Davis: Chambers Bay Ideal U.S. Open Site


March 5, 2008

Folks in the Pacific Northwest and Mike Davis, the USGA's Senior Director of Rules & Competitions, are rejoicing in the fact that in 2015 Chambers Bay, a spectacular municipal links layout locate on the scenic lower Puget Sound in University Place, Wash., will become the region's first course to host a U.S. Open. In 2010, Chambers Bay will also be the host site for the U.S. Amateur Championship.

Davis recently answered questions about the most recent addition to the USGA's U.S. Open calendar.

Why is Chambers Bay a spectacular U.S. Open site?

Davis: When we examine a potential U.S. Open site, we look at the golf course first. It has to be a great test of golf for the world's best players. Chambers Bay most definitely meets that standard. It has an excellent variety of golf holes - short, long, uphill, downhill and holes that dogleg in both directions. Further, Chambers Bay has its fair share of risk-reward shots, which nearly everyone in golf seems to like. One element that intrigued us was that Chambers Bay will be much different than any other U.S. Open test because the whole golf course, including the putting greens, is planted in fine fescue grasses. The entire site is sand. It will play much like a British Open course with balls bouncing after they land. We always want firm conditions for a championship and we will surely get them at Chambers Bay. The idea of a "bouncy" Open greatly appeals to us. The fescue greens will putt slower than other Open venues, but they'll still provide great challenge given the wonderful architecture. The fescue roughs will be wispy and have a different look and playability than most other Opens. It kind of gets us away from what sometimes can be perceived as a "cookie cutter" U.S. Open set-up. Chambers Bay will be tough like any U.S. Open test, but it will be a different type of tough. Beyond the golf course, Chambers Bay is open to the public and is located in the Pacific Northwest. Since the first U.S. Open was held in 1895, we've never had a western U.S. Open north of San Francisco. The course sits on just under 1,000 acres, so it more than meets our operational needs. One last thing that makes Chambers Bay a "can't miss" - it is simply spectacular looking. Every hole has water views.


The first hole at Chambers Bay offers a spectacular view of Puget Sound. (Photo Courtesy of Chambers Bay)
The vast expanses of sand struck your imagination, but how do you plan to use that factor in a U.S. Open Championship?

Davis: A sand-based terrain makes the course play firm and fast. The effects of a rain event are minimized due to better drainage. When a championship is played on a parkland-style course with thick soil, rain can minimize the challenge of the course. Given that Chambers Bay is sand-based with fescue grasses, the ball is going to bounce and they'll have to plan their course strategy accordingly. The architects of Chambers Bay designed the holes with the ground game in mind. We play the U.S. Open on other sand-based courses such as Pinehurst, Shinnecock Hills, Bethpage and Olympic, but none of those courses have fescue fairways or greens that really get the ball rolling.

Who first called your attention to Chambers Bay?

Davis: I got a call from Ron Read (USGA Director, Regional Affairs, West Region) several years ago. The course had not been built but he mentioned this fabulous site on the water in the Pacific Northwest. The things that piqued my interest beyond geography were the 1,000 acres, that it was open to the public and that it was on the water. And, it was all sand. I thought it had the potential to be a perfect championship site if a golf course ever did get built. I asked Ron to keep me posted. I was thereafter contacted a few years ago when they first started moving sand to build the course. John Ladenburg, who is the Pierce County Executive and an avid golfer, told me of his dream to have a U.S. Open. He had seen the Bethpage U.S. Open in 2002 and it motivated him. After finishing teaching a Rules of Golf seminar in Portland a couple of years ago, I drove up with a few others from the USGA and we walked the site. We studied the proposed course routing crafted by the architectural firm of Robert Trent Jones II. Bulldozers were just beginning to shape the property. The Pierce County representatives and the architects asked a lot of good questions about what we felt made a good test of golf for the world's best golfers, as well as the things we looked for from a logistical standpoint. I suspect that they began to more seriously think about the U.S. Open since a few people from the USGA actually were willing to spend a day looking over the site before it even was a golf course.

What qualities must a golf course have in order to host a U.S. Open or U.S. Amateur?

Davis: Simply put, the golf course has to be able to test all the skills of those given groups of players. With that in mind, part of the charm of all USGA national championships is that they are played on different courses each year. Some courses fit certain player's games better than others. That is appealing. When we look at a prospective golf course, we try to envision how it would play under championship set-up. We also have to make sure the logistics work and that the host venue and community are excited and capable of conducting an event. We want the very best courses we can get to determine our respective national champions.

Why is the U.S. Open seldom played on new golf courses?

Davis: I suppose going to old traditional golf courses is part of the history of the U.S. Open. Many of the old courses have more than stood the test of time. If you look at where we tend to go, most of the courses were built in the so-called "Golden Era" of golf course architecture (1910-1940). We did play the U.S. Open at several newer courses (Hazeltine, Bellerive, Atlanta Athletic Club and Champions) back in the 1960s and 1970s, but we have shied away in recent decades of going to courses that were just built. Our choosing Chambers Bay is great in the sense that it perhaps makes a statement that today's golf course architects are building some of the best golf courses yet. With all the fabulous golf courses built in the last 10 or so years, we might just be in midst of the second "Golden Era" of architecture.

Each time a course is mentioned for a USGA championship, someone says, "Mike Davis was here and inspected the course." Are you always on the road surveying potential sites?

Davis: I am glad you didn't ask my family this question! Seriously, I have tried to limit the majority of my site visits to venues interested in hosting U.S. Opens, U.S. Women's Opens, U.S. Amateurs and Walker Cups. The travel with the job can be extensive, but very rewarding. There are so many wonderful golf courses in this country that are willing to give something back to the game.