept down the edges and onto the floors. These edges could be really cool looking if they were allowed to look natural and not excessively tidy. The USGA is on record as saying that they like rugged nature of the bunkers and it will be interesting to watch their evolution in the coming years.

Another thing to watch leading up to 2015 is the fairway width at Chambers Bay. For years the USGA has narrowed fairways at their U.S. Open courses, often taking away the preferred angles of attack to flags or even whole greens. During my last visit a few weeks ago this process was well underway and it is to the detriment of the paying golfer. If they don’t tinker too much with this aspect of Chambers Bay (and I fear they have done so already), then the 2015 U.S. Open could truly be as democratic an Open as Matt thinks it could be.

For the first half of the interview with Matt Allen, click here.

For more on Chambers Bay, click here, and here.