Oakmont Country Club, located just outside Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was established in 1903 by Henry Fownes and later refined by Gil Hanse in 2023-24.
It’s recognized as one of the hardest, oldest, and most iconic U.S. Open venues, hosting the championship a record ten times.
Church Pew Bunkers
By far the most notorious feature is the Church Pew Bunker, a gargantuan hazard sitting between holes 3 and 4. Reaching 102 yards long and 42 yards wide, it’s filled with 13 turf-covered ridges (“pews”), each around 3 feet tall, and a sand mass exceeding 550 tons.
Originally composed of six separate bunkers, it was transformed into a single “pew” bunker between 1927–1935, and further expanded by adding ridges in 1962, before 2007, and again in 2023 under Gil Hanse.
Today’s version spans roughly 26,000 ft with 13 ridges, punishing both physically and psychologically.
“We really returned them to how they looked in the Fownes era where there is some variation and elevation of the church pews,” Mike McCormick, Oakmont’s head superintendent, said. “You might land in the sand and have a big mound in front of you, or you might have a more shallow mound in front of you.”
This trap earned its infamy when Tiger Woods famously avoided it in 2007, only to double bogey the 3rd and lose the title by one stroke to Ángel Cabrera.
GettyA general view of the third hole during a practice round prior to the 125th U.S. OPEN at Oakmont Country Club on June 10.
Piano Keys & Other Intricacies
Here are other quirks that give Oakmont its formidable character:
Piano Keys (Hole 15)
Dubbed “Piano Keys,” the bunker on Hole 15 echoes its larger sibling with smaller grass ridges. Often underestimated, it emerges as a surprise hazard and contributes to the course’s grounded intensity. According to Bleacher Nation, there are “eight grassy mounds within its lengthy confines.”
Bigmouth Bunker & Rough
Oakmont’s “Bigmouth” bunker, lurking short and right of the 17th green, is a brutal test disguised by the hole’s short par-4 yardage.
Deep enough to block all sight of the flag, it turns aggressive tee shots into blind recoveries and demands precision most players can’t muster under pressure. Combine that with Oakmont’s thick, unforgiving rough–often over five inches–and the 17th becomes a classic trap.
“The rough. It’ll be about the rough. It’s thick and consistent. I don’t believe that anybody that’s playing consistently from the rough this week will have success,” John Bodenhamer, the USGA’s chief championships officer, said.
“Where have you gone where you’ve seen a U.S. Open, let alone a major championship, where they have ditches, strategic ditches? I never have been, but Oakmont has them, and it’s magnificent.”
Greens, Ditches & Psychological Warfare
Oakmont’s greens are among the fastest and most treacherous in championship golf. Their dramatic slopes and glass-like pace have famously caused even the most precise approach shots to roll completely off the putting surfaces.
According to a Golf Monthly Article, “Historically, putting surfaces at Oakmont have regularly measured between 13-14 on the Stimpmeter, and that is where they are expected to remain this year if the wind picks up.”
Managing director of rules and Open Championships at the USGA, Jeff Hall, said, “We will play most of our golf in the mid to upper 14s, but that’s what Oakmont is all about!”
The difficulty lies not just in hitting the greens in regulation, but in holding them, reading them, and surviving them. In 1962, Sam Snead remarked that marking your ball with a coin was risky.
“They’ve always been the fastest in the game. They’ve always been the most treacherous, and they’re spectacularly special,” Bodenhamer said.
Adding to the challenge are the restored drainage ditches that bisect several holes. These “strategic ditches” come into play in subtle but cruel ways, often punishing marginal misses and turning solid rounds into struggles.
Mentally, Oakmont wears players down. The course doesn’t just test skill, it tests resilience. The narrow fairways, brutal rough, lightning-fast greens, and devastating bunkers create a layout where there is little opportunity to recover.
It’s a course that demands perfection but rarely allows it, forcing players to grind for every par and accept the inevitability of bogeys. This psychological toll is what sets Oakmont apart—it doesn’t just beat players physically, it exhausts them mentally.
“Oakmont is relentless,” Bodenhamer said. “There’s no letup. It’s a grind. That’s the U.S. Open.”
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