Gruelling grind: Scott braces for torrid US Open test
Adam Scott reckons creativity will be king as major championship golf reaches new levels of gruelling at this week's US Open in Pennsylvania.
Scott has arrived for the season's third men's major in a buoyant mood and believing he can "get it done" following a top-20 finish at the PGA Championship, having surged into a tie for second midway through the final round.
But Australia's veteran former world No.1 knows he will need to be at the very top of his game to clinch an elusive second major on Sunday.
US Opens are traditionally, and notoriously, the greatest tests in golf.
And then there is Oakmont Country Club, where it's taken greats like Jack Nicklaus, Ben Hogan, Johnny Miller and Ernie Els to tame the beast down the years.
In 2007, Angel Cabrera saluted with a five-over-par winning total.
Scott has fond memories of his tie for 18th last time Oakmont hosted the Open in 2016 but is bracing for another brutal test when he tees off in round one on Thursday night.
"I know it's probably the hardest course on the US Open rota but, at this point, at least I don't feel overwhelmed when I see that," the 44-year-old said ahead of his 24th US Open tilt.
"I can take a lot out of 2016 and the fact that I did OK that week and maybe not just because of playing here, but just generally playing a lot of tough Opens and understanding how to manage the frustrations.
"That's tough to handle at a US Open. It's hard to rattle off a couple of birdies and very easy to make some big numbers, so just managing yourself is really important and I'll be leaning into that experience here."
The Oakmont course has undergone some significant renovations since Dustin Johnson won nine years ago.
"I actually like the changes that have been made. I think it's an improvement," Scott said.
"I don't think it's necessarily easier, but the balance of the golf course is generally better since 2016.
"The fairways have more room in the right areas and the greens are a little bigger.
"It doesn't mean it's easier actually. They're still very severe, but it feels like the overall proportions and balance of the golf course feels a little more playable."
Scott is feeling optimistic about his chances after tidying up some chinks since the PGA Championship but acknowledges the unique challenge Oakmont presents.
"Putting is a big key," he said on the eve of his 96th consecutive major appearance stretching back to 2001.
"It can save you on the day when you're not quite hitting it so well, so you know you want to want to have that dial and that's tough around here.
"There's a lot of movement on the green. Almost have to be a little bit more creative and more free.
"We're quite structured these days as pros and very robotic, and it's helpful here to get out of that mindset and just have some fun with some crazy putts.
"I've played a lot of US Opens now and I feel fairly confident in my ability to get it done and I like where my game's at generally.
"I have a quiet confidence."
Fellow former world No.1 Jason Day, 2025 PGA Tour winner Min Woo Lee, revitalised Monday qualifier Marc Leishman, his LIV Golf Ripper GC teammate Cameron Smith and Cam Davis round out Australia's six-strong challenge.
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The first shot of the 125th US Open embodied so much of what this championship is about. Matt Vogt, an Indiana dentist who went through 54 holes of qualifying, sent his tee shot soaring into the rough at Oakmont. Vogt, who once caddied at Oakmont before moving on to root canals, managed to use the severe slope of the first fairway for his ball to tumble onto the green for a par. There are high expectations everywhere at the major known as the toughest test in golf — for Scottie Scheffler, the world No.1; for Bryson DeChambeau, the defending champion; and for everyone to face an Oakmont course reputed to be the toughest in the land. "Oakmont is relentless," said John Bodenhamer, the chief championships officer at the USGA who sets up the course. "There's no let up. It's a grind. That's the US Open." The USGA is particularly fond of Oakmont, a big reason why the U.S. Open returns to his course for a record 10th time. It has been on the minds of all 156 players — from Scheffler and Masters champion Rory McIlroy to the 15 amateurs, and for the 16 players, like Vogt, who had to make it through 18 holes of local qualifying and then 36 holes. Zac Blair had the first birdie of this championship, holing a putt from nearly 45 feet on the 10th hole after starting his round on the back nine. Alistair Docherty suffered the first of what figures to be plenty of crashes. From just short of the 10th green, it took him two hacks to get it out of the cabbage-like rough, the second chip rolling and rolling some 12 feet by the hole. That's what Oakmont does — thick, gnarly rough and some of the fastest putting surfaces around. The USGA pointed out on the eve of the championship that only 27 of the 1,385 players who have competed in a major championship at Oakmont finished under par. The first shot of the 125th US Open embodied so much of what this championship is about. Matt Vogt, an Indiana dentist who went through 54 holes of qualifying, sent his tee shot soaring into the rough at Oakmont. Vogt, who once caddied at Oakmont before moving on to root canals, managed to use the severe slope of the first fairway for his ball to tumble onto the green for a par. There are high expectations everywhere at the major known as the toughest test in golf — for Scottie Scheffler, the world No.1; for Bryson DeChambeau, the defending champion; and for everyone to face an Oakmont course reputed to be the toughest in the land. "Oakmont is relentless," said John Bodenhamer, the chief championships officer at the USGA who sets up the course. "There's no let up. It's a grind. That's the US Open." The USGA is particularly fond of Oakmont, a big reason why the U.S. Open returns to his course for a record 10th time. It has been on the minds of all 156 players — from Scheffler and Masters champion Rory McIlroy to the 15 amateurs, and for the 16 players, like Vogt, who had to make it through 18 holes of local qualifying and then 36 holes. Zac Blair had the first birdie of this championship, holing a putt from nearly 45 feet on the 10th hole after starting his round on the back nine. Alistair Docherty suffered the first of what figures to be plenty of crashes. From just short of the 10th green, it took him two hacks to get it out of the cabbage-like rough, the second chip rolling and rolling some 12 feet by the hole. That's what Oakmont does — thick, gnarly rough and some of the fastest putting surfaces around. The USGA pointed out on the eve of the championship that only 27 of the 1,385 players who have competed in a major championship at Oakmont finished under par. The first shot of the 125th US Open embodied so much of what this championship is about. Matt Vogt, an Indiana dentist who went through 54 holes of qualifying, sent his tee shot soaring into the rough at Oakmont. Vogt, who once caddied at Oakmont before moving on to root canals, managed to use the severe slope of the first fairway for his ball to tumble onto the green for a par. There are high expectations everywhere at the major known as the toughest test in golf — for Scottie Scheffler, the world No.1; for Bryson DeChambeau, the defending champion; and for everyone to face an Oakmont course reputed to be the toughest in the land. "Oakmont is relentless," said John Bodenhamer, the chief championships officer at the USGA who sets up the course. "There's no let up. It's a grind. That's the US Open." The USGA is particularly fond of Oakmont, a big reason why the U.S. Open returns to his course for a record 10th time. It has been on the minds of all 156 players — from Scheffler and Masters champion Rory McIlroy to the 15 amateurs, and for the 16 players, like Vogt, who had to make it through 18 holes of local qualifying and then 36 holes. Zac Blair had the first birdie of this championship, holing a putt from nearly 45 feet on the 10th hole after starting his round on the back nine. Alistair Docherty suffered the first of what figures to be plenty of crashes. From just short of the 10th green, it took him two hacks to get it out of the cabbage-like rough, the second chip rolling and rolling some 12 feet by the hole. That's what Oakmont does — thick, gnarly rough and some of the fastest putting surfaces around. The USGA pointed out on the eve of the championship that only 27 of the 1,385 players who have competed in a major championship at Oakmont finished under par. The first shot of the 125th US Open embodied so much of what this championship is about. Matt Vogt, an Indiana dentist who went through 54 holes of qualifying, sent his tee shot soaring into the rough at Oakmont. Vogt, who once caddied at Oakmont before moving on to root canals, managed to use the severe slope of the first fairway for his ball to tumble onto the green for a par. There are high expectations everywhere at the major known as the toughest test in golf — for Scottie Scheffler, the world No.1; for Bryson DeChambeau, the defending champion; and for everyone to face an Oakmont course reputed to be the toughest in the land. "Oakmont is relentless," said John Bodenhamer, the chief championships officer at the USGA who sets up the course. "There's no let up. It's a grind. That's the US Open." The USGA is particularly fond of Oakmont, a big reason why the U.S. Open returns to his course for a record 10th time. It has been on the minds of all 156 players — from Scheffler and Masters champion Rory McIlroy to the 15 amateurs, and for the 16 players, like Vogt, who had to make it through 18 holes of local qualifying and then 36 holes. Zac Blair had the first birdie of this championship, holing a putt from nearly 45 feet on the 10th hole after starting his round on the back nine. Alistair Docherty suffered the first of what figures to be plenty of crashes. From just short of the 10th green, it took him two hacks to get it out of the cabbage-like rough, the second chip rolling and rolling some 12 feet by the hole. That's what Oakmont does — thick, gnarly rough and some of the fastest putting surfaces around. The USGA pointed out on the eve of the championship that only 27 of the 1,385 players who have competed in a major championship at Oakmont finished under par.
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