It was in 2011 when Keegan Bradley won the first and only major of his career, the PGA Championship. That was the first win of his career, and he has since triumphed on the PGA Tour six more times. However, the veteran golfer has struggled to replicate his success and compete for another major win in the 14 years since. Bradley has had a few top-10 finishes to his name, but he hasn’t been convincing enough to be considered a serious contender for another illustrious title.
Coming back to the present, the Team U.S. captain for the 2025 Ryder Cup was on the field for both the majors of the season so far. In the Masters, he missed the cut with a 3-over par. The 2025 PGA Championship was a far more fruitful outing for Bradley as he finished at T8 despite a 7-stroke deficit between him and Scottie Scheffler. With only a couple of weeks left for the 2025 U.S. Open, the 38-year-old shared his opinion about the trip to Oakmont Country Club in the next few days.
In a Press Conference for the 2025 Memorial Tournament, Bradley was asked, “I bet you can’t wait to get to Hartford?” The reporter was inquiring about the Travelers Championship that is scheduled a week after the U.S. Open. The 7-time PGA Tour winner has given some great performances at TPC River Highlands. He also won the 2023 Travelers Championship while playing there.
Bradley responded with, “Yeah, yeah (laughing). Yeah, I was thinking today on the golf course, like, it’s going to be fun to play Hartford after this week and U.S. Open, yeah.” While the trip to Connecticut’s capital might be on his mind, he is certainly focused on the next big challenge that lies ahead, the 2025 U.S. Open. That prompted the journalist to question, “When is the last time you were at Oakmont?” The 2011 PGA Championship winner responded with “The U.S. Open,” as he participated in the 2016 U.S. Open at Oakmont CC.
Intrigued by the response, the reporter tried to dig further into the 38-year-old’s thoughts as he questioned him about the challenges on the course. Bradley honestly responded with “Yeah, I was going to go, and then I decided against it because it’s, like — it’s just going to be so brutal, and the course is actually very straightforward. From what I remember, it’s hit the driver as straight as you can and try to hit every green, and try to make some putts. I don’t know, there’s not much of a mystery to it.”
Bradley’s last visit to the Oakmont Country Club was quite challenging. He shot a 9-over par that was riddled with 6 bogeys, 2 double bogeys, and only 1 birdie in 18 holes. In the end, the Woodstock local missed the cut and exited the tournament early. As he described it, the fairways on the course in Texas are quite narrow, which makes it quite challenging for golfers to find the short grass.
The reporter further pressed on what Bradley thinks about the course by asking, “What’s the problem there?” The PGA Tour pro simply replied, “I don’t know. It’s going to take a lot, a lot, a lot, a lot of good shots.” Looks like the PGA Tour pros are up for a horror show going into the third major of the season. The 2025 U.S. Open is only days away, and everyone will be focused on improving their driving accuracy to ensure they give themselves a shot at winning the prestigious tournament.
Viktor Hovland and Jack Nicklaus have also spoken about the dangers that lie in some of the holes at Oakmont CC. They recollect the dreadful 300-yard 8th hole and the par-5s that have seen many victims score bogeys and more.
Hovland said, “You got a certain target here and then you got to hit a shot around there and make a par and get out of there instead of a shorter par-3 that entices you to get close to it, but if you’re a little bit off, you’re either in the water or in a short-sided spot or if you bail out, yeah, you still have a tricky little putt.” The narrow green and the water body that surrounds it certainly take the challenge up a notch at the 8th hole. The G.O.A.T., who won the 1962 U.S. Open, beating the late, great Arnold Palmer in the playoffs at Oakmont, also said, “I think it’s difficult to make a good, long par-3. I think it’s a very difficult thing to have a hole where you’re standing back, hitting a wood at a par-3.” The two legends were tied at 1-under before playing the 73rd hole for the title.
Aug 25, 2023; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Keegan Bradley follows his shot from the sixth tee during the second round of the TOUR Championship golf tournament at East Lake Golf Club. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports
Having said that, is the Oakmont Country Club really as challenging as Keegan Bradley has described it? The records on the iconic PGA Tour courses might give us a hint.
Keegan Bradley’s outtake on the U.S. Open course has been proven throughout history
The Oakmont Country Club is one of the most challenging courses in the United States. It has witnessed some nail-biting contests in the U.S. Open over the years. Legends like Jack Nicklaus, Ben Hogan, Johnny Miller, and Ernie Els have all triumphed while playing on the course for the second-oldest major in golf.
The U.S. Open has been played 9 times on the Texan course before this. And every time the pros have taken on the course, it has come back to bite them. Not once has the winner of the event scored better than a 5-under par. Twice in history, the champion has managed a score of 11-over or more. Sam Parks Jr.’s win in 1935 saw him beat the field with an 11-over 299 to win the major. The most strokes taken by a champion was Tommy Armour’s 13-over 301 as he beat Harry Cooper in the playoffs. Just goes to show how demanding the course is. This confirms Keegan Bradley’s worst fears and might put the PGA Tour pros on high alert.
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