Wide fairways don’t necessarily make LACC any easier

The fairways at this year’s U.S. Open at Los Angeles Country Club’s North course will be much wider than normally seen in the national championship. Don’t let that fool you into thinking they necessarily will be easier to hit – at least in the proper spots.

Designed by George C. Thomas Jr. and opened in 1928, LACC’s North Course was restored in 2010 by a team led by Gil Hanse, Jim Wagner and Geoff Shackelford. They removed stands of trees that lined fairways and reintroduced width as Thomas intended on the rolling property that features several gnarly barrancas near Beverly Hills. The layout ranks No. 2 in California on Golfweek’s Best list of private courses in each state, and it is No. 14 among all classic courses in the U.S.

Several of the fairways on the North Course are 50 to 60 yards wide in places, much wider than the normal corridors implemented by the U.S. Golf Association in many past championships. Some past U.S. Open courses have featured fairways an average of about 25 yards wide, often with prime spots less than 20 yards wide and surrounded by thick rough.

Width is a golf architect’s dream, as it promotes strategic play. Golfers must play to certain areas in the fairways to set up the best angles of attack, and the greater the width of the fairway, the more that smart players can take advantage. Such design creates interest and requires thought, tempting players to aim for the edges of wide fairways instead of just carelessly blasting drivers down the middle.

LACC North has plenty of width, to be sure, with some fairways pinching just a bit the farther a player hits a tee ball. But don’t confuse it with mindlessly bashing balls on a driving range. Thomas took advantage of the natural features to make these fairways play much skinnier than they look, and the USGA can’t wait to show off how LACC plays.

“What the architect George C. Thomas intended on this masterpiece, we will leave intact,” John Bodenhamer, the USGA’s chief championship officer, said during a recent media event at LACC. “Sure, we’ll come in and we’ll narrow up a few fairways. We’ll play the greens a little bit more speedier than the members would. And we’ll set a few difficult hole locations. We’ll put a little bit of a U.S. Open feel to it. But we will deliver what George C. Thomas intended to be at Los Angeles Country Club.”