1. Struggle or bust
We are conditioned to seeing suffering at the U.S. Open, the unrelenting course setups of years past priming the masses for the sight of more frustration. When it doesn't happen? We scream.
No other major championship has set itself up for this kind of scrutiny. The Masters at Augusta National has widely variable scoring, and nobody seems to mind.
Henrik Stenson and Phil Mickelson each shot a 63 in The Open last year at Troon, with Stenson finishing at 20 under par, Mickelson 17 under. We hailed it as a great duel, even though one of the game's storied links courses was battered.
The PGA Championship can vary greatly in how course setup dictates scoring.
At the U.S. Open? We're left wondering whether Erin Hills is worthy of the tournament.
The United States Golf Association more or less has itself to blame for this predicament, having for so long set a standard that suggested par was a good score. At times, it seems, the USGA went to great lengths to protect par, and while players often grumbled, the masochists rejoiced.
Brooks Koepka's U.S. Open record-tying score in relation to par of 16 under had many moaning about the ease of Erin Hills. The 133 below-par rounds surpassed the previous record of 124 at Medinah in 1990.
There were a whopping 31 players under par at the conclusion of the tournament, compared to just four last year at Oakmont, when Dustin Johnson won at 4 under.
All of it left some golf fans feeling a bit cheated.
2. Player praise
Of course, you didn't hear many complaints from the players. They mostly praised Erin Hills and suggested it should get another U.S. Open. They appreciated how the course was set up and were fine with the low numbers, acknowledging that had the wind blown all four days, the scoring would have been considerably different.
"I think this is an awesome golf course," Jordan Spieth said. "I think that's been the consensus from everybody."
Rain early in the week and again Friday night softened the course, which is always going to help scoring. So did the fact that a course designed for wind didn't get much until Sunday. Those fairways were wide in anticipation of heavy wind. When it didn't blow, players were able to attack, even though the course measured close to 7,900 yards.
"Not your typical U.S. Open setup," said Rory McIlroy, who missed the cut. "But I'm a big fan."
Another thing to keep in mind: Koepka's winning total was 272, a number skewed because for the first time since 1992, the U.S. Open played a course that was par-72. Last year at Oakmont, Johnson was 4 under on a par-70 course. His total was 276 -- just four shots more than Koepka, or one per day. The average of the past three U.S. Open winners before Sunday was 274.
3. Will it come back?
For Erin Hills to get another U.S. Open, at least 10 years will pass. The next nine are already awarded, and USGA executive director Mike Davis said last week that an announcement for 2027 will come in the next few months. One theory for that year is Oakland Hills in Michigan, a venerable course that has hosted several U.S. Opens and PGA Championships.
Davis acknowledged last week that Erin Hills would not be able to provide something the USGA was looking for, simply because of the weather.
"We like a firm, fast golf course, where you really have to think about what happens when the ball lands," Davis said. "But we're likely not going to get that this week. We will take player feedback as part of it. We'll use our own observations. Outside the ropes, how did the community, the state and the country embrace the event?"
It won't be an easy decision, but certainly the USGA can learn from this year. Steve Stricker suggested narrowing the fairways and making the fescue less thick. Certainly time and more events will help in the process.
4. The new drug-testing policy
It didn't take long for new PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan to get a more strict drug-testing policy in place for next season. Why it wasn't more of a priority to previous commissioner Tim Finchem is a mystery, but in fairness, these decisions are not made by one man. The players and the tour's policy board must sign off.
Still, it is significant for several reasons. The tour will now follow World Anti-Doping Agency guidelines, start doing blood tests so it can test for human growth hormone and announce recreational drug (or drugs of abuse) suspensions, a departure from the past.
"As we have looked at other programs throughout the industry, the anti-doping community, it is a fairly common practice to announce suspensions in relation to drugs of abuse," said Andy Levinson, the PGA Tour's vice president for tournament administration and anti-doping. "While we do feel they are separate in nature, performance-enhancing vs. drugs of abuse, we felt like this was a prudent change in our policy."
In the past, if a player failed a drug test that was not for a performance-enhancing substance, it fell under the tour's "conduct unbecoming a professional" provision, and penalties were not announced. Now if there is a suspension for drugs of abuse, the tour will make it known.
5. Taking ownership
It is never easy to follow a low round, and Justin Thomas found that out the hard way Sunday at Erin Hills. On Saturday he tied the U.S. Open and major championship scoring record with a 63 and was a shot out of the lead entering the final round.
But playing in the last group with Brian Harman, Thomas faded with a 75 on Sunday and offered no excuses. "That was the best I could have shot," he said. "I just didn't have it."
Awesome experience being in the final group today, bummed I didn't play better, but man did @BKoepka earn that W. Congrats bro!
— Justin Thomas (@JustinThomas34) June 19, 2017
6. Little tournament that could
It should come as no surprise that this week's Travelers Championship managed to lure the likes of Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth and Jason Day. While the tour's new policy that requires players to compete in at least one tournament they have not visited for four years is likely part of the reason, so is the reputation the tournament has gained over the years despite a poor date.
When Travelers signed on as title sponsor a decade ago, the company embraced the week after the U.S. Open and tried to turn a negative into positive. It typically provides some form of transportation from the U.S. Open and tries to make the most of the experience. More often than not, the tournament has prospered, and this year it has garnered a field others can only dream about.
7. Numbers game
Brooks Koepka's stats in winning the U.S. Open go a long way toward telling the story. He hit 62 of 72 greens to rank first in the field, a performance that is always going to matter at the U.S. Open. He also hit 49 of 56 fairways, which means he was rarely having to worry about scrambling for par, and ranked fourth in the field. A driving distance of 322.1, seventh best, didn't hurt. He needed 123 putts, which was only 51st in the field but of course skewed by the fact that he hit so many greens.
8. Rewards
The tournament within the tournament -- if you can't win the U.S. Open, you at least want to get back. That's why finishing in the top 10 is such a big deal. It assures a return exemption in 2018 at Shinnecock Hills. Several of the players who finished among the top 10, such as Justin Thomas, have numerous other ways to qualify.
But those top-10 finishes could come in handy for Tommy Fleetwood, Xander Schauffele, Charley Hoffman and Trey Mullinax.
A top-four finish also means an invitation to the 2018 Masters, so Fleetwood, who finished fourth, can expect a nice envelope with an Augusta postmark around the first of the year. Schauffele missed the top four by one stroke.
9. A shoutout from the Black Knight
Gary Player, 1965 U.S. Open champion, was apparently impressed with Brooks Koepka's victory.
@BKoepka is simply a beast. Love it...
— Gary Player (@garyplayer) June 17, 2017