Horses for Courses: U.S. Open
4 Min Read
Historical moments at the RBC Canadian Open
The annual examination by the USGA to identify the best golfer returns to The Country Club in Brookline, Massachusetts for the 122nd edition.
RELATED: Expert Picks | Power Rankings
The Country Club, one of the five charter clubs of the USGA hosted for the first time in 1913. Francis Ouimet's upset victory set the stage for golf in America and The Country Club's place in history.
The additions to the history were added as the 50th and 75th anniversaries of Ouimet's historic win were celebrated with U.S. Open championships at the course. Julius Boros won in 1963 and Curtis Strange defeated Nick Faldo in a playoff in 1988.
The 100th anniversary was celebrated with the U.S. Amateur as Matt Fitzpatrick defeated Oliver Goss to win the title.
Perhaps the most remembered event would be the celebrations on the 17th green during the 1999 Ryder Cup. Justin Leonard sank "that" putt to beat those Europeans in come from behind fashion to secure the improbable victory.
But not as improbable as Ouimet the amateur defeating Harry Vardon and Ted Ray in a playoff in 1913.
New history will be made this time around and it will be done on a course that not many have played. The composite course of The Country Club used for championships will differ this time around as the famous, short Par-3 hole is back in the rotation for the first time since 1913. The track will also differ as Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner have been restoring the 1893 and beyond footprints to resemble their original design.
A true test of parkland golf features thick rough, blind shots, sloping fairways and fast Poa/Bent greens will test all 14 clubs and, as always, the space between the ears.
The Par-70 won't stretch to 7,300 yards but the challenge this week isn't length. Moving the golf ball each way, trusting flying by instrument and having to accept bogey or worse will trump blindly bombing and gouging. Only Pebble Beach has smaller greens and only New England has jagged rock formations running through the fairways, rough and around the greens.
The field of 156 professionals, amateurs and qualifiers will be reduced to the top 60 and ties to play the final two rounds. The winner in 2021 took home $2.25 million of the $12 million plus 600 FedExCup points. If the event of a playoff, a two hole aggregate will be used before sudden death. The 18 hole playoff was eliminated after 2017.
Horses for Courses
| Recent Winners entered this week (cuts made/events entered) | Top 10 | Top 25 | 2022 BET MGM ODDS Win, Top 10, Top 20 |
| 2021: Jon Rahm (4/6) | 2 | 4 | +1400; +140; -165 |
| 2020: Bryson DeChambeau (5/7) | 1 | 3 | +8000; +700; +333 |
| 2019: Gary Woodland (7/11) | 1 | 2 | +12500; +900; +400 |
| 2018: Brooks Koepka (7/8) | 5 | 7 | +4000; +400; +160 |
| 2017: Brooks Koepka (7/8) | 5 | 7 | +4000; +400; +160 |
| 2016: Dustin Johnson (12/14) | 6 | 8 | +4000; +350; +140 |
| Veteran Presence entered this week (cuts made/events entered) | Top 10 | Top 20 | 2022 BET MGM ODDS Win, Top 10, Top 20 |
| Louis Oosthuizen (9/12) | 5 | 8 | +6600; +600; +220 |
| Justin Thomas (5/7) | 2 | 4 | +1200; +125; -190 |
| Rory McIlroy (8/13) | 6 | 7 | +1100; +110; -195 |
| Hideki Matsuyama (8/9) | 2 | 6 | +4000; +350; +140 |
| Shane Lowry (6/9) | 2 | 2 | +3300; +250; +120 |
| Daniel Berger (6/7) | 2 | 2 | +5000; +400; +160 |
| Patrick Reed (7/8) | 1 | 5 | +8000; +650; +275 |
| Adam Scott (12/18) | 3 | 6 | +12500; +900; +350 |
| Sergio Garcia (18/22) | 5 | 12 | +12500; +1000; +400 |
| Branden Grace (6/9) | 3 | 4 | +25000; +1400; +500 |
| Justin Rose (8/16) | 5 | 7 | +6600; +500; +200 |
| Webb Simpson (9/11) | 3 | 5 | +8000; +600; +260 |
| Jordan Spieth (7/10) | 1 | 4 | +2500; +225; +100 |
| Gaining Traction entered this week (cuts made/events entered) | Top 10 | Top 20 | 2022 BET MGM ODDS Win, Top 10, Top 20 |
| Xander Schauffele (5/5) | 5 | 5 | +2200; +200; -125 |
| Cameron Smith (4/6) | 1 | 1 | +2200; +200; -125 |
| Scottie Scheffler (2/4) | 1 | 1 | +1400; +140; -175 |
| Collin Morikawa (2/3) | 1 | 1 | +2800; +225; +100 |
| Will Zalatoris (1/3) | 1 | 1 | +2500; +220; +100 |
| Tony Finau (3/6) | 2 | 3 | +3300; +275; +125 |
| Tyrrell Hatton (2/5) | 1 | 2 | +8000; +650; +250 |
| Harris English (6/6) | 2 | 2 | +25000; +1800; +650 |
| Tommy Fleetwood (5/6) | 2 | 2 | +5000; +450; +190 |
| Brian Harman (4/6) | 1 | 2 | +15000; +1000; +350 |
| Guido Migliozzi (1/1) | 1 | 1 | +50000; +2800; +1200 |
| Jordan Spieth (7/10) | 1 | 4 | +2500; +225; +100 |
Odds sourced on Tuesday, June 14th at 3 p.m. ET. For live odds visit betmgm.
Recent Event Winner Stats
| Year | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 |
| Winner | John Rahm | Bryson DeChambeau | Gary Woodland | Brooks Koepka |
| Score | 282 (-6) | 274 (-6) | 271 (-13) | 281 (+1) |
| MOV | 1 | 6 | 3 | 1 |
| Cut | 4-over | 6-over | 2-over | 8-over |
| Age | 26 | 27 | 35 | 28 |
| Pre Tournament Odds | +1000 | +2500 | +6000 | +2500 |
| Disantance - All Drives | T12 | 1 | T23 | 26 |
| Driving Accuarcy | T28 | T26 | T22 | T55 |
| GIR | T4 | T5 | 2 | 4 |
| Ball-Striking | 7 | 6 | 2 | 10 |
| Proximity | 4 | 20 | T17 | 8 |
| Putting: Birdie or Better % | T18 | 16 | 31 | 6 |
| SG: Off-the-Tee | 13 | 2 | 22 | 21 |
| SG: Approach-the-Green | 6 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| SG: Around-the-Green | T23 | 3 | 41 | 61 |
| SG: Putting | 16 | 18 | 4 | 3 |
| SG: Tee-to-Green | 6 | 1 | 6 | 11 |
| Scrambling | 6 | 3 | 1 | 24 |
| Bogey Avoidance | T1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Par-3 Scoring | T31 | 1 | T7 | T3 |
| Par-4 Scoring | 1 | 1 | 1 | T7 |
| Par-5 Scoring | T13 | T14 | T15 | T6 |
| Birdies | T4 (15) Leaders 17 | T4 (13) Leader 15 | 17 (T9) Leader 19 | 14 (4th) Leader 17 |
| Eagles | 0; Leader 2 | 1 (2) | 0 Leader 2 | 0 |
| Bogeys/Doubles | 8 | 11 (least) | 4 | 13 |
Extra Credit
Most Top 10 Finishes
(players entered this week only)
10 - Phil Mickelson - last top 25 was 2013.
6 - Rory McIlroy - 2011 winner; Top 10 last three years.
6 - Dustin Johnson - 2016 winner; T6 or better in five of his last eight.
5 - Xander Schauffele - Five starts, five T7 or better.
5 - Brooks Koepka - 2017, 2018 winner; T4 or better last four.
5 - Louis Oosthuizen - Top 10 last three editions.
5 - Sergio Garcia - T21 or better in three of his last six.
5 - Justin Rose - 2013 winner; T3 2019 Pebble Beach.
3 - Webb Simpson - 2012 winner who's cashed 19 of his last 20 majors.
3 - Stewart Cink - Only played two of the last seven.
3 - Adam Scott - All three 2014 or later.
3 - Branden Grace - T7 Torrey Pines.
Notes:
• Most victories: 4; Willie Anderson, Bobby Jones, Ben Hogan and Jack Nicklaus
• Last Amateur: John Goodman, 1933.
• Back to Back (last): Brooks Koepka, 2017-18.
• Wire to Wire (last): Martin Kaymer, 2014 Pinehurst No. 2.
• Longest Between Wins: 11 years; Julius Boros and Hale Irwin.
• Most Hosted: Oakmont, nine times.
• Tournament Scoring Record: 268; Rory McIlroy, 2011; Congressional Country Club Blue Course.
• Tournament Scoring Record to Par: 16-under; Brooks Koepka, 2017 Erin Hills; McIlroy, 2011.
• Lowest Round: 63; Last by Justin Thomas, 2017 Erin Hills (9-under).
• 33 playoffs in 121 championships.
• Last winner in first attempt: Ouimet, 1913.
• Last winner first victory on TOUR: Graeme McDowell, 2010.
• Last winner from final qualifying: Lucas Glover, 2009.
• Last winner from local and final qualifying: Orville Moody, 1969.
• Last winner over 40: Payne Stewart, 42, 1999; sixth oldest winner.
Key stat leaders
Top golfers in each statistic on the 2021-22 PGA TOUR are listed only if they are scheduled to compete this week;
| Strokes Gained: Tee to Green | |
| Rank | Player |
| 1 | Rory McIlroy |
| 2 | Will Zalatoris |
| 3 | Justin Thomas |
| 4 | Jon Rahm |
| 5 | Matt Fitzpatrick |
| 6 | Luke List |
| 7 | Xander Schauffele |
| 8 | Joaquin Niemann |
| 9 | Sungjae Im |
| 10 | Jordan Spieth |
| Strokes Gained: Putting | |
| Rank | Player |
| 2 | Tyrrell Hatton |
| 3 | Lucas Herbert |
| 4 | Beau Hossler |
| 6 | Denny McCarthy |
| 10 | Billy Horschel |
| 11 | Cameron Smith |
| 12 | Marc Leishman |
| 13 | Justin Rose |
| 15 | Mackenzie Hughes |
| 16 | Sam Burns |
| 18 | Tommy Fleetwood |
| Bogey Avoidance | |
| Rank | Player |
| 1 | Justin Thomas |
| 2 | Sungjae Im |
| 3 | Shane Lowry |
| 4 | Seamus Power |
| 6 | Sam Burns |
| 7 | Mito Pereira |
| 8 | Matt Fitzpatrick |
| 9 | Xander Schauffele |
| 10 | Talor Gooch |
| 11 | Jon Rahm |
| 24 | Corey Conners |
| 29 | Brendon Todd |