The United States Golf Association, which conducts the U.S. Open, announced on Wednesday that Pinehurst, a North Carolina resort and cradle of American golf, would become the first venue designated as a recurring site for the tournament. The resort’s showcase course, known as Pinehurst No. 2, was already scheduled to host the event in 2024 but will now also have the championship in 2029, 2035, 2041 and 2047.
The U.S. Open, one of golf’s four major championships, has been played 119 times at golf courses around the country, with several venerable layouts making regular appearances. Next week, for example, the 2020 U.S. Open will be contested at Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck, N.Y., for the sixth time.
But as part of the U.S.G.A.’s goal to hold its signature event more frequently at revered, familiar golf courses, the Pinehurst Resort and Country Club has been established as an anchor site. In addition, other U.S.G.A. championships, including the U.S. Women’s Open, U.S. Senior Open, U.S. Women’s Amateur and the U.S. Amateur, will be played there more frequently.
The association also announced that its influential equipment testing facility, a laboratory that determines which golf balls and clubs conform to the rules of golf, will move from the U.S.G.A.’s main headquarters in New Jersey to North Carolina. A museum and a visitor’s center will also be part of the association’s presence at Pinehurst by 2023. The bulk of the U.S.G.A.’s staff will remain at the organization’s current New Jersey headquarters.
“There is no better place for the U.S.G.A. to plant new roots,” Mike Davis, the U.S.G.A.’s chief executive, said in a statement. He added: “We are taking a bold step forward and forging a long-term commitment that will elevate our championships, foster greater innovation in golf, and ultimately help grow the game.”
Source: Golf - nytimes.com
