BROOKLINE, Massachusetts – Thirty years is the average length of a home mortgage. It’s roughly the time it takes for the planet Saturn to orbit around the Sun. And it’s also the general measure of the length of a generation.
No matter how you measure it, this week is the first time in more than 30 years that the U.S. Open is taking place at The Country Club in Brookline, and you won’t want to miss the triumphant return of this major championship to Massachusetts. After all, it may be several decades more before a major championship of this scale returns to the Bay State.
Round 1 got underway Thursday, and whether or not you can be on site for the remainder of the championship, check out these five reasons to follow along with the U.S. Open this year.
Local 20-year-old amateur Michael Thorbjornsen of Wellesley has drawn large crowds during both his practice rounds and opening round of play. The young Stanford University standout is making his second appearance in a U.S. Open after playing in the 2019 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach. He was also the 2018 U.S. Junior Amateur Champion.
Longtime professional Fran Quinn, who lives about 45 minutes away in Holden, became the oldest person to qualify for the U.S. Open in the past 40 years. Though it’ll be his fifth U.S. Open, it’s a special one for the Bay State native who had to wait 34 years for another chance to play on home turf after the U.S. Open was last held in Massachusetts in 1988. Quinn most recently played in the U.S. Open in 2014 at Pinehurst No. 2.
The U.S. Open marks the first time that the best players on the PGA Tour and in the world have gathered in Massachusetts since August 2020 when The Northern Trust came to TPC Boston in Norton and Dustin Johnson came away with the title with an astounding 30-under-par winning score. It will also likely be the last time the best of the best gather in one event for some time, at least in the United States.
There are several players in the field with a chance to make history. Defending champion Jon Rahm could become the fourth back-to-back U.S. Open Champion since World War II, while a victory by Phil Mickelson would be his first in the event, the only major championship he has not won. Scottie Scheffler could join an elite group of golfers, including Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods, to win both the Masters and the U.S. Open in the same year. A win for Jordan Spieth or Brooks Koepka would be their fourth or fifth major, respectively, a feat few in the sport have accomplished.
There are more than 3,000 volunteers helping to run the U.S. Open, many of whom come from Massachusetts. That group includes a number of Mass Golf volunteers, staff members and interns helping with tasks such as player tracking, security, groundskeeping and disability services. If you check out the U.S. Open on TV or on social media, you’re likely to spot someone you recognize.
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If you haven’t quite reached the level of a U.S. Open competitor out on the course yet, you may pick up a few tips and tricks for your game by observing the competition. If you’ve yet to pick up the sport, what’s a more inspiring call to action than watching the world’s best compete in your home state?
For more content like this, follow along at MassGolf.org and at @PlayMassGolf on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for the latest content from this year’s U.S. Open Championship at The Country Club.
